Traditional aspects of how and where we work have shifted over the past two years. The remote and hybrid work schedules can make it much harder to separate professional and personal lives. As a result, you may feel like you’re never able to get away from work. You may find yourself becoming more negative or cynical, feeling tired, and lacking motivation to get your work done. Don’t assume these are normal feelings. You might be experiencing burnout. Here are five signs that you’re burned out — and what to do about it. 

Whether graduation is around the corner or in your rearview mirror, you may find yourself wondering what’s next. Some students know which path they are taking before they graduate. For others, the path isn’t as clear. The good news is that there are many different paths and no wrong answer, only the path that works for you. But how do you figure out which path to take? Here are a few ways to help you decide which path makes the most sense for you.
 
Define Your Passion

“A wild ride.” That’s how Paul Flores, tribal administrator for the Pit River Tribe in Burney, Calif., describes his life. “Be open to any opportunity, because you don’t know where it’s going to lead,” he says. A member of the Gila River Indian Community, Flores grew up in Arizona, dropped out of high school, joined the Army, and became an infantryman. During the second Iraq war, in the battle-ravaged town of Ramadi, a hidden bomb exploded and wounded him. “I expected to be jumping out of airplanes and fast roping off helicopters for 20 years,” he says. “Didn’t happen that way.”

People often ask Foreign Service Officer Tashina Cooper, “Why did you choose to move so far from home and pursue a career that does not benefit Native people?”

“That this career does not benefit Native people is inaccurate,” says Cooper, who is assigned to U.S. Consulate Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. That puts Cooper a long way from the Navajo Nation where she was raised.

Joanna Kern Cooley is fascinated by the human brain. For years she put that fascination on the back burner as she raised her family, and it wasn’t until Cooley turned 30 that she decided to apply to college to become a doctor. Now, as she works toward completing her bachelor’s degree in neuroscience at Saginaw Valley State University in Saginaw, Mich., she is well on her way to achieving that goal.

Fearless. That’s how one manager describes Nikki DuPuy in her role at General Motors (GM). From DuPuy’s point of view, she’s the proud product of a Navajo matriarchy that stressed the importance of higher learning, hard work, and self-sufficiency. “I knew early on that I would make my own way in life,” she says about growing up in Tuba City, Ariz., on the Navajo Reservation. “It’s never been about taking a traditional journey, but about finding the right path for me.”

Growing up on a farm in northern Alberta, Jessica Vandenberghe had plenty of time to investigate how things work. What she didn’t have was much exposure to different professions. She had been leaning toward a medical career until an engineer visited her grade 11 chemistry class. “I had not heard of engineering before then,” she recalls. “Working with inanimate objects rather than working on people appealed to me.”

For Dr. Christina Swindall, Gabrieleño, becoming a veterinarian was a childhood dream. She grew up in the Los Angeles area the ancestral homeland of her tribe — spending much of her time assisting her mother, who had been blind from the age of 14. In their home the health of family pets was not a priority — the animals weren’t spayed or neutered and didn’t see the vet when they were sick. Dr. Swindall knew that she wanted better outcomes for animals and focused her energy on becoming a vet.

Professional development covers a wide variety of learning opportunities, from seminars to academic degrees— and is not one size fits all. What makes professional development so compelling, is that there is something for everyone and every role. It doesn’t have to be done at once, and it allows employees and employers to keep abreast of current trends. Whether you are the manager or the staffer, here are a few reasons professional development is so important.
 
Keeps Your Skills Current

Every day you interact with many different people, from family and friends to professors and employers. At some point, you will encounter a difficult person. Such people can make you feel frustrated, angry, and unhappy. But dealing with difficult people doesn’t have to be so difficult. Here are a few tips to make those unpleasant interactions a little easier.