How important is it to invest in professional training and when is it necessary? Thinking that your training ends with the conclusion of your academic studies is a common misconception. In fact, during your entire professional career, the acquisition of new skills or the honing of those you have previously acquired is of the utmost importance. This is true of any profession, but in the areas of interior design, furniture design, and architecture, innovation and diversity are truly invaluable principles. Believing that the experience gathered in the field will be enough to enhance your professional skills and knowledge is an illusion that can cost you dearly. Today, the development of instruments, trends, and technologies is faster than ever. Not acknowledging this could compromise your career. 3D design software presents increasingly advanced tools for the creation and presentation of your projects. This is an opportunity that you should definitely not ignore if you want to keep up with today’s market. Training can be costly, it’s true, especially if it is of premium quality, and freelancers always needs to consider their expenses carefully. So here are 5 reasons why you should consider investing in your professional development.
1. An Investment in Professional Training Is Not an Expense.
One of the first steps towards honing your professional skills is to keep your mind open to new growth opportunities. There is a huge difference between expense and investment: no matter how expensive, a training experience is never a non-repayable expense. The money invested in acquiring new skills is a small part of what you will make thanks to your increased expertise. Learning to use presentation software with which you can develop 3D renders and navigate them, modifying them in real time, will help you offer your clients a completely innovative experience. Basically, you need to consider that investing in training will make you more sought-after and competitive. What new work opportunities might this lead to? How much will the cost of your services increase compared to the fees you currently ask? And not just once, but throughout the years to come. As you see, the benefits are likely to exceed the initial outlay.
2. Your Competition Will Decrease as Your Skills Increase.
In design, as in any other profession, there are different levels of specialization. And it is no secret that the least specialized professionals are also the most interchangeable, for both clients and companies. Basically, as long as you make do with a common skillset, your value as a professional will be mediocre. In this case, your only chance of beating the competition is to lower the cost of your services. Aside from being an unpleasant prospect, it is also unethical and counterproductive. Firstly, because you’re belittling your own work and the category as a whole. And secondly, because there will always be someone who charges less than you. Besides, do you really want to be seen as a bargain designer or architect? On the other hand, a higher level of specialization will make you precious in the eyes of your clients and more competitive in your area of work. This is how you can overcome the competition and place yourself on a higher level: of professional quality, of the importance of the projects you are assigned, and of your fee.
3. Your Investment in Your Future Says a Lot About You as a Person.
We have just seen how your professional growth will increase your value in the eyes of your clients. But there is yet another reason why investing in your professional training will make you more “interesting.” Imagine you have to work with an architect on a project or hire a designer for your company. Among the available candidates, would you choose the one with the leanest résumé or someone who shows an interest in their own professional value and has an in-depth knowledge of designing tools and software? A person who has no ambition and makes do with the knowledge they already possess will probably have the same attitude towards any job they undertake. Naturally, an employer or a client will prefer someone who cares about quality and keeps up to date to achieve it. This goes for someone looking for their first job, too. A candidate who spends the months following graduation simply looking for a job will always be less convincing than someone who devotes the same time to expanding their skills and knowledge.
4. Professional Training Will Allow You to Create New Connections.
Whether it’s physical course or an online webinar, every formative experience will broaden your personal as well as professional horizon. Acquiring new skills allows you to explore new fields and meet new kinds of clients and colleagues. In this fashion, you will broaden your professional network and create new opportunities for your professional and personal growth. Furthermore, putting yourself to the test with new technologies and their use in your field will train your brain to adopt new points of view. The designing work itself will become more satisfying thanks to new, previously unthinkable resources. A professional course is never an end in itself. It always triggers a chain reaction that will open new doors for you in the future.
5. Low-Quality Free Training Will Make You Waste More Money.
Today the Internet is full of free content and courses on every possible subject. But because the selection is so vast, you will need to examine it very carefully. The people holding these free courses aren’t always interested in using the time and skills required to make them actually good. And the same may be said for freeware tools. Before you choose a free course or software, ask yourself if it will truly improve your work routine. Your time is just as precious as the money you might be saving, and if you decide to spend it, it has to be worth it. A high-level professional course focused on state-of-the-art tools will also allow you to optimize the time you will dedicate to work in the future. ArredoCAD organizes free webinars and courses tailored to your needs , to learn to design your projects in the easiest possible way and with the highest level of quality. Furthermore, you will be able to discover the tools that will help you present your projects to your clients, making them easy to share and to browse.
Visit our website and discover our webinars for design and architecture professionals.