Have you heard of the term CPD? Do you know what it means, and, more importantly, do you know what it involves?
CPD stands for Continued Personal/Professional Development. In short, it means that you continue to study after you finish school, college or graduate from university. There are a number of professions that, once you achieve a pass mark in the basic qualifications, will be the start of a lifetime of study, for example, a solicitor, a doctor or a planner. What about your profession? Do you need to embark on CPD?
If your profession does not demand Continued Professional Development, have you made the decision to discontinue studying? To have a successful career, we advocate a continued approach to education/studies. Continued Professional Development is there to help you excel in your chosen field. CPD will also keep you abreast of the latest trends, legal changes and current business relationships, which ultimately could give you an advantage over your colleagues.
Education never stops
Making a personal decision to continue your education/studies and improve your knowledge in your chosen field may become a prerequisite for your employment. An example of this is the IT Industry. Information Technology is changing all the time and good developers, support staff and programmers need to keep abreast of current technology, languages and innovations. If you decided to terminate your studies, this could have a detrimental effect on your career.
Once you have made the decision to continue with your education, what should you do? There are a number of organisations that can facilitate your education. The only decision you need to make will be, which route suits your personal circumstances:
Online training courses
Studies in a classroom setting – often given by trade bodies
Correspondence courses
Seminars and Open days
Trade Federations
Professional Magazines in a chosen field
What is CPD for your occupation?
You could be in an occupation where CPD is not required. Nevertheless, this does not mean that further study is not for you. It could be advantageous for you to engage in a study course with a local college or night class in one of the hobbies you enjoy for example, cooking or sewing. Furthermore, you could learn a new skill, for example, car maintenance.
Further, more studying has a number of wonderful side effects. You could meet new people, gain skills and, more importantly, keep your brain active. Indeed, the Alzheimer’s community have suggested that keeping your brain active could help prevent many mind degenerative disease.
All studying requires is your dedication to the course, you will be receptive to new concepts, your time and the drive to become successful.
The term firewall is thrown about by those in the know about computer security, but what is it?
In the most general of terms, a firewall is a defence measure that your computer uses in an effort to protect itself from unwanted programmes and outside access to your computer. Think of it as a kind of filter that guards you against the dangers of the internet.
How does a Firewall work?
A firewall works by comparing information to a set of rules. For instance, if a website or online (more…)
When you think of a PA or a Secretary, you immediately think of someone organised, who is ultra-efficient and has their hand on the heartbeat of the department or their Boss’s Day. In effect, being proactive. Being Proactive is management speech stating that ‘a person is creating or controlling a situation rather than just responding to it after it has happened’. (more…)
During your appraisal or work performance interview, you may be asked to set some SMART Objectives or goals for your future development within the company or department. Goal setting is of particular importance for a PA and Secretary if you want a promotion to become an Executive PA. When setting goals, it is always advisable to ensure that the goals set are easy to understand and attainable by you. However, the goals should also tax you and ensure that you stretch your current skill base to learn something new.
I am a great believer in continued professional development and, as a result, I listen to some podcasts on different business practices. This evening, I was listening to a podcast by an Australian  Pro-blogger called Darren Rowse. He made an interesting
New Year’s Resolutions
suggestion about a New Year’s Resolution you could make. Further, how you could make a slight change this year and, turn the idea on its head. This is a fascinating concept for PAs, Secretaries and Executive PA in a business environment as we spend most of our time looking after other people. In his podcast, he suggested that instead of making a New Year’s resolution about you and what you are going to do this year or stop this year; you should turn it around and make the resolution about how you can help other people, yet stay within your chosen resolution. I would also add, to help you advance your chosen career.
Depending on your company internal calendar of events and procedures the appraisal process isn’t that far away. Most appraisals start in March/April in preparation for the new financial year. For a PA,
EA and Secretary this is the time when the task of organising appraisals or preparing for appraisals starts. It is, however, worth noting that the business year begins April (often referred to as the New Financial Year), so the business year has another three months to run, (the last quarter). It is, therefore, time to start thinking about what you want to achieve in the final quarter of the financial year and what you want to achieve in the coming year.
Welcome to our online magazine from Julie and the team. If you have been on one of Julie’s training courses, you know she is passionate about PA, EAs and Secretaries being the best they can be. She also has very strong opinions about what a PA, EA and Secretary should and shouldn’t do. If you have a question, or would like to add an article, please get in touch. We would love to hear from you.
