Written by Ebtisam Melhem, MAN(c), Dietetic Intern
Reviewed by Olivia Farrow, RD, MHSc and Maria Dellanina, RD
As you savor this season’s pumpkin spice lattes, let’s ensure your professional development learning goals are just as crisp!
In this blog post, we will guide you in writing effective performance learning goals for the skills you aim to develop and can successfully follow through on, ensuring your professional growth as a dietitian is both focused and achievable.
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Professional Development Learning Goal
Have you or your clients ever set a personal goal or a New Year’s resolution, only to see it fade into the background as life gets busy? For example, “I am going to exercise more this year.” Does that sound familiar? Many of us set these kinds of goals but by the time it’s February, we’ve often forgotten they even existed.
A big reason for this is that such goals lack specificity. What does “exercise more” really mean? It doesn’t specify how often or what kind of exercise this individual is trying to achieve. Without a clear, focused goal and a detailed action plan these goals often tend to lack follow-through. Setting learning goals can feel ambiguous, and when our goals are vague, they become much harder to achieve.
The same applies to dietitians. Professional development goals are designed to support your growth in the field. Setting clear, structured goals allows you to reflect on your strengths and areas for improvement, enabling you to drive your professional development forward.
Benefits of Writing Effective Professional Learning Goals
- Self Reflection – Writing goals allows you to reflect on your strengths and identify areas for improvement.
- Personalized Objectives – You have the freedom to choose your own goals or skills to work on, making your learning more interesting and relevant to you.
- Clear Direction – Having specific goals gives you focus, helping you know exactly what you want to achieve and how to get there.
- Increased confidence – Successfully completing your goals makes you feel more confident as you acquire specific skills or knowledge.
Understanding SMART Goals
When writing professional development learning goals, a useful tool is the SMART framework. SMART goal setting helps create a clear and effective action plan to achieve your desired professional development learning goals.
SMART Goals are:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Attainable/Achievable
- Realistic
- Timely
To learn more about SMART goal setting with professional examples, check out our blog article on SMART Goals for Dietitians.
Writing SMART Professional Development Learning Goals
Setting SMART goals is key for dietitians at every career stage, from interns to experienced professionals. These goals provide clear steps to follow, making it less likely that you’ll forget them, unlike those vague New Year’s resolutions that often fall through every year.
Below, we provide five examples of learning performance goals. Each example includes an action plan to guide goal fulfillment.
Example 1: Dietetic Intern at a Diabetes Clinic
I will increase my knowledge of carbohydrate counting for nutritional management of patients with diabetes. This knowledge will allow me to counsel patients in my diabetes placement on effective carbohydrate management by January 31st.
Action Steps:
- By December 15, complete the “Diabetes Nutrition Therapy Video Course” from Dietitian Success Center.
- By January 1, read the “Diabetes [Evidence Summary]” from Dietitian Success Center.
- By January 31, conduct at least 3 practice client sessions focused on carbohydrate counting with peers.
Example 2: Entry-level Dietitian
I will improve my motivational interviewing skills. I will apply those skills to improve client engagement and facilitate behavior change in 1:1 client sessions by September 1st.
Action Steps:
- By January 15, complete the “Motivational Interviewing Mini Course” from Dietitian Success Center.
- By February 1, review and familiarize myself with the “Motivational Interview Cheat Sheet” from Dietitian Success Center.
- By August 15, Obtain “The DSC Counseling & Coaching Certificate” from Dietitian Success Center.
- By September 1, practice three counseling sessions with colleagues, apply motivational interviewing skills, and gather feedback on performance.
Example 3: Dietitian Business - Growing My Instagram Page
I will learn how to effectively grow my dietetic Instagram presence to deliver evidence-based nutritional messaging to a broader audience and aim for a 25% increase of followers by June 30.
Action Steps:
- By March 15, complete the “Social Media Video Course” available in the Business Project Lab.
- By March 31, listen to “Instagram Growth for Dietitians or Dietetic Students” Podcast by Dietitian Success Center available on Spotify and Apple podcast.
- By June 15, create and schedule at least 10 Instagram reels inspired from “50+ Generic Instagram Reel Ideas” available in the Business Project Lab.
Example 4: Dietitian on Maternity Leave
While on maternity leave, I will increase my knowledge about infant feeding practices and best practices for introducing solid foods to support my own knowledge base and to prepare myself for when I return to practice by October 1st.
Action Steps:
- By April 10, complete the “Infant Feeding Video Course” available on Dietitian Success Center.
- By May 10, complete the “Baby-led Weaning Video Course” available on Dietitian Success Center.
- By June 10, read the “Infant Feeding Evidence Summary” available on Dietitian Success Center.
Example 5: Dietitian Precepting Interns/Students
I will enhance my skills in giving and receiving feedback to create a more constructive learning environment for interns under my supervision. I will improve my skills by September 1 (when my next intern arrives).
Action Steps:
- By January 30, complete the “Precepting Video Course” available on Dietitian Success Center.
- By March 1st, I will begin creating a feedback journal for each intern where I will keep track of their strengths and opportunities for improvement to utilize for feedback provision at their review meetings.
- By April 1st, I will create a feedback questionnaire to provide interns where they can assess my precepting skills and provision of feedback.
Moving Forward
Setting clear and actionable professional development goals is essential for your growth as a dietitian. By using the SMART framework and the resources from Dietitian Success Center, you can write and achieve goals that effectively improve your skills and knowledge. If you’re unsure where to start, revisit your action plan – that’s exactly what it’s for!
Meet all of your professional development needs and access to 300+ client handouts with a Dietitian Success Center membership. Get started for free! Access your DSC starter kit and join a supportive community of dietitians today.
