Edition: August 29th, 2021
Curated by the Knowledge Team of ICS Career GPS
- Excerpts from article by Tim Madden, published on Forbes.com
No matter how far up the career ladder you’ve climbed, it’s never wise to get too comfortable. Shocks like this pandemic demonstrate that we never know what’s around the corner.
Trends toward digitalization have now been accelerated, leaving those who lack technical skills behind. Who knows what could change the work landscape next and what skills we’ll need in that new world?
The best thing any professional can do is continually upskill with an eye towards the future. Here are 6 ways to achieve that:
1. Keep up with emerging tech & trends in your sector
- Just holding on to your job is not enough.
- What can you do to ensure you remain on the cutting edge?
- The easiest option is to follow social media accounts or subscribe to email newsletters created by experts in your industry.
- Start by following the most prominent companies and individuals in your sector.
- To go one step further, you could attend industry events. These events provide networking opportunities and educate you about what’s happening.
2. Work on your social media presence
- Don’t just keep up with the latest news; get involved in the conversation.
- Many people are afraid of publishing content on the internet in case they “get it wrong,” but you don’t have to position yourself as a LinkedIn influencer or even a thought leader until you’re ready.
- Feel free to pick the medium you’re most comfortable with and post whatever feels the most authentic to you.
- That could be long-form articles on Medium, sharing your favorite industry-related articles on Twitter or writing about industry trends on LinkedIn — whatever works best for you.
3. Seek out formal training
- You can participate in relevant training programmes or courses.
- If you’ve identified your areas of weakness then it’s time to act.
- Look for courses that are accredited. Then, pitch it to your company to see if they’ll cover the cost by explaining the additional value you’ll be able to provide them after the training.
4. Read as much as possible
- We live in a world where attention spans are growing shorter and the bigger picture is being lost in the 24/7 news cycle.
- The best remedy to this is reading books that discuss in-depth ideas.
- Reading allows you to make links between what’s happening in your working day and historical, social and cultural phenomena.
- If you’re thinking that keeping up with industry trends via social media while also reading books sounds too overwhelming, that’s okay — just pick one if you need to.
- You can also go for audiobooks.
5. Find a mentor
- Everyone needs a mentor — even the people mentoring others.
- You can approach a professional mentor or a trusted mentoring organisation.
- If there’s someone in your company who has a skill you lack or a position you aspire to hold one day, you can seek help from them too.
6. Develop a plan
- While the tips above can be helpful, they’re worth little to nothing if you don’t have a clear idea of where you want to end up.
- Many experts predict that creativity, emotional intelligence, leadership, adaptability and analytical thinking will become increasingly important as technology advances.
- But you need to figure out which of these skills are the most important for your industry, and which methods would help you develop them.
- Once you know the answer to those questions, you can start chalking out a plan.
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(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article mentioned above are those of the author(s). They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of ICS Career GPS or its staff.)
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