Your first order of business is assuring you have enough professional development hours to sit for the exam this December 5. In order to be eligible, you need 100 hours of qualified professional development in the past 5 years. Download the application from the ASAE website and get moving on that task first...there are deadlines for submitting your application. Delaying on this task will put you in a bind for study time later on.
Today, I want to focus on how to prepare for the study process. To properly prepare for CAE success, let's apply the first CAE rule of thumb 'SPIE' to yourself.
1. Scan your weekly schedule and your lifestyle and note when is the best time for you to slow down and study with focus and intent. For some it might be after the kids go to bed. For others it might be arriving at your office an hour early five days a week. For some, it might be on airplanes. And others might prefer a focused Saturday morning or Sunday evening.
You choose the time and space that works best for you to read intently, think deeply, and immerse yourself in CAE content. You'll need to find about 6-8 hours of reading time for each of nine domains in the content outline.
Also scan your schedule over the four months leading to the exam date. What commitments do you have that throw your normal routine into a tizzy? For some, an annual conference. For others, a European vacation. And there are those other distractions like Board meetings, attending conferences, or kid commitments. If you know you have a major commitment in the 16 weeks leading up to the CAE exam, note that and be sure to include that blip in your study plan.
Scan your learning style. How do you learn best? Do you learn best when you study alone? When you have a group that you can talk through things? Or maybe you learn best when you create a routine and work it throughout the preparation period.
You may also want to review the CAE content outline published on the ASAE website and note which areas may be toughest for you based on your current knowledge base. Maybe you will want to plan an extra week for reading in that area or maybe you will want to meet with a colleague who has expertise in that area, or maybe you need to attend a workshop or seminar on a particular topic. (Yes, you should strategically plan for what outside resources you will need!)
If you've seen the exam before and are choosing to see it again, honestly review your past study effort. Note what worked and what didn't work to get you CAE success. Make decisions about what needs to be different in this effort.
Scan what resources you have and what do you need. There are two core books: Professional Practices in Association Management (2nd edition) and The Association Law Handbook (Fifth edition). There are specialty books you may want to study: The Will to Govern by Glenn Tecker, Membership Essentials, How to Read Non-Profit Financial Statements. Maybe you need extra reading on government relations...there is a CAE Authoritative Literature list available for your review. There are other tools you can purchase to assist as well. Consider Michigan's CAE flashcards, available in electronic form or on card stock.
2. Plan your study schedule.
Create a study calendar to organize your life around this study effort. I recommend you literally block off study times or write in appointments with yourself.. Write in what domain you will be studying on a particular week and the times of your study. You may want to review the core texts and write in what chapters you will be reading that week. The ASAE Kick off class offers a reading list, identifying what chapters are related to what domains. The Michigan SAE program provides you a very specific reading list with page numbers and a check off list when you complete that reading. (There are some books that you only read chapters, not the whole book!)
- Note where your major work/life commitments fall and plan your weekly reading around those commitments.
- Plan when it would be convenient to meet with a study group or a mentor.
- Schedule in the seminars you need to get a better understanding of a particular domain, i.e. financial management OR lobbying.
You may need to form a local study group or find a mentor if these approaches are helpful to you. Maybe you need to register for a prep course...Check with your local SAE to see what they have available, check out the Michigan online prep program and check out the ASAE Kick-off. Each of these options have different price points, conveniences and approaches. Choose what is best for you.
Start immediately in the reading. The reading load is significant and there will always be interruptions in the overall plan. When you read, don't skim. You really need to immerse yourself.
4. Evaluate your study effort.
Each week evaluate your study effort. Compare the information you absorbed with the CAE content outline. Have you closed the gap in your knowledge base to be able to competently address the criteria listed in the content outline? If not, what else do you need to do to grasp the thinking? Maybe set up an appointment with a knowledgeable colleague or a CAE or a Chief Staff Executive?
Evaluate if you put in enough study time to grasp the scope of the content. Maybe you need more than 6-8 hrs of reading time in your schedule. If so, adjust your schedule accordingly.
Evaluate whether you followed your study plan. If not, why not? Don't make up excuses for what you didn't get to. Take a good hard look at the choices you made this week and decide if you are making the choices that will help you attain the CAE. Do you want it bad enough to make better choices?
If you follow this sequence at the beginning of your study effort, you will more likely follow though and be successful on the CAE exam.
No comments:
Post a Comment