Thinking about Professional Development

I had the great privilege of serving on the faculty at the Regional Entry Level Institute through UMR-ACUHO in June. It was an incredibly valuable development opportunity for me and a great way to connect with new housing professionals in the region.

My topic was "Professional Development," and the topic seemed so vast and limitless that I was worried about shaping a session within the 90-minute time-frame. And if that wasn't enough, I presented in the final slot of the week, so I enjoyed hearing throughout the week "Charlie, maybe you'll touch on this during your session" and seeing my list of topics and ideas grow by the hour!

This gave me a chance to reflect on my own professional development. Within 7 years of finishing my master's degree program, I was starting my fourth job (Area Coordinator, Associate Director in activities, Associate Director in residence life and now my current job) and I had been so caught up in doing the things I thought I needed to do to get the next job that I hadn't take time to really think about how I'd grown professionally. Seems like incongruous thinking, but it's true.

So my session allowed me to talk about the things I had thought about over the last 10 years but never really said.

We defined professional development in our own lives by doing some mind-mapping. We talked about professional development being about finding where "personal interest" meets "institutional need." We talked about the high level of personal accountability required to develop as a professional - your supervisor and institution will hopefully support and provide resources, but YOU are responsible for taking advantage of opportunities.

Some things I want to share about the presentation:

-The best professional development is doing your job damn well.
-Use the competencies (CAS, ACPA/NASPA, ACUHO-I) as a guide.
-Conferences are only worth it if you bring ideas back and put them into action!
-Social Media is vital to your creating and cultivating a professional network. Be authentic!
-Write write write. Start a blog, share ideas, write about it and do it well.
-Mentors don't seek you out. You have to take initiative to find a mentor/coach.
-The "soft skills" (critical self-reflection, interpersonal communicaton, political savvy) get little attention but will make or break your career!

Here's a link to the actual presentation.

What would you tell a new professional about what "professional development" means to you? How often do you really reflect on your professional development experiences?