Make the most of winter break!

 How you can you help your education career over the Winter Break:

• Whether you’re actively job hunting or not, use the down time to update your resume, and LinkedIn profile. Members of my ReformED tribe get free access to my Uplevel Your Professional Brand guide to creating these and other professional branding pieces.

• Review your network and make a list of people with whom you haven’t connected with in awhile but would like to catch up with in the New Year. Include people who can help you advance your career, whose career you can help advance, and people whose values, work ethic, and accomplishments you admire.

• Do some career reflecting. Think about what things you value most in life – anything from supporting others to be better versions of themselves or advocating for justice for marginalized groups to Bikram yoga, spending time with family, or exploring trendy restaurants. Then, assess whether your current job and career path align with your values. Find any misalignments? You’ve made the first steps in making improvements simply by getting clear on what you want. (Pro Tip: One of my favorite “alignment check” tools is Danielle LaPorte’s The Desire Map that explores how you want to “feel” in all aspects of your life.)

• Develop your personal professional development plan for the year to come. What skills do you want to gain? What new things do you want to learn? Who do you want to learn from in the year to come? Use the break to explore online or university courses, conferences, learning opportunities through fellowships, programs, etc. Make a list of books you want to read. And one more thing: If you don’t already have a mentor, now could be the perfect time to develop a plan for getting one. So, use the break to figure out whom you’d like to ask for the honor of being one of your career guides and go ahead and reach out to them.

• Relax. It’s true that this is one of the only times all year that almost the entire education sector completely shuts down. So, take this gift and make the best of it. Actually read a book that has nothing to do with the education sector. Binge watch a series on Netflix. Go to a museum or catch a few new release movies. Consider sitting on the couch for an entire day with a friend, family member, or all by yourself. As a friend of mine says, “get deep into the chill zone!”

Want a partner in aligning your passion for mission-driven work with the right next steps on your career journey? Check out my coaching services here. I’ll take you through a process of self-reflection, guided questioning, resource sharing, support, and accountability to find the path that’s right for you and set you solidly on your way. Find out more at www.edplusconsulting.com.