Counselor CEUs - More Than Just Fulfilling One's Requirements

Every state will require some sort of continuing education from the various licensed professionals seeking to renew their license. Professional Counselors fall into this mandate as well. Depending on the state, the amount of CEUs needed and the venue to acquire them will vary.

Not surprisingly, a large number of professional counselors will rush through their continuing education at the last minute in order to just fulfill their state board requirements. Contrary to this are those that take this mandate as a chance to further develop theiir own abilities and knowledge base. So, a good question to ask yourself is where do you stand on this issue?

All of the external impositions in life sometimes pushes one into the first category. This approach is sometimes necessary. Think about it, the expectations of a constantly changing and growing clientele, mass amount of time and resources dedicated to working with insurance companies, and the need to meet the needs of one's own family; all of these factors can easily push one into a "check the box" mentality when it comes to their continuing education. But, ask yourself, "Do I want to stagnate in my career? Or, do I want more?"

If you find yourself wanting to get more from your continuing education then just fulfilling the requirement, ask yourself these questions.

"What are some areas for improvement in my current practice?"

"What are some future growth possibilities?"

"What fields of study do I find interesting that I have not developed myself in yet?"

"What does the picture of my practice look like over the next 5 years, 10 years or maybe even 15 years?"

"What do I need in order to bring this to fruition?" (ie: new areas to study, new advancements to understand, etc.)

So, if you now know that you are one of those that chooses to see their continuing education requirement as an opportunity for growth, your options have just been blown wide open. You will find that there are plenty of courses to choose from that pertain to whatever field of study you are seeking, from the everyday to the more niche. The internet makes it vast more simple and convenient to pursue the developmental resources needed.

The key is to not wait until one week before your licenses expires. Prepare far enough ahead to all yourself time to develop the areas that are currently lacking and to learn new skill sets that will be necessary down the road. Then put a plan in place to meet those goals. Don't let your continuing education be just another task to check off the list, but a springboard to a more enriching career.