We have long known that the best way to learn about something is to teach about it. But that’s not always possible. It can be tough to get out and find the time to teach a class. It can be even tougher to find a willing audience.

Another option, though, is writing. When you write, you do not need your audience sitting in front of you. In fact, you can get many of the benefits of teaching regardless of whether anyone is even reading. It is an easy way to advance your personal development at no cost to your organization.

There are a lot of great benefits that come from writing, especially if you do it on a regular basis, though you can still get a lot of advantages even if you just write occasionally. Writing forces you to stay current in your field, so you are not suggesting ideas that have already been overtaken by new ones. In doing so, it also encourages you to be thinking of new ideas yourself, so you can present interesting, original thinking rather than just writing about others’ concepts. The feedback you get on your writing can spark even more ideas, serving as a virtual brainstorming session. Finally, from a broader professional perspective, you have the opportunity to share your thoughts with your peers and advance your field…just don’t give away ideas to your competition that let them get ahead of you!

Of course, regular writing also improves your most basic communication skills, and that is never a bad thing.

One last point: professional writing offers a way to advertise your firm at no cost to you. And it does it in a way that shows you not only know what you are talking about, you are also not lacking in self confidence.

How do you get out there and write? Well, while you could write a book, that probably should not be your first project. Look for professional magazines and journals in your field that accept unsolicited articles and essays. You could also look at writing a regular column about your particular field for a local newspaper. And of course, the easiest way to break into publishing: write a blog.

There are lots of things you probably shouldn’t be doing during work hours, but professional writing isn’t on that list. Don’t feel guilty about taking time to do this during the day. You’re improving your skills and advertising your business…both of those are pretty important for any successful firm.

By the way…all of these ideas apply as well to your employees as they do to you. So encourage them to give this a shot, too.