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For people who are serious about their career, continuous career training is essential. The more professional their career, the more important career training is. Lawyers need to be up to date with the law, doctors need to be up to date with medical knowledge and treatments, and computer systems analysts need to keep track of all developments in the computer world, and in that of their particular markets; their careers demand it, otherwise they become incompetent.

Even for those who have studied hard at college, school and university, study of some form or another is unlikely to come to an end once they take their first career step. That “study” will be most likely to come in the form of career training, focused study and practical training related specifically to their chosen career. Those who take that training most seriously, and apply what is learnt in practice, are those who are most likely to go on and do well in their careers.

In a profession, career training is an absolute essential, otherwise negligence is an increased possibility as time goes on. However, it is not just in professions that career training plays an important role. Almost every job will undergo change in a fast moving world, and staff need to be trained to meet those changes.

Another reason career training is important to an individual is for their own career progression. Even if the industry they are in never changed, career training could play a key part in how they progress their careers through promotion. Competitive environments in particular will demand that an employee will need to undergo as much career related training as possible to further their career.

Sources of Career Training

Your career training might, over the years, be a mix of compulsory and voluntary training. he most likely sources are:

1. Your Employer

Larger employers will probably have a training department, or at least a training manager, with responsibility for employee training. Coming from your employer, this training is certain to be job and career related.

Many people may regard any training course their employer organises as something to avoid if at all possible, as if it were an imposition. Those who are truly interested in furthering career, either with or via that employer, would be well advised to welcome such career training with open arms and get the most out of it.

2. External Self Arranged Training

Those with a serious intent about their future career may wish to seek training opportunities beyond those offered by their employer. Career related courses may be available to you during vacations, weekends or evenings.

Any course that provide you with extra knowledge related to your career will enhance your knowledge and potential to succeed. however, it is worth bearing in mind that seemingly unrelated courses may help. Subjects such as computing and finance seep into just about any career choice these days, so new skills in those areas could stand you in good stead, especially in a management role.

When considering taking the initiative in your training, it is a good time to consider whether you are in the precisely right career. By developing your skills over wide areas, you may find yourself better placed for a career change later, should you want to.

3. Online Career Training

Whatever your current or future potential career, there is a fair chance that you will learn more of what you need to know, and acquire more of the skills you need to acquire, online. Depending on your chosen career, formal online career training may be available to you, so it is worth searching extensively for appropriate courses.

4. Other Home Study Courses

Distance learning is big business, and there are some long established companies who provide home study courses for many careers, from dog training to computer programming, police work to accounting. These top companies all have an online presence, so the internet is a good place to start your search.

This career development and training article was written by Roy Thomsitt, owner and part author of the Routes To Self Improvement website.

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Many parents joke that they are going to have to take out a second mortgage to pay for college, but what about for overnight camps? What are the costs and is it worth the benefit? We help send our kids to college because we know that this investment will help them secure better-paying jobs and a brighter future. For a camping experience, however, is it worth it?

For some of us, camp was one of the most cherished growth experiences in our childhood and we feel the gift of camp is one that we will bestow upon our kids no matter what the cost. For those of us who did not grow up as campers, we have to decide what all the buzz is about and make a determination if we can afford it or not.

As a former camper, counselor and teen tour leader, I believe that camp is a priceless gift that you can give your child (of course, as long as you find the right fit). Camp experiences pay off in all sorts of “emotional intelligence” dividends: self-esteem; self-reliance; self-awareness; empathy; the ability to listen, cooperate and share; self-control; the ability to wait in line (delayed gratification). Research shows that developing these skills leads to greater success in school and deeper and healthier relationships. And these early, positive growth experiences are fairly good indicators about our success as adults. So, now that you are convinced that camp is all it is cracked up to be, how much does it cost and how are you going to pay for it?

Types of camps. There are two types of camps: agency camps and private camps. There is a pretty big price differential between the two. If cost is a concern, agency camps – like YMCA, JCC – make camping much more affordable. They can do this because they are subsidized by agencies, therefore making your summer tuition less. You can expect to pay about $500 – 650 a week.

Private camps are not subsidized, so the camper is paying for all of the costs to run a camp: insurance, staff, equipment, capital improvements. In the Midwest, you can expect to pay between $750 – $1000 a week for a private camp. In Missouri and Southern Illinois, private camps are a little cheaper because they do not offer the extensive water sports, like sailing and water-skiing, like camps in the Upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan).

Discounts. There are other ways to save, as well. At most camps, early enrollment discounts are offered. So, if you do your homework early enough, you can take advantage of this discount. In addition, if you are trying to provide a camping experience for more than one child, be sure to ask for a sibling discount (assuming that one camp can suit the needs of all of your children). Lastly, if you are looking at camps on the East or West Coast, be sure to ask for a “Midwesterner’s discount.” Our camps in the Midwest are traditionally less expensive (if you can believe that after looking at the costs of camps).

Extras. When budgeting for camp, you should also ask the program director about extra costs such as optional activities, spending money, special clothing and equipment, or trip insurance. A camp may offer horseback riding, but is there an additional cost for participating in this activity? When your son or daughter goes to the camp store, do they have an open-ended account or is there a set amount? If it is open-ended, you will be the one responsible for that bill at the end of the summer so you should have a conversation with your child about proper spending. If there are out-of-camp trips, you should find out whether or not those are included with your tuition.

Scholarships. Almost every camp – private or agency – offers some amount of need-based “camperships.” Jewish Federations, church groups and YMCAs give out scholarships for camp. Many private camps have foundations to send needy kids to camp which, besides being a good thing for those kids, help to diversify their population. Most camp directors are altruistic, giving individuals that would like to see every child in a camp. Some camps even give “scholarships for life.” So, once a child qualifies, they are promised that scholarship for however long they attend that camp. For older kids, there are programs like Summer Search (summersearch.org) whose aim it is to send at-risk youth to leadership development programs like wilderness trips.

Camp is a wonderfully enriching gift you can give your child. If you want to send your child, there is probably a camp out there to welcome them. Happy camping!

Jenny Wolkowitz is the Midwest consultant for Tips on Trips and Camps (http://www.tipsontripsandcamps.com). In her earlier years, she was a day camper, an overnight camper, a counselor, a teen tour participant and a teen tour leader. She currently serves as Chairperson for local day camp and on the board of many community organizations.

Public speaking skill is just like any other skill in that the more success that you have, the more self-confidence in public speaking that you develop. The more failures, or perceived failures, that you experience, the more public speaking fear that you are going to experience. The nervousness or anxiety that you feel when you present is normal, but experiencing that public speaking fear for the rest of your life definitely isn’t.

Where does Public Speaking Fear Come From?

Think about any skill that you have developed in your life. For instance, you didn’t come out of the womb knowing how to ride a bike, drive a car, play a musical instrument, or work your iPhone. The first time that you tried any of these activities, you probably experienced some type of discomfort or nervousness. The key to gaining self-confidence in these, or any skill, is to have some type of success where you grow. If the early stages of the skill development are wrought with failures, though, the self-confidence will diminish. For instance, if someone who had never driven a car before gets behind the wheel of a car all by himself or herself (no teacher or coach), then there is a good chance that this first experience is not going to go very well. If the first attempt to drive is on a freeway, then that fear, just like public speaking fear, is going to be huge. At the end of the drive, the person might say something like, “I never, ever, want to experience that again!” If a boss forces the person to attempt the skill years later, that fear is going to grow.

Public Speaking Skill is Developed through Success

A better way to learn a skill is to start with something less risky. In the car example above, most people start in a parking lot with a parent or a coach. Once the confidence increases a little, then the new driver might move to making right-hand turns around a neighborhood. Then move to left-turns. Then maybe get into a higher traffic area. The freeway is last. If you are trying to develop public speaking skills and eliminate public speaking fear, you’ll want to take a similar approach.

Start with something less risky like speaking up at the staff meeting. Most managers or executives want input on ideas or problems during staff meetings. Develop a habit of speaking up at least once during these discussions. Next, volunteer to give a report on a project at a staff meeting. Once you get more comfortable with these types of public speaking opportunities, try something more risky. Maybe ask questions as an audience member in a bigger presentation. Remember that just as when you tried more complicated things in learning to drive, at every stage you experienced more nervousness, when you got to the freeway, the parking lot felt really safe. The same thing will happen with public speaking fear. As you start to experience more complicated presentations, the easier presentations become second nature.

A Public Speaking Coach can Speed Up Your Confidence Growth

Just like the parent or coach who taught you step-by-step how to drive a car, a good public speaking coach can shave a lot of time off your learning curve. For instance, if you went in the parking lot for your first driving experience, it might take you a while to learn how to park correctly. The hardest part would be that you would have very little frame of reference to compare your skill with, so you may not know when you are doing a good job. That questioning that you would have in the back of your mind would cause nervousness. One of the most important parts of coaching is having someone tell you when you did the skill correctly. By the way, you don’t have to go out and find a professional business coach or public speaking coach. Just look for someone who you think presents very well in front of a group and ask the person to watch you and give you feedback. A lot of toasting clubs use this type of coaching.

If your time is short, though, you might want to hire a professional coach. A good public speaking coach can help you develop public speaking skills in a day or two that would take most people years to develop and keep you from developing bad habits. For instance, when I was in my twenties, I wanted to learn how to play golf. I was broke, so I bought some cheap second-hand clubs and went down to the municipal golf course. After a few months, I got pretty good, but I had a terrible slice which hurt my range quite a bit. When I played with friends, I was always two or three strokes behind the group. Eventually, I just figured that golf wasn’t my game, and I stopped playing. Years later, I tried taking it back up and went to a golf-pro near my house. I asked him how long it would take me to become competitive. He said, “Well, if you had come to me in the beginning, maybe a few months, but now, it’s going to be much harder.” When I asked him why, he explained to me that because of my slice, I had developed a habit of turning my body differently to correct the symptom. I knew my ball was going to drift, so, over the years, I just changed my aiming point. My body had become used to that swing, that I had to unlearn that habit before I could re-learn a more proper swing.

If I had just practiced early on with feedback from someone who could already do what I wanted to do, I could have saved myself some time and frustration. In public speaking skills, you can too. Look for a mentor who has already eliminated his/her fear and let that person coach you. Your coach will help you eliminate your public speaking fear much faster.

Doug Staneart is author of the book Fearless Presentations and founder of the Fearless Presentations 2-Day Public Speaking Seminar that is offered in 50 major cities around the world. He has written hundreds of free public speaking tip articles that are all available on his Public Speaking Skills blog.

The Image: Jacques, the manager of a huge large pipe manufacturing business describes team dynamics.

“A pipe, no matter how thick or long it is, is only as strong and reliable as its thinnest, weakest part. All our pipes come out looking great on the surface. It’s only when we put them through our scanners that we can see whether the pipe is fit for shipping. So, too, like our teams. We only know how competent, strong and functional they are under the stresses and strains of everyday manufacturing demands. Sometimes they just blow up!”

What A Team Is: A group of individuals working in sync, with competence and motivation to accomplish a common objective. A high performing team has a dynamic, sometimes conflicted, energy that propels it forward in the service of achieving its purposes.

A Group is Like: A bunch of people on a bus. All heading in the same direction. Driven by the bus driver. People don’t talk with each other. They get on and off as they please. The only commonality is the vehicle.

Key Action Words/Phrases of A Team: Accountability. Self-responsibility. Conflict. Problem-solving. Clear Objectives. Formal leader. Informal leaders. Celebration. Temporary. Individual roles are critical to and subordinate to team goals.

“I” is each of the parts that forms the “we” that pull together to make it about the bigger “us.”

Working Images of Teams: Cirque de Soleil. Top Gun. An aircraft carrier. A surgical team. A flash mob dance.

Dysfunctional Groups: The Senate. Detroit Lions Football Team.

Each individual on a team is responsible for the approach, achieving the assigned goals and the internal processes that helps or hinders progress.

Business is a team sport. Actually life is a team sport — a fact which many people ignore at their peril.

A team without a leader is like a child without a supervising adult. The best teams are self-governed and enforce their own peer-based discipline and they have a formal leader to guide them. The Miami dolphins without Don Shula would not have had a no-loss season. Microsoft with Bill Gates? Apple sans Steve jobs?

A team generates and regulates a sense of unity among its disparate individuals. It also leverages individual performances into team accountability and outcomes.

Without an effective management team a company will not likely be able to develop its teams.

Incompetence flows downhill.

Policies and corporate strategies do not a high performance team culture make.

Managers, as team leaders, have the tension-filled, opposing challenge of exercising the right authority and inclusiveness. That’s the art.

It is best when a team sets its own goals and processes based upon the inputs from its members. That’s the science.

A well-mixed team made up of individuals with differing style and skills, and who are committed to the team, can produce for the organization.

A high functioning team is flexible enough to shift – sometimes smoothly, sometimes with turbulence — leadership roles among the members to fit the situation.

To get your FR.EE Instant Copy of — A TASTE of GENIUS — an introduction to building team competencies and motivation for fun and profit. Go to http://www.subject2change.ca

From Dr. Jim Sellner, PhD.,DipC. — working with Zoomers & Super Zoomers managers to experience more joy, health and a sense of abundance.

Lemmings are cute, but dumb. If you tell them to jump off a cliff, they will. Just like the people who start blogs because everyone is doing it. Guess what happens after a little while? The blogs die.

In managing a list of many Web sites, most of which are blogs, I deleted countless sites from the list because the sites and blogs no longer existed. The people ran out of steam or had no reason to start them in the first place.

How do you know when a blog is right for your business? Learn why people start blogs, how they find their niche and how blogging tools can be used for more than blogs.

Some people like to read blogs, others like to read newsletters, still others like to rely on feeds and some read a few or all of them. No matter the method the information is distributed, each medium has one thing in common: content. Having a blog connects your newsletter and your business with all of these readers and delivers important content in a particular style.

I’ve been blogging since June 2000. If you review my early blog entries in meryl’s notes, you’ll notice they’re more personal. When blogs first hit the scene in the late ’90s, they were personal diaries and journals. Like the blog business, my blog has transformed from personal to business speak, although I still add personal notes here and there.

A few bloggers tend to talk about their work, their products and their little world. That might work for celebrities where fans want to know everything about them, but it doesn’t work for the average business person. Other business people want information on how to succeed and when a blog spends time hawking products offering information of no value, few people will return. The people whose products sell well are the ones who provide valuable information. Readers already know what kind of information they’re getting, so they trust that when they buy something, it will be of the same or better quality. This value must be reflected in their blog. It’s much like people who only sign up for a newsletter after first seeing an example.

No one wants to be a lemming (I would hope). How do you decide whether or not to set up a blog? The answer isn’t black or white (what did you expect?). Ask these questions:

• Can you regularly update it — at least five times a week?
• Do you have something to say other than just linking to others?
• Do you read other blogs or feeds?
• Can you provide information of value to others not just to yourself?
• How large is your newsletter subscriber list?
• How many unique visitors do you get on an average day, week or month?

The big decider is whether or not you can write in the blog almost daily. The people behind the high traffic blogs post multiple times a day. Though resourceful, merely linking to other sites doesn’t give visitors much reason to make the effort to come to yours. Reading other blogs or feeds is a great way to learn how to carry a discussion. Find other blogs covering topics similar to yours and check them out. Disagree with their opinions? Write about it and explain your reasons. Cross-blog discussions are common, and that’s where trackback comes in handy.

Trackback is a blog feature. If you decide to comment on another blog posting in your blog instead of in that blog’s comments page, then you link to the conversation through the trackback link. Trackback is similar to the permalink, the permanent URL for the blog entry, but it has a different URL for copying and pasting in your blog’s trackback box.

Aside from the technical aspects of operating a blog on a daily basis, subscriber list size and Web site traffic are good indicators of what kind of reaction you’ll get when opening a blog. Starting from scratch with little traffic means you have a long road ahead and lots of work to do. There is no magic formula anyone can sell you for $97 to make your blog an overnight success. But with some perseverance and ingenuity, your blog can engage many prospects and clients.

Considering there are numerous blogs out there, pick a niche topic when starting a blog for a better shot at attracting and keeping an audience. meryl’s notes focuses on three areas: webby, geeky and wordy. In reality, this is too much. What I need to do for my readers is create three separate blog entry points, so those interested in writing, newsletters and Internet marketing get nothing but the wordy entries. Those interested in Web design get the webby stuff and the technophiles receive the geeky content.

I also manage a personal blog separate from meryl’s notes. It’s about cochlear implants and deafness. This could fall under the geeky category, but it’s a personal blog and doesn’t belong in meryl’s notes. This blog is written for a different audience.

The blogging tools for both of my blogs come with syndication capabilities so those using feed readers or aggregators can read the content through the software. When sending a new issue of a newsletter, comment on it or link to it in the blog, that way the blog and feed readers will get the goods, so all three bases are covered.

Blogging tools aren’t just for, well, blogging. Such tools are an excellent way to help you update your Web site more often than you otherwise would. I use it to manage the list of tableless Web sites. Using blogging tools is much easier than the way I managed it before, updating the HTML files by hand. Though using a blog tool, it isn’t a blog. In this case, the blog tool has become a content management system (CMS).

Small business owners don’t have a need for the fancy and pricey CMSes out there. They find it easier to use blogging software to manage their sites or hire someone to adapt the tool for their site.

Blogs have found a place in businesses and people are finding creative ways to use them. Some companies have a blog on the intranet for communicating project status, jeopardies and metrics. They’re used for knowledge management. With information pouring in, blog tools provide a way to share, organize and process the information.

Being a follower can be good or bad. No one wants to walk off a cliff with the lemmings, but everyone wants to succeed. Best practices won’t help, since the decision to blog is based on the organization’s mission, needs and goals along with its target market’s desires and needs. A blog about lemmings? There is one, sort of. Or maybe you’d like to start your own and talk about dumb business moves.

Meryl K. Evans is the Content Maven behind meryl.net who increases conversion rates by writing and editing content so organization can focus on their core business. She is the editor-in-chief of the eNewsletter Journal and Shavlik’s The Remediator Security Digest. Visit her Web site at http://www.meryl.net/blog/.