Here's how you can fit continuing education into a busy schedule.

In my experience, leaders often wear "busy" as a badge of honor. Often times you are doing a disservice to yourself and to your team by juggling multiple responsibilities. The key to priortizing is to become ruthless with saying "NO" to shiny objects that do not add up value to your team. This is where growth and learning opportunities can set you apart. By repriortizing your tasks, and focusing on continuining education, you can truly walk the talk and set an example to your team.

In my experience coaching leaders and teams it has become the norm on most occasions that when things get "busy", personal development can be pushed aside. When it comes to the growth of your team, both individually and as a collective, it is important to prioritize building skills and knowledge on a consistent basis. Do not view these opportunities as a task rather build into your calendar consistent time with purpose and intention focusing on skills that will elevate the results of the team both from a qualitative and quantitative perspective. In order to continually drive results in your organization, it is imperative to focus on learning and growth as a need and not just a want especially in our ever changing workplace environment.

Pause to think about what type of goals you're setting - are they meaningful and strategic for your career path, are you hoping to expand knowledge into a new area for fun, or are you learning to pursue a new hobby? All have benefits both professionally and personally. For example, learning to play an instrument or another skill in a creative area can and does show up in your work life as well (just perhaps not as obviously as what we think of as "professional skills").

Start by setting clear, achievable learning goals. Determine what skills or knowledge you want to acquire and how they align with your career objectives. By prioritizing your goals, you can focus on the most important areas without feeling overwhelmed.

You will never have time to learn new skills; you have to make time. Putting the new skill on your priority list and reserving a specific number of hours per week for it will make it easier to finish your course. Also, find ways to learn new skills that adapt to your schedule (on-demand or self-paced). This way, you can reduce a lot of stress that comes with accommodating courses or workshops into your busy schedule.

Integrate Learning into Daily Activities. Make use of downtime by incorporating learning into daily activities. Listen to educational podcasts or audiobooks during your commute, while exercising, or during household chores. This way, you can learn without disrupting your routine.

Take Advantage of Microlearning. Microlearning involves consuming small, manageable pieces of content. This approach can be especially effective for busy schedules. Spend just 10-15 minutes each day on a specific topic, and over time, these short sessions add up to significant learning.

Set aside some time, add a one-hour meeting every week to your agenda, to spend on training. I have another 30-minute meeting in my diary to keep an eye on a particular subject. monitoring and training are two complementary subjects, but they shouldn't be confused.

Squeezing upskilling into a packed schedule? Been there. I used to think I was too swamped, but here's my secret: I turned my commute into a classroom. Podcasts and audiobooks became my new best friends. I also got savvy with micro-learning apps - those five-minute lessons add up fast! And let's talk about lunch breaks. I started using them for quick online courses. It's amazing what you can learn between bites. The game-changer? Setting specific learning goals tied to my career aspirations. Suddenly, finding time became easier when I could see the payoff. Remember, it's not about massive time commitments; it's about consistency.