4 Reasons You Should Join a Professional Organization

If you haven't yet joined a professional organization relevant to your field you're missing out on a great opportunity to strengthen your career.

There are a number of advantages to joining a professional organization and we'll consider four reasons you should join one today.

Great networking opportunities. Professional organizations often host regular events that provide the chance to meet new people, talk to leaders in your field, and learn from others in your area. These events, including annual conferences, provide an excellent resource to expand your network.

A way to showcase your skills. Organizations are always looking for qualified people to provide training, speak at events and conferences, or host a webinar. By showcasing your knowledge and skills you set yourself up as an expert in the field and make it more likely other opportunities, including possible job offers, will come your way.

Increase your knowledge. The conferences, webinars, and publications sponsored by professional organizations all offer you the chance to stay on top of the latest in your field, increasing knowledge of your career, and making it more likely that you'll continue to have a variety of offers come your way. These learning opportunities are often available at more reasonable costs for members, too, so you can save money on your personal and professional development.

Gain official certifications. Some professional organizations offer their members a chance to take classes or training to earn specific certifications in their field, such as becoming certified in substance abuse treatment, product management, or medical billing, and these certifications can be a path to a better job or increased pay.

These are just some of the advantages to joining a professional organization. If you're unfamiliar with an organization in your field do a quick search online. You'll likely find one or two relevant groups that can offer the advantages described above, along with many other benefits.

4 Ways to Prepare for an Unexpected Layoff

It's an experience that we anticipate with dread: that call into our manager's office, letting us know that we're being let go. It usually doesn't make us feel better to know the circumstances, whether the company is down-sizing or eliminating a specific area. Our focus is on the immediate. What do I do now?

Fortunately, there are some ways you can prepare for this future possibility and reduce some of the sting of it.

Below are four ways you can prepare for an unexpected layoff:

1. Keep your resume and LinkedIn profile up to date. In the event of a sudden, unexpected layoff you'll be grateful that you've kept your resume up to date. It will decrease your concerns about preparing for the job hunt and will help you focus on job opportunities that are best suited to you and your strengths and skills. Be active on LinkedIn and let other know you are looking for new opportunities. Schedule time in your schedule every three months to tweak your resume and LinkedIn profile.

2. Stay engaged with your network. Be sure you're taking some time each week to stay connected with your colleagues--both in the office and those you know virtually or through conferences, or previous places of employment. Often these will be the first people you'll contact about work and job openings.

3. Be involved in a professional organization. Nearly every profession has some type of professional organization and associated conferences you can get involved with. Start now and make a point of having at least one conference you attend annually. Not only will you increase your knowledge base, and build your network, but professional organizations often provide resources and information for job seekers.

4. Contribute to a "rainy day" fund. Finally, prepare in advance to handle the financial storm of an unexpected layoff by regularly putting aside some money from your paycheck into a savings account. And be sure not to touch it! You'll be grateful it's there if the unexpected happens.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: 4 Reasons You Hate Networking and What to Do Instead

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• 4 Reasons You Hate Networking and What to Do Instead: "see if you can find events in your area that pertain to your area of expertise or professional interest while combining a social or recreational element."

• 5 Tips to Create Your Best Future: "Gather your facts, balance short-term gains with long-term growth and make a call. Then live with the results."

• 9 Things Ultra Productive People Do Every Day: "In other words, they do the least appetizing, most dreaded item on their to-do list before they do anything else. After that, they’re freed up to tackle the stuff that excites and inspires them."

• Why More Millennials Are Choosing Blue-Collar Jobs: "Employment in the trades is booming, and might even offer better pay than some positions for which a college education is a prerequisite."
• Profit Sharing Boosts Employee Productivity and Satisfaction: "These feelings of reciprocity are often linked to perceptions of fairness and justice underpinning the exchange between labor and rewards, and they can generate organizational commitment and loyalty in a way that a simple bonus or raise cannot."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

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• The Top 10 Things Every College Senior Needs to Do Right Now: "Attend or join professional associations or groups. Investigate the professional groups associated with your desired job or industry."


• The 8 Networking Rules You Should Never Break: "Never come unprepared to a networking event, a conference, or even a phone call with a potential connection. The more information you have about a person, the better you’ll be able to relate to him or her."


• How to Be a Super-Achiever: The Ten Qualities That Matter: "Star performers know they can’t achieve success on their own. Instead, they must galvanize a group of people around their idea or goal. Teamwork, or having an ecosystem of supporters, turns out to be critically vital for success."


• 10 Life Lessons Guaranteed to Advance Your Career: "Don't brag about yourself; brag about others. Don't try to show how smart or good you are. Usually, it's wise to prioritize making others feel good about themselves."


• How to Tame the Time-Management Beast: "Stop wasting your valuable time. Life is too short. You will be amazed at how much more content your soul is and how much better of a human being, colleague, and employee you become." 

Four Reasons Why You Should Immediately Join a Professional Organization

Picture in your mind two side-by-side resumes of recent college graduates. Each possesses the same type of degree from comparable universities. They have similar internship experiences and both lack “real-world working experience.” The only difference between the two is that the one on the right is a member of a professional organization, a (typically) not-for-profit group formed around a particular profession that furthers the interests and development of its members and of the profession itself. Professional organizations-also called professional associations, professional bodies, professional societies, or trade groups-exist for nearly any profession you can think of, from clowns to bookbinders. The difference between involvement in a professional organization and none could be the difference between obtaining a position quickly after graduation and floundering for months afterward. Read on to learn why.

On the cheap: Joining a professional organization as a student is typically cheaper-much cheaper-than to join as a professional already working in the field. For example, a student membership in the Society of Human Resource Professionals is a mere $35.00 compared with $180.00 for a full-time professional. That’s a savings of over 80%! The leadership of professional organizations understands that college students have limited-if any-income and want to substantially decrease the barriers to joining. Take advantage of this while you are still able.

Get connected: From the moment you hit the “submit” button to conclude your organization membership you will have instant access to a network of professionals in your field. Make the most of this by contacting some nearby members and scheduling an informational interview to learn from them and grow your personal network.

Become involved: As you have probably surmised by now, joining a professional organization is good, but becoming involved is better. How do you become involved? Email someone in a leadership position in the association and ask him or her how you can help. It doesn’t matter who; you are new to the organization and that person will help you navigate the organizational hierarchy. There are numerous ways for you to get involved in a professional organization, from sitting on committees to volunteering at events like conferences or symposiums. Since volunteers run most professional organizations, your initiative and involvement will be welcomed and rewarded.

Educate thyself: Finally, professional organizations provide ongoing education and training opportunities to help its members stay current in the field. Utilize these resources to get the most out of your membership and to make yourself a more well-informed professional.

Professional organizations are a small investment for enormous professional rewards, provided that you use them to grow your network, get involved, and continue your education. Stop hesitating and join one today.