One of the frustrations of moving a career as you move with the military is the feeling of always starting from scratch with each move…in connecting with peers, in proving yourself, in learning the regional differences in your field. Professional associations are key to avoiding those frustrations.

By joining the professional association for your career field, you have an easy instant connection with peers across the country and in many cases internationally. Almost every profession has an association as a means for sharing information, providing ongoing education and professional certification , and helping members to keep up with new developments in their field. They often have monthly magazines or newsletters, regional and national conferences, and smaller specialized trainings. Many also have job placement services. To find the professional association in your field, stop in at the library and ask to see Gale’s Directory of Associations. Or search the Internet to find the website of your particular association.

Lynn Edwards is a long-time Army wife who managed to continue her professional meeting planning career throughout all of their military moves. She has always been very involved with Meeting Planners International and the Society of Association Executives. “Your professional associations are hugely key,” she advises, “especially moving internationally. The dues may seem high especially at first, but membership is worth its weight in gold.”

Kathie can attest to how a professional association can greatly reduce your learning curve. Her membership in the National Speakers Association provided workshops, magazines, audio tapes and incredible support from other speakers helped her in building her business and crafting her speaking skills. Plus she had an instant connection to other speakers with each move and has speaker friends across the country to network with and ask questions of. The International Women’s Writing Guild and the Pacific Northwest Writers Association are providing the same kind of help in her writing business.

Other spouses echo this idea. Amy Fetzer, Marine spouse and romance author, belongs to the Author’s Guild and the Romance Writers of America. “Both organizations provided me with information I might not have found, especially since my writing took off when we lived in Okinawa before Internet connections were available.”

Cydnee Gentry is a Marine Corps spouse who has moved 10 times in 15 years. She has been able to find jobs in her field of education with each move. Gentry belongs to the National Educators Association and the National Association of Young Children. “My memberships have helped with resources and referrals,” she says.

Artist and Army wife Kerry Vosler belongs to the Portrait Society of America and she joins all the art clubs in each area as she moves. “Your peers shorten your learning curve; they can save you a lot of time and money,” says Kerry. “And with your association,” she adds, “you have access to the famous people in your field; you get to talk to them at conferences.”

Of course, belonging to an association and being active in an association are two different things. By being actively involved, you are more likely to develop deeper connections, and even more importantly, a wider range of peers who are familiar with your capabilities and professionalism. That can mean more leads on jobs as you move and less need to prove yourself over and over again.

Another great thing about belonging to your professional association is that you keep running into your peers at events even as you move nationally and internationally. Where you won’t be able to keep your actual office mates in a job as you move, you can stay in touch with the larger “family” of your profession. With members all over the world, you always have someone to connect with when you move to a new location — and it’s an easy connection to make.

Excerpted with permission from Help! I’m a Military Spouse — I Want a Life Too! How to Craft a Life for You as You Move with the Military by Kathie Hightower & Holly Scherer.