If you feel as if you've looked at every job posting on earth and you still can't find one your skills match up with, then it's time to develop some new skills. This may be the perfect opportunity to go back to school, or at least add some challenging night classes.
Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough we must do. - Goethe
Building career skills:
Look internally first. Are you currently employed, but are just not challenged in your current position? Do you really like the company you work for, but just feel stagnant in your current role? Is there another position in the company that you’d love to have, but just don’t have the required skills, experience, or abilities? If this is you, you owe it to yourself to look for answers internally before going outside your current employer for a new career opportunity. A great way to do this is request a meeting with your supervisor or company mentor with the topic of goal planning. You can also simply go to your boss and ask for on-the-job training or opportunities to do projects that develop new skills. See if your employer will pay part of your tuition costs for going out an acquiring the necessary skills that would qualify you for that next career advancement.
Identify resources in your community. Find out about programs in your community. Junior colleges, community colleges, or libraries often offer low cost opportunities to strengthen skills such as computers, basic accounting, or how to start a business. Local Chambers of Commerce, Small Business Administrations, or state job development programs also are excellent resources.
If you are a college student today and haven’t finished your degree, consider volunteering or working as an intern. Some awesome career skills can be acquired by volunteering or doing an internship. This has the added benefit of putting you in contact with people in your chosen field.
Take night classes. Some career fields require specific education or skills, such as a specialized degree or specific training. You shouldn’t automatically rule out more education as impossible. Many career fields have accelerated programs if you already have some education, or you may be able to take night classes so that you can continue to work. Some companies even offer tuition reimbursement for current employees to continue their education or for future employees looking to join the organization.
Something to consider:
When deciding whether to go back to school, one of the major factors in your decision should be future job security. Today, many jobs are being outsourced to other countries for cheaper labor, or are being eliminated through technological advancements. People without a college degree are more likely to work factory jobs, manual labor, and other jobs that are becoming increasingly more obsolete. Therefore, it is important to realize that while a certain unskilled job might be in high demand today; this is not likely to always be the case. Individuals with college degrees or even more advanced degrees such as a Master’s or an MBA may experience more job security because they take positions that fewer people are qualified to fill.
Conclusion:
Often people assume that simply getting a degree or continuing their education will solve all their financial problems; the reality is that in order to profit the most from education and training, a strategic plan is required. To benefit from the cost of more education and the hard work of acquiring new skills, make sure you have specific goals in mind. What do you hope to achieve in the long-term? If you think of continued learning and training as an investment in your quest for financial independence, its true value becomes quite clear. The bottom line is, we all must continuously learn. If you’re not learning new skills, you may someday lose out on that new job to someone else that did.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, "Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion."
Muhammad Ali
