Summer can turn a usually busy office into a place of relaxed deadlines, and no matter how eager you may be to progress with certain projects, the holidays can slow things down somewhat. So ahead of the upswing in activity that September will bring, it’s a good idea to use this time wisely.

Although you may not be as busy as you’d like, you can still make the most of the quieter weeks, to boost your value as an employee.

Since Pure advises with a wide diversity of professionals on their career development, we know just what people need to do in order to give their ambitions the best possible chance.

So, instead of wondering how to progress while you wait for people to start filtering back after the holidays, here’s how you can succeed this August.

Enhance your expertise

Now is a great chance to step up your skills. If you’ve been planning some training, but rarely find time to do it, why not talk to your manager about signing up to online courses or attend seminars this month? Whether your specialism is recruitment, bookkeeping or marketing strategy, search for opportunities that’ll increase your value to your employer, especially if you’re thinking of going for a promotion soon.

Increase your industry insight

These days most industries move quickly, mainly thanks to technology. When you’re busy with everyday tasks it can be a challenge keeping on top of news from your sector. August is ideal for investing time into researching and subscribing to the best news outlets: from popular bloggers to e-newsletters published by your favourite websites, newspapers or magazines. Social media is also a great source of the latest updates and opinions - follow key spokespeople who’ll top up your industry insight. Your boss will be suitably impressed!

Create ideas with colleagues

If the atmosphere in your workplace is more laid back than usual, why not gather together some colleagues to brainstorm new ideas for upcoming projects? With a few people from different areas of your organisation in one room, you could all benefit from exchanging ideas, potentially resulting in new perspectives on challenges. As long as you have a goal in mind, this could be a very fruitful and creative way of spending the quieter weeks.

Refresh your CV and online profile

If you are thinking about a making your next career move, now is the time to update your CV and LinkedIn profile. Spend a few evenings listing your latest achievements and new skills, and think about how they can be of value to your own organisation or a new employer. When life gets back to normal in September you’ll be ready to hit the job hunt or set up meetings to explore new opportunities with your current employer.

Plan the work social calendar

If nobody in particular is responsible for the social events at work, it’s worthwhile volunteering to do the research and draft a diary of events over the next few months. Such tasks are fun but also time consuming - if your workload has taken a temporary downward turn, get online and google ideas. By using your initiative, you could catch the eye of senior directors who are generally keen for staff to get involved in non-work activities. After all, it all helps maintain everyone’s wellbeing at work.

The school holidays may mean a few weeks when key decisions are put on hold, but as you can see, there are some fantastic ways to give yourself and your career a real lift!