By Ashley Stahl
Photo Credit: Getty
I recently caught up with an old client over a virtual coffee.
About a year ago, she was stuck and unhappy in a job where she wasn’t valued, and saw no opportunity to grow. After working together for a while, she was able to steer her job search toward a new field, and she landed a job that she was extremely excited about.
While she’s very happy with her current role, and sees the opportunity for growth coming soon, she remembers that “stuck” feeling all too well. She asked me, how can she continue her professional development?
Well, the advice I gave her applies equally to job-seekers and to those who are not actively “on the market,” but still looking to advance their careers: it’s time to learn new skills.
The best time to level up your professional skills and your profile is right now, whether or not you are making immediate career moves. In fact, the worst time to be scrambling to upskill is when you urgently want a new job. Use the ebbs and flows of your career as growth opportunities.
Lucky for you, it’s easier than ever to access resources to help you learn and gain new skills. The diversity and quantity of online learning materials is growing rapidly, and the massive online open courses (MOOC) industry is projected to be worth over $25 billion by 2025. Almost everyone in the business world is already utilizing online courses to help employees build skills, with 98% of U.S. corporations expected to integrate e-learning for employees.
But why wait for a corporate mandate to tackle a new subject when so many resources are at your fingertips? Platforms like Coursera or Skillshare are great places to start. MasterClass is another stellar option that allows you to learn from experts in many fields.
Excited to dive into professional development and learning new skills, but not sure where to start? Here are 5 great areas where you can consider upskilling as a way to boost your professional profile:
1. IT and cybersecurity:
The new technological challenges of remote work and the ever-changing digital landscape have kept IT and tech skills in high demand as we enter 2021.
2020 saw a mismatch between the IT demands of companies and the skills or personnel they had on hand to handle significant changes in their technology needs. During the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, companies worldwide reported spending $15 billion per week to keep up with changing tech demands of newly remote workers.
Another significant challenge was the increasing need for robust and current cybersecurity systems. Throughout the pandemic, there was an 83% increase in phishing attacks and 62% more instances of malware. In response to this rise in cyber threats, 35% of companies are now making the hiring of cybersecurity professionals their foremost priority.
Other high-demand skills in the IT/tech space include:
For those who are less technically minded, it would still be valuable to get an overview and learn the fundamentals of many of these areas. They represent major trends that will have a huge impact on all sectors of the economy into the future.
2. Video and audio production:
Unless you’re living under a rock, you’ve probably noticed the rise of Instagram reels and well-produced TikTok videos in 2020. The ability to produce compelling video and audio assets is one of the most in demand skills in the current job market. While some of you might think that your casual TikTok game gets you halfway there, I’m sorry to say you’ll have to be better than that.
The demand for video marketing content is way up. Studies show that 54% of consumers want to see more video content from companies and brands in which they are interested. Video plays a vital role in marketing and consumer choice, with 87% of marketing teams utilizing video assets. Video marketing is particularly effective within the tech space, where 80% of consumers purchased an app or piece of software after viewing a video from the brand.
As video is increasingly critical for brands to stay on top, it also becomes more of a priority for companies to handle video production in-house. Honing your video production skills is a great way to distinguish yourself and show initiative, especially if you are working for a smaller company that does not have a dedicated creative or marketing department.
The demand for audio production skills has also gone up, along with the ever-increasing popularity of podcasts. An amazing 36% of people across the globe have tuned into a podcast within the last month, and almost a quarter of podcast listeners only began listening within the last six months.
So if your brand or business is not operating in the podcast ecosystem, now is the time to dive in. And what better way to pitch the idea to your team than with your newly honed audio production skills?
Here are some resources to get you started on your video and audio production journey:
3. Foreign languages and translation
We are operating within an economy that is increasingly globalized. This has created a significant demand for multi-language fluency, as well the need for in-house staff with translation skills.
A study of U.S. employers found that among companies that are dependent on foreign language reports, one third reported that their staff was not meeting their foreign language needs. In addition, one quarter admitted that they were unable to pursue a business prospect because their staff could not meet the translation needs required.
For U.S. companies, employees with skills in Chinese, Spanish and French are in the highest demand.
Need more incentive? Foreign language skills will make you more competitive in the job market. A study found that speaking a second language can add 10–15% to your salary.
But don’t worry about calling Mom and asking her to dust off your old 11th-grade Spanish workbook. There are many tools that are just a click away to help you gain new language skills, or take your second language to the next level.
Here are some great ways to build your language skills:
4. Data analysis and statistics:
Left-brain thinkers rejoice: data is the name of the game across many industries in 2021.
If you’re looking for an example of how data is driving business choices, consider Netflix. Netflix has developed sophisticated data modeling based on consumers’ viewing choice, and they’ve used the results to drive content purchasing to fit consumer tastes. Through this successful use of data, Netflix was able to raise their value by $50 billion in 2020.
When you think of advertising, you might imagine Don Draper in a smoky room pondering the “feeling” of a product. But these days, marketing is all about the metrics, and creating campaigns that are targeted and rooted in the numbers.
Data analytics have become a top priority in marketing and advertising, with 40% of companies planning to increase budgets for data-driven marketing and three quarters of leaders in the marketing sector making decisions rooted in data analysis.
These days, data is where it all begins, and the ability to collect and interpret data will be a major asset in your career. Here are some ways to boost your skills in this critical subject:
5. Creativity
For our last skill, I thought I’d throw you a curveball. You may have been expecting a hard skill here, but creativity is consistently one of the most in-demand skills that a candidate or employee can show. It must be a crucial skill, given that 94% of hiring managers agree that it is important to factor in creativity when considering a candidate.
And yet, too few of us take the time to build our creativity. As evidence of this, 78% of college-educated professionals over age 25 stated that they wish they had more creative ability.
In my opinion, this number simply won’t do! I’m not a believer that you are born with a certain amount of creativity. I don’t think of creativity as a gift, but as a skill that can be cultivated if you are willing to put in the work.
So how to grow your creativity? For many of us who already have creative hobbies such as journaling or drawing, it could be as simple as carving out the proper time to devote to these things. But maybe you’ve been in a creative rut, and can’t find the right outlet to get the creative juices flowing.
If that sounds like you, here are some ideas to get you started:
2021 is going to be a year of new beginnings, so why not take the opportunity to learn something new? It will be beneficial to your career, and contribute to greater fulfillment in your life as a whole.
Science tells us that the more you learn, the better a learner you become. There’s no day like today, and there’s never been more chances to learn available to us. Wishing you all the best on your journey to a more skilled you!
For the original article, visit: Forbes.