Ongoing learning is so important.
Some of us are naturally born learners.
Others of us have less of a hunger but still value it.
We are constantly told in Speech Pathology that we need to upskill, keep on top of evidence based practice and have ongoing learning to maintain our registration.
But how do we choose the right PD for us?
It’s so easy to have FOMO when we jump into a facebook group and read about the PD event everyone is attending. Or scroll Instagram stories to see behind the scenes of a PD and feel like we are missing out. These feelings are 100% real but they are not a good reason to want to attend.
Working out which PD to go to can be tricky. We need to account for the time to attend, even if that means watching the replay.
It’s tempting to only register for the free PD’s, but often they only skim the surface of what we need to know so we are left unsatisfied or seeking deeper knowledge.
We need to budget for our PD and if we work for others, we need to justify why we are attending. If we employ staff, we need to put aside not just the cost of the PD but also their wages for the day/s and factor in the revenue lost.
Whichever way you look at it, serious consideration needs to go into what you are investing in.
I find one way to decide on PD is by looking at your current skills and the gaps in them. This way you can identify areas that you want to be more proficient at or delve deeper into. This will allow you to make a bigger impact and be considered more of an expert in that area.
Another way is to look at your caseload. Which clients are keeping you up at night? What therapy tools or techniques would make your practise better? This is another great way to decide on PD.
I also like to look at the value of conferences vs a single topic PD.
Conferences are fantastic as they give you the latest information, tools and resources. They also give you an opportunity to network and spend time with your peers. However, you can often leave amped up on lots of information that will take time and effort to disseminate and apply into everyday practice.
Single topic PD’s are great for deep learning. You get to learn from an expert and you get to walk away with new skills and your questions answered. You also get an opportunity to think about exactly which clients you will use these new skills with and implementation into your clinical practise is far quicker and easier.
But if you are still struggling to work out what to attend, especially when new online conferences are popping up all the time, know that you are not alone.
I have a free resource to get you started on mapping out how to decide and plan out your PD’s. You can access that via this link.
You can also join my waitlist for a live workshop on this exact topic by registering on this link.
Both these resources will help you plan out your PD so that you can save time and money by investing in the learning that is right for you.
Because that’s what PD is actually about.
Getting you the knowledge and skills you need at the right time, in the right way.
