What Is Upskilling & 5 Ways To Go About It

What is Upskilling

Upskilling is the process of acquiring more advanced skills further through education and training. Simply said, it is the process of developing new or more skills.

Today, technology is developing at a pace that is becoming hard to keep up with. Take a look at any job or process – no matter how complex or simple, they are all being modified in ways we can barely imagine. For instance, earlier, the person delivering something you ordered online would ask you to sign an invoice. This was then filed and archived by a clerk. Today, we sign off deliveries on mobile devices which are automatically fed into servers. This efficient one-step system has made clerks redundant in the process. If these clerks choose to upskill themselves, they can develop technological skills and move to roles in inventory management!

Looking for guidance in a constantly changing world? Speak to Mentoria’s expert career counsellors for personalised step-by-step guidance throughout your career discovery journey.

A recent report stated that by 2020, AI will generate 2.3 million jobs, exceeding the 1.8 million it is expected to replace. However, these jobs that it creates, will all require entirely new skills and be up-to-date in your field. But, before we get into how you can expand your skill set, here’s something to reflect upon:

Staying Relevant in a Changing World

Do you see other people getting promoted over you?

If this happens to you a lot, try to understand why this happens, what skills do the others bring to the table?

Do you think you aren’t able to find the perfect job for yourself?

Almost all of the companies today require people who are familiar with technology. Does the thought of having to depend on artificial intelligence for your day-to-day tasks make you squirm?

Is your area of expertise rapidly evolving? Do you find yourself struggling to keep up?

When you started out, you knew all the tricks of the trade but your field has evolved since, and now you find yourself unable to deal with the new issues arising.

Do you have to rely on other people to get your tasks done?

If any of your tasks require you to use some software or programme, do you find yourself sweating under the collar and reaching for your co-worker or IT guy to help you?

If you’ve been mumbling a soft ‘yes’ to most of these questions, we are sorry (and happy) to tell you that there is no better time than now for you to consider upskilling for real. Don’t worry though. We’ve also compiled a list of ways you could begin doing that.

Learn From Your Coworkers

Imagine all of the clever people you interact with on a daily basis, and think how much could be gained if peers shared their knowledge and experience to learn and develop new abilities.If you want to develop skills that will help you do your job better, you could look to your coworkers for some inspiration. One of the benefits of knowledge sharing is that it allows employees to realise that they are experts on a certain subject. Or, that their coworkers are.

For example, if you work in marketing and would like to learn sales to complement your work, you could shadow someone from sales to see how they go about doing their work. 

Use the Internet

The world is changing every day, and so are industries, organisations, roles and professional requirements. What better way to keep track of these changes than use the Internet! You can read informative articles, watch videos and webinars and follow the work of experts in the industry you work in.

For instance, if you’re interested in the automobile space, you can closely follow the professional life of someone like Elon Musk. You can also read up on the latest developments by companies like Tesla and watch interviews of such experts to stay updated about the industry.

Get a Qualification

Learning doesn’t have to stop after college. You can sign up for a certificate course that complements your career. For instance, as a marketing professional, you could enrol for a digital marketing course to develop skills that will help you master new-age marketing!

If it’s difficult to find time for such courses, you could also look up online courses – there’s one for almost every skill out there! MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are a great, flexible way to hone your skills or learn new ones through video lectures, assignments, quizzes, and interactions with experts from all over the world. If you’re only looking to learn for yourself, most of these are available for free, while certifications require you to pay basic fee amounts. In fact, you can also pursue a full-fledged online programme from a prestigious university via MOOC sites like Coursera, edX, Future Learn, and others.

Hone your skills and channel them into a career you love. Take Mentoria’s holistic psychometric career assessment test to discover your ideal career based on your unique interests, skills and personality!

Take up a Personal Project

The best way to learn something is through hands-on experience. For example, you could start a blog or social media accounts to help you experiment with digital marketing. You can look to your friends or someone familiar with the concept for help. The advantage of setting up a personal project is that there is a lot of scope for trial and error. Additionally, whatever you learn will help your organisation as much as it will help you.A personal project can be a fantastic way for you to express yourself and your talents in a unique and often creative way.

Attend In-House Training

With so many new developments in industries, most organisations have regular training programmes to help employees stay updated. Don’t skip these. In fact, you can even approach the training department with any requests or ideas that you have. Similarly, you could also ask an in-house expert to take some time out to conduct training. This is one of the best ways to upskill, because, your learnings can be tailored to your industry.

If there is one thing that is never going to change is that there will always be something new to learn. Even without the advent of technology, there’s already so much we don’t know. It’s high time you upgrade yourself to stay relevant in this rapidly developing world.

If you don’t find it exciting to learn more than you have to about your field, chances are you’re in the wrong place. Do get in touch with us, and we can help you find your true calling.

Kick-start your child’s career discovery journey with Mentoria & be sure to find the right career fit for your child. Our 4-step career guidance solution, helps us find the right career fit for your child from 3 streams, 850+ courses & 12,000+ careers.