Professional Skills to Succeed in a Post-Covid Job Market
What will the future hold for the U.S. workforce and what professional skills will you need? No one knows for sure, but as we transform from working from home to our previous or new employer, these skills are most likely to emerge and be in demand.
They are listed here so you can enhance them for your current and future use:
- Creativity, Innovation, and Critical Thinking
- Flexibility, Adaptability, and Tech Savvy Skills
- Leadership, Data Literacy, and EI (Emotional Intelligence)
You and I will be expected to know more about Artificial Intelligence and become committed to lifelong learning more so than in the past as well.
Creativity, Innovation, and Critical Thinking
Employees are recognized and rewarded for their contributions to their employers. Three skills that are desperately needed for companies to stay alive are creativity, innovation, and critical thinking. These lie at the heart of the entrepreneurial spirit and keep businesses competitive. Find ways to develop these skills to a higher level through study and practice.
Successful workers are not static because they add new ideas and ways of thinking to improve their job skills and help their employers. Successful businesses have found new approaches:
- Effective ways to deliver services and products
- A shift to adding new products and services to their lines
- More efficient ways to promote themselves
- More effective ways to communicate with their audiences
Critical thinking involves seeing “the big picture,” the details, and how they all fit together in the scope of your job and career. Continue to beef up you thinking skills and human ingenuity so that you can better “see through things.” One famous business writer taught us to “begin with the end in mind” on all product and service modifications and new products’ creation.
Flexibility, Adaptability, and Tech Savvy Skills
To rise above the current worldwide business climate, you must be willing to change. For some, this is difficult and for others, it’s no problem. Most of us lie somewhere in the middle and start shrugging off the old ways slowly. Expect many rapid changes during the next few years and be willing to adapt to them rather quickly. Don’t hesitate to talk to your manager at work or even seek counseling from a change counselor if necessary.
Unless you are flexible and adaptable, you will get left behind as the economy advances. Keeping up with the latest tech knowledge and skills will make you more valuable to your employer and make yourself more marketable. These qualities can also prepare you for a job or career change in these uncertain times.
“Employees are recognized and rewarded for their contributions to their employers. Three skills that are desperately needed for companies to stay alive are creativity, innovation, and critical thinking.”
Since COVID only affects humans, one of the current and future waves is shifting to more AI, virtual and augmented reality, and robotics. Although some may lose their jobs to machines and technology, those who develop skills related to these changes will succeed in their careers. Businesses won’t hesitate to try new ways to become more resilient and suffer disruptions less. You should also adopt this attitude!
Leadership, Data Literacy, and EI
Companies are looking for leaders with management abilities, not just managers. Many jobs are no longer secure in our “gig” economic environment, and leadership skills are more important than in the past. Many leaders must carry out their jobs remotely without meeting many of their workers in person. More versatile teams will be sharing their ideas together, and those that supervise them must also be a coach.
There will be more “informal leaders” in the future to adapt to the revolutionary changes in business. Those in charge must learn how to bring out the best in people, inspire and motivate them, and encourage effective and timely communication.
Current, relevant, accurate data and their access are critical to success these days. It must be used effectively to serve customers in all ways. We will use it to better predict the future and respond to it with both positive and negative developments. All employees must develop data literacy to make sense of it to make better decisions. Develop these skills and you have a better chance of surviving in a changing environment.
Emotional Intelligence (EI) in leaders is needed to help other adjust to minor and major changes and feel comfortable in doing that. Helping people reduce worry and stress about their jobs and connecting with them on a personal level will be highly valued by all organizations.
AI and Commitment to Lifelong Learning
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the wave of the future whether we want it or not. If you are an older worker, do not let the growth of AI stand in your way of being adaptable and flexible.
AI has many benefits for all industries and everyone must learn to appreciate it and work with it.
The World Economic Form informs us in just five short years, approximately “35 percent of skills deemed essential today will change.” Here’s what the forum says you need to know about the covid virus right now. The way to keep your job and remain relevant in a post-covid environment is to change your old habits, take on the new, and commit to a lifetime of learning on and off the job.
In Summary
If you see all this skill development as an opportunity instead of an inconvenience, you will be well on your way to succeeding in a changing world. Keep up on the latest developments in your job and industry and stay positive!
