Here are 8 ways you can celebrate National Career Development Month.

1. Get in touch with 2-3 former colleagues, classmates, or professors to catch up over coffee. Nurturing your network is an important part of building your career. This should not be something you’re only doing once you’re looking for a job. Rather, staying in touch should be an active practice.
2.  Attend a Meetup or industry networking event. If networking is not something that comes naturally to you, take advantage of these pre-organized events, and meet like-minded individuals. This is a great way for you to make new connections, gain inspiration and knowledge, find new opportunities, and even enjoy a nice drink or two!  
3.  Have coffee with someone from a different team whose work interests you. Find out more about their day to day, broaden your professional horizons, and in doing so, you’ll become a more rounded professional. This is an important part of building your cross vertical relationships at work, and getting on people’s radars for new opportunities.  

4.  Look into our organization’s education and training offerings. Take the time to see what your organization has to offer, and how you can take advantage of different courses or opportunities for development. 

5. Meet with your manager and discuss your career plans. Don’t expect your manager to know your dreams and goals. Your manager is there to help facilitate the process, but it’s up to you to express your interests and make things happen. 

6. Create yourself professionally driven S.M.A.R.T goals for the next quarter, the next 2 years, and the next 5 years. This will also help you stay in touch with yourself, and keep yourself committed to your professional wants and needs.

7. Think about 1 new skill you’ve been meaning to develop. Commit to working on this skill for 1-2 hours a week, all month. Download a podcast, an app, read a book, create Google Alerts, or find a webinar in order to help guide your learning. There is no shortage of free information out there!

8. Reach out to any of your mentors/mentees. According to the Deloitte Millennial Survey, those with mentors report 81 percent higher job satisfaction. Mentorship provides a resource for advice and an opportunity to develop leadership skills. See how your mentor/mentee is doing, and thank them for the help.