Have some time on your hands since you are now working from home? Were there professional development activities you have wanted to do, but could never find the time? We outline five, and share some tips.

 

Unless you live a stone’s throw from your workplace, commuting to work – whether walking, driving, or taking the train – can be time consuming. As more of us are now working from home, we might easily be saving a good two and four hours daily in just trying to get to and from work.

Further, the nonstop meetings and interruptions that might disrupt your flow may not be as frequent, and so allow you to focus more fully on the tasks at hand and become even more productive. Although the temptation might be to watch TV, surf the Internet or browse social media more than you already do, that ‘free time’ could be better spent attending to things that might be on your ‘to-do list’, but never had the time to address.

Most of the activities suggested below are geared towards your professional development: things you know would help to better position you and/or your business, but you just had not gotten around to doing. With perhaps a bit more time on your hands, make a plan, and let’s get them done!

 

1.  Take some short courses

Continued professional development has become even more important as job markets become more competitive, and employers aim to select candidates that are likely to give them the best bang for their buck. Upskilling, which could include learning new skills, securing certifications, or even re-certifying, have become crucial when negotiating a salary increase, or to make you more marketable within your current organisation, or with new prospects.

There are dozens of online course academies, with many offering free courses, or require payment of a nominal fee. Further, highly recognised and prestigious universities, such as ivy league institutions in the United States, are now also catering to a global and online audience. In other words, there is a lot of choice – in terms of the topic or subjects available, the types of programme, the duration, and even the institution that would be delivering the course.

 

2.  Set up or update your website

Having an online presence, such as a website, can be an excellent way to market yourself, and/or your business. For many of us, we see a website as a static platform – where we do very little after it has been made live. However, like many areas in the tech space, things are continually changing and evolving. Styles that might have been acceptable five years ago, now seem archaic, which is also a reflection of you and/or business.

Invariably, now would be an excellent time to refresh the site. A few questions you could ask yourself in order to get the ball rolling include:

  • Is the current content on the website still relevant?
  • Are there new developments, such as new product or service offerings, updated terms of service, updated privacy policy, articles, or updates, that should be added to the site?
  • Does the website have a modern layout, or a modern look and feel?
  • Could the photos and images be refreshed?
  • Does the website support the strategy I am implementing, or plan to implement?

On the other hand, some of us might have planned to set up a website, but never found the time to actually get it done. Start the process now. Give some thought to:

  • the content you would like to have on the site, and how it could be arranged
  • your style and aesthetic that you might wish the site to reflect
  • the colour scheme(s) you would like incorporated into the site
  • whether you want to build the site yourself, or hire a developer to do so.

In the event you plan to build the site yourself, well done! If still need to brush up on your skills, there are hundreds of courses, and even articles, that can help you develop the skills you might need. The key is to be systematic in your approach, break down this activity into manageable tasks, and to give yourself some deadlines, in order to stay motivated.

 

4. Update your CV

We never think about our CVs unless we are either out of a job or looking for a new job. However, your CV is an excellent place to document your progression in your current position and your achievements. In not updating your CV on a regular basis, you are likely to forget or overlook some of the important opportunities or experiences you have had, or even new skills you have developed, or might be in the process of developing.

Many of us think of a CV as a document that employers request as part of their application process. However, it can be more than that. You can use your CV as a journal of your professional life.

To do so, create a ‘master CV’, in which you will record all of the experiences you have had, skills you are developing, and achievements to date. This master CV may never need to be shared, but it will be the basis for all of different versions of your CVs and resumés, you may need to create, to suit the job or project for which you are applying.

 

4. Update your LinkedIn profile

Although many of us have established LinkedIn accounts, frequently, our profiles are not complete or not as comprehensive as it should be. To be fair, some of us are still wary about how much information we share online – and rightfully so. However, we are also living in a time when, if as a professional you do not have an online presence or profile, that can also be a less than favourable reflection on you.

Further, it must be noted that the practice these days is to research someone even before you meet them in person. Hence, you may have missed a number of opportunities because people – such as recruiters or prospective partners or collaborators – cannot get a sense of who you are. You are thus more likely to be eliminated from consideration, even before there is any direct engagement.

Hence, spend some time completing your profile, and remember to upload a professional-headshot. Thereafter, you might want to build your network, and even publishing posts on the platform, to begin to demonstrate your domain expertise, thus strengthening your network and your visibility on the site.

 

5.  Optimise your devices

Finally, and admittedly, this activity is not directly related to your continued professional development. However, in working from home, you may not have the office’s IT department at your beck and call. Although unforeseen and cataclysmic things can happen to your computing devices rendering them inoperable, more often than not, we tend to experience a slow degradation in their performance, which is not only frustrating but also can hinder your overall productivity.

Depending on your device and operating system, you might be able to get specific advice on ways you can optimise and maintain your device’s performance. However, some of the basics would include:

  • deleting unused applications
  • closing multiple browser windows
  • emptying the trash/recycle bin
  • checking regularly for viruses, spyware and malware
  • delete unnecessary files
  • clear system cache.

 

Good luck!

 

 

Image credit:   Gerd Altmann (Pixabay)

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