They say that when life throws you lemons, make lemonade.  The truth is, sometimes you just feel like throwing them back!

It seems like a lifetime ago now, but at the start of lockdown for many of us, it seemed our worlds were being turned upside down. It felt like we weren’t being thrown lemons, more like there was a torrential downpour of them!

I remember speaking with the team as a flood of work cancellations came pouring in and feeling helpless in what actions I could take to make things better. As humans we want to make things better for others and to help, and that feeling of helplessness can be a heavy weight to burden. We shared our thoughts and feelings and wondered where to go to next.

We eventually discussed and formulated a plan of action, concentrating all our efforts on what we believed was strategically important for us. We luckily made the right decisions and over the coming months we developed new materials, redesigned existing courses, reviewed and improved our offerings and looked into how they could be imaginatively blended.

We soon became masters of virtual training platforms, getting to grips with the intricacies, uniqueness and idiosyncrasies of multiple platforms and a variety of electronic tools. We identified gaps in our knowledge and skills, and we all got busy, at our own pace, to get to where we needed to be.

As we have started to come out of lockdowns and return back to the training room environment (for some of our clients), things are starting to move in a direction that is more familiar. This caused me to reflect on what we have learned and how we have developed. The list of learns and development for us all seems endless. It is easy to keep focusing forward, looking and striving to achieve what’s next on the list. The downside of that is that we neglect to see and acknowledge how far we have come and where we are now, in terms of our skills and knowledge.

It is amazing exactly how far we have come as a team, and how well the team have managed to work during what have been very difficult times. As well as developing and delivering numerous courses over lockdown, increasing knowledge and skills around remote delivery and design, and getting even more creative in how we can deliver innovative solutions in an interactive and fun way – Many of our team have undertaken professional qualifications and have completed these in record time.

It is easy to let your CPPD pass you by.  We are all busy working towards the next goal, deadline etc. and we can miss out on reviewing how we are ‘doing’ in getting there.

If you too haven’t reviewed your CPD since lockdown, why not take time to review what you have learned and how you have developed over the last year or so. I hope that you will be as pleased and surprised as we are.

Our new skills and knowledge will set us up nicely for what is next to come and puts us all in a stronger position, with more options and evidenced development.

So, next time life throws me lemons, I won’t be throwing them back. I’ll be there with a glass of ice to grab a slice, add it to my favourite drink and reflect on lessons learned and my Continue Personal and Professional Development.

I hope that you take the time to do the same.