aNewDomain — Are you trying hard to become a unicorn? A lot of people have this lofty ambition, but for most it will never materialize. It’s like the running rhino below — it won’t give up, but the magical unicorn taped to the wall will forever be out of reach. Sorry.
Gif courtesy: Element of Crime
The approach that works more effectively — unicorns are, by nature, random, magical and impossible to predict — is to upskill. That’s the inner drive to make things happen for you which is achieved through hard, focused work.
Babe Ruth said, “It is hard to beat a person who never gives up.” That’s true, through and through.
You see, even in Silicon Valley, unicorns are hard to come by — Zuckerberg and Jobs are once in a generation. You can’t rely on that to get you far.
Make your target clear and achievable, then go out and achieve it. Enjoy your work and don’t procrastinate on what’s important.
It’s Time to Upskill
Technology, disruption and the coming of robots means our lives will constantly be changing. Skills you have now might not count tomorrow — you have to increase capability as the world moves around you.
U.S. President Barack Obama knows that more people need to get training for the practical jobs and lives they want to have. He launched an “Upskill America” initiative that aims “to help workers of all ages earn a shot at better, high-paying jobs, even if they don’t have higher education.”
Obama has a lot going for the middle class job market, and this is another tool. Make sure to look in your region to see what opportunities are available — there are five million White House jobs open in the U.S. at the time of this writing. Surely with the right skills you can get one.
Still, even if you’ve upskilled in the technical world, you’ll need soft skills:
Soft skills is a catch-all term referring to various behaviors that help people work and socialize well with others. In short, they are the good manners and personality traits needed to get along with others and build positive relationships. Unlike hard skills, which include a person’s technical skill set and ability to perform certain functional tasks, soft skills are broadly applicable across job titles and industries. It’s often said that hard skills will get you an interview but you need soft skills to get — and keep — the job.”
It’s a combination of these that will move you up in the workplace, or into a new career. Invest in yourself. Really. It’s the most valuable investment you can make this year. Check out the specific values of upskilling in the infographic below:
The Value of Upskilling infographic: courtesy Brighton School of Business and Management
For aNewDomain, I’m David Michaelis.
Featured image: Skills Development Project in Bangladesh by Asian Development Bank via Flickr
