RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey, purposeful people this month, we've got a new episode of the work with purpose podcast. And this time we're talking all about professional associations, trade associations, going to walk you through what those are. Um, what are some benefits of someone considering paying to be a member of those to kind of help you in your, uh, developing your skills or developing your career.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And then also at the very end of our show, I'm going to give you a couple of real life examples of professional associations from a couple of different industries. So you do not want to miss this episode. I think you'll find it practical and helpful stick around. Around this episode of the Work With Purpose Podcast, it starts right now.
ANNOUNCER:: Welcome to the Work with Purpose podcast, the show that gives you advice, education, and encouragement for your career journey. And now here's your host, Randy Mahoney, Jr.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey there, everybody. Randy Mahoney here. So glad that you are joining us here on this episode of the work with purpose podcast. I'm excited that you're with us today on this month's episode. We're talking all about, uh, more about professional associations or trade associations on this episode. I'm going to walk you through what those are, a couple of reasons on how they can be helpful for your career.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And at the very end, I've got a couple more examples. I'm going to kind of get you thinking of, um, some actual, uh, Um, I hope you learn about some actual professional associations that can help you as far as developing your skills in your career and also building your networking skills. So for this episode, besides talking about our topic for today, um, if you're new to our show, I do want to remind you that, uh, during the time that we are in our podcast seasons, we work to, uh, share, uh, A, uh, we share a new episode with you once a month.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And the goal of our episodes is to give you a practical, uh, career education, advice, and encouragement to help you work as a purposeful person on your career journey. And we try to do that within a 20 to 30 minutes. So, um, now that you have, uh, learned a little bit about our show and you know, where we're going for our topic so far, let's get into it right now and let's talk about professional associations also called trade associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Okay. So first of all, what is a professional association? If you have not heard of one before? Well, I want to let you know, I started to really think about this topic earlier this year, and I knew that I wanted to bring this topic in front of you on a, um, on a podcast episode, just because, um, a lot of times in my work with adults, uh, trying to help them make positive and purposeful career decisions, um, professional associations or networking groups or trade associations, That's something that can often, in my working experience with adult clients, it can fall off the radar, and it's not always something that someone considers taking time to invest in.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: But a professional association, also called a trade association, if you've not heard of one before, Think about it like a, uh, a group of, uh, professionals who are in the same industry that you're in or who are doing the same job as you are doing. That's a specific group that, uh, folks consider, uh, consider joining.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: It's a membership based group where you pay to become a member and you get, uh, to join that group and you get, uh, can get lots of other benefits as well. So I wanted to put a couple of benefits that, um, that of why someone might want to join. Uh, professional association or join a trade association. Um, I want to put a couple of those in front of you just from my own insight.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So the, here's a benefit number one of a professional association. Uh, if you're changing careers or industries, joining a professional association, it allows you to really link arms, uh, with other professionals. So kind of like what I was sharing with earlier, if you're someone who has been in one career field for a long time, and now you're trying to, you think about your transferable skills, think about.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: You know, trying to learn about a new industry or learn about something, uh, a new career field, a professional association can really help you, um, start to, uh, connect with professionals in your newly chosen career field and do that really, really quickly. Um, a lot of times for professional associations, now it'll depend on the specific group you're looking at, but a lot of times these specific groups, um, once you become a paying member, um, a lot of times that will give you the ability to attend conferences, conferences.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, or online webinars for your specific field or for your specific industry. Sometimes some professional groups will also, uh, for paying members, they will have a connection to a connection to a specific online publications and things like that, which, you know, you can read articles about your specific field, your specific industry or the new field you're trying to go into.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And that can really help you get connected, uh, Um, faster with other professionals who are doing a job you'd like to go into or who are working for a company you'd like to work for. Um, it can really, really help that a lot. Um, especially with networking with other professionals. I wanted to also say too, I know that sometimes, Depending on the professional association or the trade group that you choose to choose to become a member of, um, sometimes, uh, one of the benefits for paying members in a, uh, in a professional association is that they give you access to their member directory and that can kind of help you as you are, you know, maybe you choose to look through that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Uh, specific directory and you choose to kind of help, you know, do some, do some informational interviews or learning kinds of interviews about, uh, from a professional who's working for a specific company that you'd like to work for, or who's doing a specific job that you're trying to build your skills in so that you can, you know, move into that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, that's a really good benefit of a professional associations, the chance to work with professionals. Um, another benefit of, uh, professional associations is that a lot of times for, uh, individuals who are currently a college student or going back to school, um, someone who might be in graduate school, or even if you are a professional who is retired, a lot of times professional associations can offer a discounted rate, um, whereas, you know, uh, so that might be a discount on your yearly membership for that association, which is great.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So that can make the bar. Of, uh, paying to join a professional association a little bit easier. Um, and something really to think about. So, uh, we talked about a couple other benefits of a professional associations. Um, that's, that's just to get you started. There are a lot of other ones there. I know I talked through a few there.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, uh, after the break, we're going to keep talking about, uh, professional associations, but, um, after our break, I'm going to talk with you more about what should you be looking for? Um, if, if you're trying to join a professional associations, you And then also, um, how can you get started? So stick around, you're listening to the work with purpose podcast and we'll be right back.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey everybody, Randy here. I wanted to remind you as you're listening to this podcast episode that we want to hear from you. If you've got a career question or an idea that you would like to have us talk about in a podcast episode or even on our YouTube channel, you can ask your career question by filling out our career question form at our website, wwp cast dot com slash ask. Again, wwp cast dot com slash ask. When you go there, it'll invite you to fill out a quick form with your name and your question and some other information. Um, and we'd love to hear from you. We want to try to make this podcast and some of our resources purposeful and helpful and effective for you.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, uh, don't wait any longer. Visit our website and fill out our live career question form — W W P cast. com slash ask
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right, welcome back to this month's episode of the work with purpose podcast. This time we're talking all about professional associations or trade associations and what they are and um, and how you can get, uh, you can consider getting involved in those. So um, right now we're going to talk a bit more about with professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: If you're starting to research those or look into those as part of your career growth or your career development, what kinds of things should you be looking for? As a professional, uh, in the career training, career services industry, um, in transparency, I am part of a couple, uh, specific professional associations, uh, for me.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, and so I've had a little bit of experience researching, um, associations and even helping adults in researching professional associations. And I will say to you that even in the midst of our information age, where, um, on the other side of the internet, the other side of a Google search, you can find so many different, professional groups and things like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, not all of them are created equal. So if you're starting the search to try to join a trade association, join a professional, uh, association, things like that, these are a couple ideas you might want to consider adding on your list of what to be looking for to kind of help you, uh, make the most of your time and your investment and your energy.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So the first aspect that I would say to you, it's important for you to look for in a professional association is really take a look at their history, their mission and their vision as well. And really think about from what you're seeing from that professional association, does their history, vision, mission, does it resonate with you?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Does it, is there anything from what you're looking at on their, on their professional association website that you find fascinating, that you find, you know, kind of drawing you to that? Is there a project that they're doing? Is there an initiative that, that they're doing? Um, is there a, Uh, that, that you've seen that they've done for a long time, stuff like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So you really want to look at their history, their mission and their vision. And the second aspect is for the professional association you're looking at, what kind of involvement do they have in your specific field or your specific industry? So things like, um, do they have a section where they publish articles that are more research based?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Do they publish in an online journal? We've talked about conferences a little bit so far in this episode. Oftentimes professional associations, they might do a quarterly conference. They might do a big annual conference in a certain, Uh, area of the country in the United States, uh, do they offer webinars?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Do they offer continuing education courses and things like that? Um, you know, what's great about professional association sometimes is that, um, not only is it a great networking, um, opportunity where you can really connect or, you know, get into email exchanges or with professionals in an industry that you are in or want to be in.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, or connect with conferences, but a professional associations can also be really helpful in that some do offer more like professional development courses where you can earn, you know, badges or things you can use on a really good, good intentional material for your resume. If you're trying to change a career field or, um, try to develop.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: and keep sharpening your skills if you're in your, if you're staying in your current field or industry. Um, so those are things you want to be looking for. Uh, look for the history, the vision and the mission of the professional association that the professional association that you're looking at really trying to, uh, for the professional association, looking at what kind of involvement do they have in your field, your industry.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And then the third one I just had here as I was prepping for our episode today, really take a look at, What member benefits do you, do you get, would, um, what would you get if you were to become a paying member of that specific group or association? So, um, as you look at that professional association, what benefits do they have?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Do those appeal with you? Um, this is, this is an area where, uh, different professional groups will vary. Um, I know I mentioned, I think I mentioned earlier in the episode, but sometimes professional associations. When you become a paying member, you get access to their, uh, to their member directory, which can kind of help you if you're trying to do more learning interviews or informational interviews.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Sometimes some professional associations will have a members only job board or a job bank that can be really helpful if you're in kind of job search mode or trying to, you know, really see a possible titles within a new career field or a new industry. So you can really see, Hey, what are employers asking for?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: That can be helpful if you're trying to navigate a career change, um, things like that. Sometimes some groups, they can offer discounts on insurance. Um, they can offer discounted, um, attendance for webinars or conferences for paying members and, and a whole lot more. So, um, those are a couple of benefits. I would say that as you look at a professional association, um, Those are three kind of big areas that, um, that you, that I would encourage you if, um, uh, that you want to be looking for now, I want to pause here, uh, to, to let you know that with professional associations, um, I've gotten asked this before, but, um, uh, and the question is that I've been asked is that with professional associations, how many you know, should, should, should I be involved in how, how should I, you know, kind of start into that and my, I would guide you just, just to kind of balance that with professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, my encouragement to you, just like anything that you would hear on on this podcast for me is that Um, if you're considering to join a professional or a trade association, have it be something purposeful and intentional, um, as part of your career goals, your longterm career goals. So as a place to start, my encouragement would be, um, consider researching out professional associations using some of the, some of the insights I've shared with you so far in this episode and, and consider, Um, and again, depending on your budget and finances and time allotment and things like that, um, consider looking at joining or being involved in, uh, being a paying member of at least one or two, uh, professional associations to start at least one or two, um, to start.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So if you're finding that maybe things are a little bit tight right now, your, your time is not. You may not have a lot of time. Maybe you choose to really, uh, for the next year, next two years, um, consider paying to be involved in one intentional professional association for your field. In a situation like that, being involved in only one professional association that you're a paid member of, that can really be.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: helpful. So you're not feeling like you've got to be at every conference or every webinar for three or four associations. Um, and that can kind of, you know, get into a spot of spreading yourself too thin. So, um, especially when, when you've kind of paid to you and you've invested into that, um, and stuff like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So that would be my, my encouragement to you is really, Number one, do your research on professional associations that you might want to consider joining. Um, and then, um, if you're unsure as a place to start, really think about, um, consider being a paying member of at least one and two, um, at kind of a max level, um, for professional associations for your field or for the, for the, uh, Uh, the field that you're in right now or the field you want to go into, um, just because you don't want to spread yourself too thin and it's not like, um, you can be everywhere all at once.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: You know, if one group is doing a conference in June, but then, then the, the other professional associations are doing one at the same time, how do you choose and stuff like that. So, um, that would be my encouragement to you is really just get started, um, from a time of research, but then consider joining a one or two professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So beyond that little insight, I want to. a part of this section, um, on professional associations with walking you through, how can you get started researching, uh, professional associations and really looking for some of these ideas that we've talked about so far? Um, well, the first thing I would say is that you can really get started with a, uh, a simple Google search.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: You might do a simple web search for keywords such as Professional organizations and then the name of your career field or your industry or professional association in, um, you know, in your field and in your city or your state in the United States that can really help you not only start to see, More larger, uh, you know, national professional groups that are covering the entire us.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: But when you put in some of those specifics for your specific city or your specific state, then that might even allow you to drill down and see more regional or local. Um, associations as well that are in your state or your kind of area of the U S so you can really start to start to, you know, look for professional associations by doing a simple web search using some of those, um, you know, keyword search terms and it kind of help you.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, um, after this next break, um, we're going to wrap up with a couple more examples of, um, some real life professional associations that. Uh, that you can take a look at and to kind of give you some, you know, application on how you can get started with this. So stick around, we'll be right back. And you're listening to the work with purpose podcast.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey everybody, Randy here. I wanted to remind you as you're listening to this podcast episode that we want to hear from you. If you've got a career question or an idea that you would like to have us talk about in a podcast episode or even on our YouTube channel, you can ask your career question by filling out our career question form at our website.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: www. pcast. com slash ask again, www. pcast. com slash ask. When you go there, it'll invite you to fill out a quick form with your name and your question and some other information. Um, and we'd love to hear from you. We want to try to make this podcast and some of our resources purposeful and helpful and effective for you.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, uh, don't wait any longer. Visit our website and fill out our live career question form. www. pcast. com.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hi everyone. Randy Mahoney here, career coach and host of the Work With Purpose podcast. I want to take a quick moment here and tell you about my free ebook that I've made just for you called the Job Search Checklist. Now from being a career coach for over six years, from my years of personal job searching and helping many adults make more informed career choices, I am well aware.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: The job searches can often take a long time and sometimes they can end up with you facing a lot of frustration. In the job search checklist ebook, you'll get a six step process that I believe will help you know what to prepare for as you start your job search. Also I believe the job search checklist will help you know if you're on the right track to find a new job.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Or it can help you change direction to a more intentional job search. So what are you waiting for? Stop being confused and get a clear path forward. Get my free ebook, the job search checklist right now. You can get that by visiting our website, wwpcast dot com slash job dash search dash checklist. Again, you can get your free job search checklist ebook By visiting w w p c a s t dot com slash job dash search dash checklist. And now back to the show. RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right. Welcome back to this episode of the work with purpose podcast this month. We've been talking all about professional associations and how to get. Uh, how to, and really to understand what those are, then, uh, how to research those and then how you can kind of get started with that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And this last section here, um, I wanted to just give you a couple of quick examples of real life professional associations, uh, for a few different industries, uh, that I researched for this episode to kind of give you some examples to maybe look at. Um, if you want, uh, to kind of see these examples or any of these other resources that, uh, Um, I've talked about in this episode, if, uh, whatever podcast app that you're listening on, uh, if you look in the show notes on your favorite podcast app, you'll find those links there.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And if you're watching the YouTube version of our show, if you look in the description below this video, it'll have links for, um, everything that we've talked about in this episode as well as our resources as well. So moving right into it, let's get a couple examples of some real life professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: First one is for the more of the banking or the finance industry. Um, that is a one that I found was the association for financial professionals. Again, the links for these will be in the show notes. Um, that has to do more with again, financial planners, things like that. Second one that I thought was really interesting again for the banking finance industry, but this might also fit more with the nonprofit as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: It's called, uh, the GPA. Meaning the Grant Professionals Association. And when I did some research on this one, this seemed more focused on folks who are grant writers by trade and who are, you know, into that, more of the research for that and developing grants. And I know I said non profits because a lot of times, many, many different non profits, they're funded by grants.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So that could be a really good one there. Again, that's the Grant Professionals Association. Second industry that we had here was more of the education industry. And I would say some of these that I, uh, looked for some of these might fit more with K through 12 education. So elementary, middle school, high school, but, um, you might find some overlap with higher education, um, as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So the first one is, uh, the National Education Association or NEA. And then the second one that, um, that I found again for the education industry was the National Council for the Social Studies or NCSS. Again, the National for the social studies. Now, um, this one, I mean, as you can kind of take about it, what it might sound or what I shared with you, that second association, the NCSS, that was more for, you know, folks who are licensed social studies or licensed history teachers to kind of, you know, join link arms with those.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, in my research of some of the education, um, professional associations, they had a lot of different ones by, uh, teaching or subject areas. So some for language arts, some for. Um, I saw some for theater. Um, I've seen some before for, um, family and consumer sciences, uh, you know, like personal finance, stuff like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: I saw some for career and technical education or CTE. So those were some great ones for more education. And then, uh, the last industry that I put here, um, and some of my research for this episode was a professional associations that are related. to the media arts and entertainment industry. Now, um, I want to say too, sometimes when I've worked with adults who want to go into this industry, uh, professional associations and groups like this, some of these can kind of, um, some of these often for the media arts kind of industries are also, um, many of these groups can also be unions as well, which have some more different characteristics to them.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So I want to make sure you know about that as well. That's something that's pretty unique for the. For the media arts industries as well. But here are the, here are the two professional groups that I, that I want to share with you. The first one it's called the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And that's, uh, and you can see their links in their website in, uh, in the description below this video or on your, uh, podcast app. So, uh, when I looked at them, they were more like the Academy that helps with the, with, you know, choosing and. Selecting for the different award shows and things like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Again, that was the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. And then, um, the second one, which I've looked at a lot and worked with individuals a lot who want to get into writing for TV screenwriting, things like that. And that is called the WGA or the Writers Guild of America. Again, that's the Writers Guild of America and the WGA.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So again, that was just a couple of, um, real life, uh, Um, professional associations broken up by a couple different industries, uh, to kind of give you some insight and advice on looking at those. Again, me sharing those with you. I'm not sponsored by any of those, not affiliated with any of those. Just wanting to try to help, um, help apply, uh, some of these concepts for what I've kind of walked you through so far in this episode.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, and I work to share resources that I've either looked at personally or that I believe in. So. Again, if you want to check out some of those professional associations, you can look in the description below this video. If you're watching the YouTube version of our show or I'm in your favorite podcast app where you might be checking this out, you can look in our show notes as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right, well that brings us to the end of this month's podcast episode. Uh, as we wrap up today, uh, I want to say thank you so much for, uh, watching and engaging with us here on our episode. Um, whether you're watching us on your favorite, uh, channel or if you're listening to us on our, on your favorite podcast app, thanks for joining us.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: If you found this episode encouraging and practical and helpful for your career journey, number one, I want to, I want to encourage you, consider sharing this episode with a friend. I realize, um, you know, in the information age today, so many different resources out there. on the internet and things like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: I realized so many people are job searching or they're wanting to maybe change careers and things like that. So I would encourage you share this episode with somebody who may need it. Uh, the other thing too is that, um, if you are, again, if you find this episode helpful, I encourage you wherever you are engaging with us, either on your favorite podcast app, consider leaving us a positive review.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: If you find this episode helpful on our YouTube channel, if you're watching that episode, that version of our show, consider subscribing to our YouTube channel, leaving us a like, And things like that. When you do those things, that helps put our episode, our educational career content in front of new people, um, so that they can engage with us and check out some of our other episodes, um, as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Also, besides, uh, considering leaving a review or a rating, um, I want to invite you that if, um, If you find this episode helpful, uh, you can consider supporting our work. If you visit our website, www dot wwpcast dot com slash shop, that'll give you a couple of different ways that you can kind of engage with us and consider supporting our works.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, if you have other questions about our most important resources, if you look in the description below, um, you can visit our most important links page and that'll give you information on how you can get that as well. Again, that's in the description below this video. If you are watching our YouTube channel or it's in the show notes, if you're watching it on our, uh, on your favorite podcast app as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right. So that again brings us to the end of this month's episode of the work with purpose podcast. Thanks for watching and thanks for listening. And until our next episode, I'm Randy Mahoney, Jr. And I want to remind you of two quick things as we finish today. Number one, you've been made with purpose, so you should work with purpose.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And then number two is this. The best work that you can ever do is serving other people with your unique skills, gifts, and abilities. And to do all that, for the glory of Of Jesus Christ. We'll see you next time.
ANNOUNCER:: Thanks for joining us on the work with purpose podcast If you'd like the show notes for this episode or want to learn more visit our website at wwpcast dot com If you found today's episode helpful Be sure to subscribe to our show rate and review it on itunes or share it with a friend on social media Until next time thanks for listening to the work with purpose podcast
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And then also at the very end of our show, I'm going to give you a couple of real life examples of professional associations from a couple of different industries. So you do not want to miss this episode. I think you'll find it practical and helpful stick around. Around this episode of the Work With Purpose Podcast, it starts right now.
ANNOUNCER:: Welcome to the Work with Purpose podcast, the show that gives you advice, education, and encouragement for your career journey. And now here's your host, Randy Mahoney, Jr.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey there, everybody. Randy Mahoney here. So glad that you are joining us here on this episode of the work with purpose podcast. I'm excited that you're with us today on this month's episode. We're talking all about, uh, more about professional associations or trade associations on this episode. I'm going to walk you through what those are, a couple of reasons on how they can be helpful for your career.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And at the very end, I've got a couple more examples. I'm going to kind of get you thinking of, um, some actual, uh, Um, I hope you learn about some actual professional associations that can help you as far as developing your skills in your career and also building your networking skills. So for this episode, besides talking about our topic for today, um, if you're new to our show, I do want to remind you that, uh, during the time that we are in our podcast seasons, we work to, uh, share, uh, A, uh, we share a new episode with you once a month.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And the goal of our episodes is to give you a practical, uh, career education, advice, and encouragement to help you work as a purposeful person on your career journey. And we try to do that within a 20 to 30 minutes. So, um, now that you have, uh, learned a little bit about our show and you know, where we're going for our topic so far, let's get into it right now and let's talk about professional associations also called trade associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Okay. So first of all, what is a professional association? If you have not heard of one before? Well, I want to let you know, I started to really think about this topic earlier this year, and I knew that I wanted to bring this topic in front of you on a, um, on a podcast episode, just because, um, a lot of times in my work with adults, uh, trying to help them make positive and purposeful career decisions, um, professional associations or networking groups or trade associations, That's something that can often, in my working experience with adult clients, it can fall off the radar, and it's not always something that someone considers taking time to invest in.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: But a professional association, also called a trade association, if you've not heard of one before, Think about it like a, uh, a group of, uh, professionals who are in the same industry that you're in or who are doing the same job as you are doing. That's a specific group that, uh, folks consider, uh, consider joining.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: It's a membership based group where you pay to become a member and you get, uh, to join that group and you get, uh, can get lots of other benefits as well. So I wanted to put a couple of benefits that, um, that of why someone might want to join. Uh, professional association or join a trade association. Um, I want to put a couple of those in front of you just from my own insight.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So the, here's a benefit number one of a professional association. Uh, if you're changing careers or industries, joining a professional association, it allows you to really link arms, uh, with other professionals. So kind of like what I was sharing with earlier, if you're someone who has been in one career field for a long time, and now you're trying to, you think about your transferable skills, think about.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: You know, trying to learn about a new industry or learn about something, uh, a new career field, a professional association can really help you, um, start to, uh, connect with professionals in your newly chosen career field and do that really, really quickly. Um, a lot of times for professional associations, now it'll depend on the specific group you're looking at, but a lot of times these specific groups, um, once you become a paying member, um, a lot of times that will give you the ability to attend conferences, conferences.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, or online webinars for your specific field or for your specific industry. Sometimes some professional groups will also, uh, for paying members, they will have a connection to a connection to a specific online publications and things like that, which, you know, you can read articles about your specific field, your specific industry or the new field you're trying to go into.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And that can really help you get connected, uh, Um, faster with other professionals who are doing a job you'd like to go into or who are working for a company you'd like to work for. Um, it can really, really help that a lot. Um, especially with networking with other professionals. I wanted to also say too, I know that sometimes, Depending on the professional association or the trade group that you choose to choose to become a member of, um, sometimes, uh, one of the benefits for paying members in a, uh, in a professional association is that they give you access to their member directory and that can kind of help you as you are, you know, maybe you choose to look through that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Uh, specific directory and you choose to kind of help, you know, do some, do some informational interviews or learning kinds of interviews about, uh, from a professional who's working for a specific company that you'd like to work for, or who's doing a specific job that you're trying to build your skills in so that you can, you know, move into that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, that's a really good benefit of a professional associations, the chance to work with professionals. Um, another benefit of, uh, professional associations is that a lot of times for, uh, individuals who are currently a college student or going back to school, um, someone who might be in graduate school, or even if you are a professional who is retired, a lot of times professional associations can offer a discounted rate, um, whereas, you know, uh, so that might be a discount on your yearly membership for that association, which is great.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So that can make the bar. Of, uh, paying to join a professional association a little bit easier. Um, and something really to think about. So, uh, we talked about a couple other benefits of a professional associations. Um, that's, that's just to get you started. There are a lot of other ones there. I know I talked through a few there.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, uh, after the break, we're going to keep talking about, uh, professional associations, but, um, after our break, I'm going to talk with you more about what should you be looking for? Um, if, if you're trying to join a professional associations, you And then also, um, how can you get started? So stick around, you're listening to the work with purpose podcast and we'll be right back.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey everybody, Randy here. I wanted to remind you as you're listening to this podcast episode that we want to hear from you. If you've got a career question or an idea that you would like to have us talk about in a podcast episode or even on our YouTube channel, you can ask your career question by filling out our career question form at our website, wwp cast dot com slash ask. Again, wwp cast dot com slash ask. When you go there, it'll invite you to fill out a quick form with your name and your question and some other information. Um, and we'd love to hear from you. We want to try to make this podcast and some of our resources purposeful and helpful and effective for you.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, uh, don't wait any longer. Visit our website and fill out our live career question form — W W P cast. com slash ask
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right, welcome back to this month's episode of the work with purpose podcast. This time we're talking all about professional associations or trade associations and what they are and um, and how you can get, uh, you can consider getting involved in those. So um, right now we're going to talk a bit more about with professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: If you're starting to research those or look into those as part of your career growth or your career development, what kinds of things should you be looking for? As a professional, uh, in the career training, career services industry, um, in transparency, I am part of a couple, uh, specific professional associations, uh, for me.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, and so I've had a little bit of experience researching, um, associations and even helping adults in researching professional associations. And I will say to you that even in the midst of our information age, where, um, on the other side of the internet, the other side of a Google search, you can find so many different, professional groups and things like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, not all of them are created equal. So if you're starting the search to try to join a trade association, join a professional, uh, association, things like that, these are a couple ideas you might want to consider adding on your list of what to be looking for to kind of help you, uh, make the most of your time and your investment and your energy.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So the first aspect that I would say to you, it's important for you to look for in a professional association is really take a look at their history, their mission and their vision as well. And really think about from what you're seeing from that professional association, does their history, vision, mission, does it resonate with you?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Does it, is there anything from what you're looking at on their, on their professional association website that you find fascinating, that you find, you know, kind of drawing you to that? Is there a project that they're doing? Is there an initiative that, that they're doing? Um, is there a, Uh, that, that you've seen that they've done for a long time, stuff like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So you really want to look at their history, their mission and their vision. And the second aspect is for the professional association you're looking at, what kind of involvement do they have in your specific field or your specific industry? So things like, um, do they have a section where they publish articles that are more research based?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Do they publish in an online journal? We've talked about conferences a little bit so far in this episode. Oftentimes professional associations, they might do a quarterly conference. They might do a big annual conference in a certain, Uh, area of the country in the United States, uh, do they offer webinars?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Do they offer continuing education courses and things like that? Um, you know, what's great about professional association sometimes is that, um, not only is it a great networking, um, opportunity where you can really connect or, you know, get into email exchanges or with professionals in an industry that you are in or want to be in.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, or connect with conferences, but a professional associations can also be really helpful in that some do offer more like professional development courses where you can earn, you know, badges or things you can use on a really good, good intentional material for your resume. If you're trying to change a career field or, um, try to develop.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: and keep sharpening your skills if you're in your, if you're staying in your current field or industry. Um, so those are things you want to be looking for. Uh, look for the history, the vision and the mission of the professional association that the professional association that you're looking at really trying to, uh, for the professional association, looking at what kind of involvement do they have in your field, your industry.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And then the third one I just had here as I was prepping for our episode today, really take a look at, What member benefits do you, do you get, would, um, what would you get if you were to become a paying member of that specific group or association? So, um, as you look at that professional association, what benefits do they have?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Do those appeal with you? Um, this is, this is an area where, uh, different professional groups will vary. Um, I know I mentioned, I think I mentioned earlier in the episode, but sometimes professional associations. When you become a paying member, you get access to their, uh, to their member directory, which can kind of help you if you're trying to do more learning interviews or informational interviews.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Sometimes some professional associations will have a members only job board or a job bank that can be really helpful if you're in kind of job search mode or trying to, you know, really see a possible titles within a new career field or a new industry. So you can really see, Hey, what are employers asking for?
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: That can be helpful if you're trying to navigate a career change, um, things like that. Sometimes some groups, they can offer discounts on insurance. Um, they can offer discounted, um, attendance for webinars or conferences for paying members and, and a whole lot more. So, um, those are a couple of benefits. I would say that as you look at a professional association, um, Those are three kind of big areas that, um, that you, that I would encourage you if, um, uh, that you want to be looking for now, I want to pause here, uh, to, to let you know that with professional associations, um, I've gotten asked this before, but, um, uh, and the question is that I've been asked is that with professional associations, how many you know, should, should, should I be involved in how, how should I, you know, kind of start into that and my, I would guide you just, just to kind of balance that with professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, my encouragement to you, just like anything that you would hear on on this podcast for me is that Um, if you're considering to join a professional or a trade association, have it be something purposeful and intentional, um, as part of your career goals, your longterm career goals. So as a place to start, my encouragement would be, um, consider researching out professional associations using some of the, some of the insights I've shared with you so far in this episode and, and consider, Um, and again, depending on your budget and finances and time allotment and things like that, um, consider looking at joining or being involved in, uh, being a paying member of at least one or two, uh, professional associations to start at least one or two, um, to start.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So if you're finding that maybe things are a little bit tight right now, your, your time is not. You may not have a lot of time. Maybe you choose to really, uh, for the next year, next two years, um, consider paying to be involved in one intentional professional association for your field. In a situation like that, being involved in only one professional association that you're a paid member of, that can really be.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: helpful. So you're not feeling like you've got to be at every conference or every webinar for three or four associations. Um, and that can kind of, you know, get into a spot of spreading yourself too thin. So, um, especially when, when you've kind of paid to you and you've invested into that, um, and stuff like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So that would be my, my encouragement to you is really, Number one, do your research on professional associations that you might want to consider joining. Um, and then, um, if you're unsure as a place to start, really think about, um, consider being a paying member of at least one and two, um, at kind of a max level, um, for professional associations for your field or for the, for the, uh, Uh, the field that you're in right now or the field you want to go into, um, just because you don't want to spread yourself too thin and it's not like, um, you can be everywhere all at once.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: You know, if one group is doing a conference in June, but then, then the, the other professional associations are doing one at the same time, how do you choose and stuff like that. So, um, that would be my encouragement to you is really just get started, um, from a time of research, but then consider joining a one or two professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So beyond that little insight, I want to. a part of this section, um, on professional associations with walking you through, how can you get started researching, uh, professional associations and really looking for some of these ideas that we've talked about so far? Um, well, the first thing I would say is that you can really get started with a, uh, a simple Google search.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: You might do a simple web search for keywords such as Professional organizations and then the name of your career field or your industry or professional association in, um, you know, in your field and in your city or your state in the United States that can really help you not only start to see, More larger, uh, you know, national professional groups that are covering the entire us.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: But when you put in some of those specifics for your specific city or your specific state, then that might even allow you to drill down and see more regional or local. Um, associations as well that are in your state or your kind of area of the U S so you can really start to start to, you know, look for professional associations by doing a simple web search using some of those, um, you know, keyword search terms and it kind of help you.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, um, after this next break, um, we're going to wrap up with a couple more examples of, um, some real life professional associations that. Uh, that you can take a look at and to kind of give you some, you know, application on how you can get started with this. So stick around, we'll be right back. And you're listening to the work with purpose podcast.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hey everybody, Randy here. I wanted to remind you as you're listening to this podcast episode that we want to hear from you. If you've got a career question or an idea that you would like to have us talk about in a podcast episode or even on our YouTube channel, you can ask your career question by filling out our career question form at our website.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: www. pcast. com slash ask again, www. pcast. com slash ask. When you go there, it'll invite you to fill out a quick form with your name and your question and some other information. Um, and we'd love to hear from you. We want to try to make this podcast and some of our resources purposeful and helpful and effective for you.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, uh, don't wait any longer. Visit our website and fill out our live career question form. www. pcast. com.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Hi everyone. Randy Mahoney here, career coach and host of the Work With Purpose podcast. I want to take a quick moment here and tell you about my free ebook that I've made just for you called the Job Search Checklist. Now from being a career coach for over six years, from my years of personal job searching and helping many adults make more informed career choices, I am well aware.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: The job searches can often take a long time and sometimes they can end up with you facing a lot of frustration. In the job search checklist ebook, you'll get a six step process that I believe will help you know what to prepare for as you start your job search. Also I believe the job search checklist will help you know if you're on the right track to find a new job.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Or it can help you change direction to a more intentional job search. So what are you waiting for? Stop being confused and get a clear path forward. Get my free ebook, the job search checklist right now. You can get that by visiting our website, wwpcast dot com slash job dash search dash checklist. Again, you can get your free job search checklist ebook By visiting w w p c a s t dot com slash job dash search dash checklist. And now back to the show. RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right. Welcome back to this episode of the work with purpose podcast this month. We've been talking all about professional associations and how to get. Uh, how to, and really to understand what those are, then, uh, how to research those and then how you can kind of get started with that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And this last section here, um, I wanted to just give you a couple of quick examples of real life professional associations, uh, for a few different industries, uh, that I researched for this episode to kind of give you some examples to maybe look at. Um, if you want, uh, to kind of see these examples or any of these other resources that, uh, Um, I've talked about in this episode, if, uh, whatever podcast app that you're listening on, uh, if you look in the show notes on your favorite podcast app, you'll find those links there.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And if you're watching the YouTube version of our show, if you look in the description below this video, it'll have links for, um, everything that we've talked about in this episode as well as our resources as well. So moving right into it, let's get a couple examples of some real life professional associations.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: First one is for the more of the banking or the finance industry. Um, that is a one that I found was the association for financial professionals. Again, the links for these will be in the show notes. Um, that has to do more with again, financial planners, things like that. Second one that I thought was really interesting again for the banking finance industry, but this might also fit more with the nonprofit as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: It's called, uh, the GPA. Meaning the Grant Professionals Association. And when I did some research on this one, this seemed more focused on folks who are grant writers by trade and who are, you know, into that, more of the research for that and developing grants. And I know I said non profits because a lot of times, many, many different non profits, they're funded by grants.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So that could be a really good one there. Again, that's the Grant Professionals Association. Second industry that we had here was more of the education industry. And I would say some of these that I, uh, looked for some of these might fit more with K through 12 education. So elementary, middle school, high school, but, um, you might find some overlap with higher education, um, as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So the first one is, uh, the National Education Association or NEA. And then the second one that, um, that I found again for the education industry was the National Council for the Social Studies or NCSS. Again, the National for the social studies. Now, um, this one, I mean, as you can kind of take about it, what it might sound or what I shared with you, that second association, the NCSS, that was more for, you know, folks who are licensed social studies or licensed history teachers to kind of, you know, join link arms with those.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, in my research of some of the education, um, professional associations, they had a lot of different ones by, uh, teaching or subject areas. So some for language arts, some for. Um, I saw some for theater. Um, I've seen some before for, um, family and consumer sciences, uh, you know, like personal finance, stuff like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: I saw some for career and technical education or CTE. So those were some great ones for more education. And then, uh, the last industry that I put here, um, and some of my research for this episode was a professional associations that are related. to the media arts and entertainment industry. Now, um, I want to say too, sometimes when I've worked with adults who want to go into this industry, uh, professional associations and groups like this, some of these can kind of, um, some of these often for the media arts kind of industries are also, um, many of these groups can also be unions as well, which have some more different characteristics to them.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So I want to make sure you know about that as well. That's something that's pretty unique for the. For the media arts industries as well. But here are the, here are the two professional groups that I, that I want to share with you. The first one it's called the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And that's, uh, and you can see their links in their website in, uh, in the description below this video or on your, uh, podcast app. So, uh, when I looked at them, they were more like the Academy that helps with the, with, you know, choosing and. Selecting for the different award shows and things like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Again, that was the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. And then, um, the second one, which I've looked at a lot and worked with individuals a lot who want to get into writing for TV screenwriting, things like that. And that is called the WGA or the Writers Guild of America. Again, that's the Writers Guild of America and the WGA.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So again, that was just a couple of, um, real life, uh, Um, professional associations broken up by a couple different industries, uh, to kind of give you some insight and advice on looking at those. Again, me sharing those with you. I'm not sponsored by any of those, not affiliated with any of those. Just wanting to try to help, um, help apply, uh, some of these concepts for what I've kind of walked you through so far in this episode.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: So, and I work to share resources that I've either looked at personally or that I believe in. So. Again, if you want to check out some of those professional associations, you can look in the description below this video. If you're watching the YouTube version of our show or I'm in your favorite podcast app where you might be checking this out, you can look in our show notes as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right, well that brings us to the end of this month's podcast episode. Uh, as we wrap up today, uh, I want to say thank you so much for, uh, watching and engaging with us here on our episode. Um, whether you're watching us on your favorite, uh, channel or if you're listening to us on our, on your favorite podcast app, thanks for joining us.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: If you found this episode encouraging and practical and helpful for your career journey, number one, I want to, I want to encourage you, consider sharing this episode with a friend. I realize, um, you know, in the information age today, so many different resources out there. on the internet and things like that.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: I realized so many people are job searching or they're wanting to maybe change careers and things like that. So I would encourage you share this episode with somebody who may need it. Uh, the other thing too is that, um, if you are, again, if you find this episode helpful, I encourage you wherever you are engaging with us, either on your favorite podcast app, consider leaving us a positive review.
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RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Also, besides, uh, considering leaving a review or a rating, um, I want to invite you that if, um, If you find this episode helpful, uh, you can consider supporting our work. If you visit our website, www dot wwpcast dot com slash shop, that'll give you a couple of different ways that you can kind of engage with us and consider supporting our works.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: Um, if you have other questions about our most important resources, if you look in the description below, um, you can visit our most important links page and that'll give you information on how you can get that as well. Again, that's in the description below this video. If you are watching our YouTube channel or it's in the show notes, if you're watching it on our, uh, on your favorite podcast app as well.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: All right. So that again brings us to the end of this month's episode of the work with purpose podcast. Thanks for watching and thanks for listening. And until our next episode, I'm Randy Mahoney, Jr. And I want to remind you of two quick things as we finish today. Number one, you've been made with purpose, so you should work with purpose.
RANDY MAHONEY JR.: And then number two is this. The best work that you can ever do is serving other people with your unique skills, gifts, and abilities. And to do all that, for the glory of Of Jesus Christ. We'll see you next time.
ANNOUNCER:: Thanks for joining us on the work with purpose podcast If you'd like the show notes for this episode or want to learn more visit our website at wwpcast dot com If you found today's episode helpful Be sure to subscribe to our show rate and review it on itunes or share it with a friend on social media Until next time thanks for listening to the work with purpose podcast
