Further Your Professional Learning at Home
How to use your free time to your advantage during COVID-19
As the reality of COVID-19 has set in, the workforce has shown resilience transitioning to teleworking while learning new technologies and homeschooling their children. Although working from home might be starting to feel easier, it may also be challenging to maintain control of your daily schedule and productivity. Without a commute and more flexibility with your time at home, most of us know we have extra time somewhere, yet it can sometimes be difficult to identify.
Remote employees at Georgia Tech Professional Education (GTPE) have found that task segmentation, allotting appropriate amounts of time to each task they wish to accomplish, has helped to keep their priorities in order and ensure they will complete tasks in a predictable and measurable amount of time – even revealing pockets of free time they hadn't noticed before.
"I like to schedule appointments in my calendar to work on tasks, especially when my to-do list starts to feel unmanageable," says Paige O’Shea, program and portfolio manager. "It gives me an automatic reminder to start an activity and it helps me stick to the schedule I set."
After scheduling your daily work and home obligations, be sure to also set aside time for personal projects and interests. Doing so will improve the productivity of your “work time,” allowing you to look forward to scheduled personal activities or hobbies. Consequently, this “personal time” will help to establish digital boundaries, thus improving your overall satisfaction with your day, and, in turn, your mental well-being.
There are many personal ventures that you could get into during this time, such as gardening, home improvement, cooking, or fishing.
But there is one time investment in particular that will reap invaluable benefits long after the coronavirus outbreak has subsided: professional learning.
From exploring a new interest to seeking a new skill and earning a valued credential, professional education offers affordable options to enrich your learning and bolster your professional skillet, often allowing the flexibility to learn at a time convenient to you.
To help get you started, here’s a preview of some interesting online and virtual professional learning opportunities from GTPE.
MOOCs
Business
The future of business unfolds in the Data Analytics in Business course, which prepares participants in strategies of organizing and analyzing massive amounts of data that business organizations collect over years of operation.
Computing
One of our largest categories, there’s a little bit of everything in computing. Take the Cloud Systems Software course to learn the basic concepts of cloud computing. Or, if you already have an understanding, try Software-Defined Networking, which teaches the history behind this emerging network management system and its applications today.
For those in the Information and Communication Technologies field, take the Information and Communication Technology Accessibility course, which won an innovation award, to learn how to make electronic and digital information more accessible to all users, especially those with disabilities.
Engineering
Dive head first into the future of technology and engineering with The Mechatronics Revolution: Fundamentals and Core Concepts course and learn the fundamentals of building robotic devices and computer-controlled machines.
Management
No prior experience nor any specific career trajectory is needed to take Innovation Leadership, which gives you the knowledge base and building blocks to become an effective, influential innovation leader in the 21st century.
Online Certificates and Virtual Workshops
The Supply Chain Fundamentals Certificate is geared toward anyone involved or looking to get involved in the supply chain side of business, and it can be earned completely online in just four courses. Likewise, the Analytics MicroMasters Program is a short three-course online program that not only teaches the fundamentals of analytics and business applications, but also serves as an insightful introduction to the online master's in data analytics.
In addition to our traditional online offerings, Georgia Tech-Savannah is offering several virtual learning opportunities. Recently, they have moved their free occupational safety and health (OSHA) training seminars to virtual delivery and benefit those looking to take a Georgia Tech OSHA course but not sure where to start. Or, you can develop crucial leadership skills through their virtual workshop on managing and leading a multi-generational organization.
Continuous Learning in a Time of Uncertainty
This time is unprecedented, and many of us are anxiously waiting until we can resume our normal work life. In the meantime, however, instead of apprehensively holding out for the future, set your sights on the present and see how you can take advantage of this unique time. You never know what you may be able to accomplish until you set your mind to it.
"In our ever-changing world, we must be willing to adapt if we are to keep pace with new realities," said Nelson Baker, dean of professional education. "As our environment evolves, so must the way we live, learn, and work."
To learn more about all of GTPE's online offerings, visit online.gatech.edu.
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