Today I wanted to share with you some thoughts around personal and professional development. I feel it is important to be continually learning, but it is also important to put it into practice. We can spend so much time learning, learning, learning, but if we don’t start using what we are learning – what was the point in learning it in the first place?

There are many ways that you can undertake personal development. For example, it might be that you block out a set time each day/week and go for a walk or to the gym. Maybe you prefer yoga or Pilates. Or maybe you shut off all notifications and read a book instead.

For me, I spend time most mornings reading a daily devotional and I try to incorporate a walk at lunchtime or a trip to the gym. I have a few podcasts I like to listen to and my favourite playlist on Spotify, I try to eat healthy options and drink water [there’s water in cups of tea!?! ;-)].

There are also many ways you can undertake professional development. With access to the internet, there are plenty of short courses, YouTube videos, webinars, as well as in-person workshops/seminars, books, journals/papers to take part in or read. The list goes on.

I know personally, that since starting my business this year, my knowledge has grown in different areas. I have needed to learn certain tech based things to help my customers solve problems (thanks Google and YouTube). This has helped me recognise that there are other gaps in my tech knowledge. To solve this, I have joined a course that will teach me different ways to set up and automate programs, saving me time/money and of course, expanding my knowledge.

I have also joined a variety of Facebook groups, allowing me to reach out to other people who have had similar issues within their business. This gives me an opportunity to learn from others.

For the first year of being in business, I am part of a government program that also gives me access to a mentor, who regularly checks in with me to offer guidance and sets some tasks to help me improve my messaging, marketing and reach.

When running a business I think it is important to spend time to do both the personal and the professional development. The more you can understand about yourself and your business, the better the both areas can function.

I am interested to hear about how and what areas you are focusing on at the moment. Feel free to let me know by leaving a comment.