The employee you hired a few months ago isn’t the same employee you need in the future. The rapid pace of technological advancements has put a premium on employees’ ability to adapt, learn, innovate, and collaborate. Today, upskilling or reskilling employees has never been more important in helping workers alight their hearts and minds with their organization’s values and purpose.
As automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and new business models shape the modern business landscape, lifetime learning has become imperative in the ever-competitive economic environment. In a Global CEO survey by PwC, 80% of CEOs believe that navigating new skills is one of the biggest corporate challenges. Meanwhile, employees view development opportunities as one of the top factors in achieving workplace happiness.
In Singapore, fresh graduates enroll in skillsfuture series courses to equip themselves with essential skills and academic qualifications to land a successful career in their chosen fields. In other countries, companies are investing in training opportunities to produce globally competitive employees.
The increasing pressure and demands of work have completely trumped the luxury of learning. Employees would rather devote their time to work-related tasks than work on their professional development. But it’s worth noting that building a successful career depends on how you constantly add learning into your daily life even you’re taking a full-time job. Without learning and growing within your career, you’ll eventually feel stagnant, affecting your potential promotions and even running the risk of burning yourself out.
This article will talk about how you can make learning a permanent part of your career. We’ll also discuss how it can affect work performance and the future of your career.
Act like a student
Just because you have left the formal classroom doesn’t mean it’s the end of your learning journey. Treating learning as such will make you miss out on opportunities life can offer.
To create a successful career, you need to keep learning. This concept applies to various aspects of life, whether inside or outside the workplace. Learning beyond the boundaries of formal education is different from writing academic essays and studying for exams.
Learning for the sake of professional development is practically fulfilling and stress-free! You have no deadlines to catch or subjects to pass because it’s all about pursuing new knowledge and skills. What’s more, you have the freedom to choose whatever discipline you want to learn.
You can also treat your work environment as an opportunity to develop and acquire new skills. Learn from different situations, challenges, and problems you encounter at work. Never consider them as something that makes your work more difficult, rather treat these challenges as learning opportunities.
As you progress, observe your progress, behavior, and quality of work instead of focusing solely on accomplishing the task. This way, you can identify the strengths and weaknesses that may affect your future performance.
Join coworking projects
Coworking projects serve as excellent opportunities to further develop teamwork, collaboration, and communication skills. These projects require members to share ideas, show support, and work together. Compared to individual learning, doing it in groups helps members to increase their confidence and corporate knowledge.
This is why many hiring officers ask applicants about their ability to work in groups during job interviews. Those who exhibit impressive people skills are often the ones who can easily adapt to large working environments. They’re also believed to have better problem-solving and creativity skills than those who work alone.
Take advantage of learning channels
Online learning channels are one of the best places to gain new skills and knowledge, not just within the workplace. Digital communication platforms, such as Teams and Slack, are one of the best ways to gather, access, share, and store information. They allow users to share and discuss information on these platforms, including non-work-related topics. They also help in boosting engagement by inviting your coworkers to participate in knowledge-sharing activities.
You can also check out open online course websites, such as Coursera and edX, to access webinars and university-level courses Ivy League Universities provide. If you want to learn a particular area or aspect in your career, you can simply visit these platforms to gain practical knowledge and experience.
There’s no guarantee you can achieve a successful career, but there are ways to make it possible. Focus on the impact of learning on your professional development by taking advantage of training and development opportunities. Step beyond your comfort zone and embrace whatever challenges the world throws at you. Eventually, the learning you acquire along the way will help you set bigger milestones and better habits at work.
