Educational Resources to Help You Get Ahead This Summer Vacation

School is out for summer and the kids are taking a break. Now’s your chance to get ahead! Summer is the perfect time to learn some new skills that will help you sail through the next school year. We have tips and tools to help you make the most of your summer, right from the comfort of your office.

There are plenty of resources on the web to help you boost your skills. Some are free, many are not, but all of them have something to offer depending on your needs. Ones that we like include:

• LinkedIn Learning (https://learning.linkedin.com)
• Adobe Creative Cloud tutorials (https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/tutorials-explore.html)
• Skillshare (www.skillshare.com)

LinkedIn Learning

Do you want to increase your outreach by starting a blog, engaging parents on social media, or upgrading your website? Get some ideas on how to be a better leader? Or simply get more comfortable with the latest version of Microsoft Office? LinkedIn Learning offers educational opportunities on a wide variety of business, creative, and technology topics. Whether you want to expand your management perspective, learn some new graphic design skills, or improve your technical knowledge, these classes run the gamut. The site offers a range of options for learning types, including audio, video, and written materials.

If you’re not sure where to start, the LinkedIn Learning offers paths that combine tutorials they think will help you accomplish specific goals, such as becoming an expert at digital marketing. You can try it out free for one month and if you like it you can sign up for a subscription that gives you access to everything on the site.

Adobe Creative Cloud tutorials

A well-crafted digital flyer that stands out in the inbox will help you cut through the clutter to reach parents with your message. If you have access to Adobe programs like InDesign, Illustrator, or Photoshop, why not go right to the source to learn how to get the most out of these powerful tools? Adobe offers a number of tutorials specific to their products. Training options include videos, hands-on practice, and blog posts with engaging visuals that can be bookmarked for when you need a handy refresher.

Skillshare

Skillshare offers more than 21,000 classes on a range of topics. Perhaps you want to hone your copywriting ability, or broaden your public relations expertise. This has tutorials for it all. Like the other sites, Skillshare offers training videos in bite-size chunks. For people who need a little help staying on track, it also has workshops that allow you to join other students online, work on a project on a schedule, and interact with the instructor. And unlike the other options, it’s all available for free! You may have to watch some ads (and there’s a premium version if you want to skip them), but that’s a small price to pay for the knowledge you receive.

With kids out of school, this is your chance to boost your skills so you can make a bigger impact in the next school year. Clear and concise messages with engaging visual content will help you communicate with parents more effectively and improve operational efficiency. Adding to your skills will help you shine like the rock star you are!

About the Author

Lindsay Ball is a marketing professional with more than 15 years of experience helping companies seek out their value and communicate it to the appropriate audiences. She works with organizations to identify whose problems they are trying to solve and how their products and services accomplish that goal. Lindsay has extensive experience working with sales and account teams to help them be successful in making an impact on behalf of their organization.

When she’s not developing marketing strategies and writing newsletters, Lindsay enjoys spending time with her husband and two young daughters. They are active in Girl Scouts, the local YMCA, and numerous school and community activities. In her rare downtime, Lindsay enjoys reading everything from news and biographies to mysteries and science fiction.

Lindsay has a Bachelor of Science in economics with concentrations in marketing and communication from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.