By Susanne Markgren, Digital Services Librarian at Purchase College, State University of New York

“Life isn’t about finding yourself; it’s about creating yourself.”
– George Bernard Shaw

Planning for the future is something that always seems like a good idea, but we are often too busy trying to survive in the present to even think about where we are headed — or where we may end up.

Our profession is always changing, and so are our jobs. We cannot stay static in an adaptive field, and we cannot depend on always having the same job we were hired into, whether that was five months ago or fifteen years ago. We need to manage our careers in order to maintain our existing jobs, or move into the next one. It’s important to take the time to assess our skills and then translate them into the language of the jobs we want.
Reconsidering Professional Development

When we think of professional development, we may think of activities we sign up for and associations that take our dues. We may join and participate to make ourselves feel good about staying motivated, keeping current, and becoming more engaged in our work and our jobs (or job searches) through committees, classes, and conferences.

But professional development is really just another name for career management. Rather than considering professional development a perk or a requirement of a job, it should be a deliberate, intentional, and essential component of everyone’s career. Read more….