Why you should learn new skills?

Way back when I decided to go back to university to do my master’s degree I was challenged! Challenged as I now was expected to read many pages every week. On top of working my job. In one of the first courses, I got way behind from the very beginning. Before the exam I did my very best to read the 500+ pages I was behind. Did I manage to read all those pages? – no! Was I nervous at the exam? – oh yes!

I decided to improve for me not to end up in a situation again where I was not on top of the expected readings and assignments. So, what did I do?

I realized that the learning muscle is to be compared with any other muscle. It must be developed. Ok! – and how do you develop your learning muscle? – you develop your learning muscle in exactly same way as any other muscle. You need to exercise – and when it’s your learning muscle you need to use it! Use it or lose it!

Yeah – but how? Start learning new skills. Read books about new topics. Read articles. The topic is not the important part – the learning is. Make it a habit to learn something new every week. Make sure you exercise your learning muscle, so you are ready when new skills are needed for you to master your job – doesn’t matter if it’s your current job or a new job where you just started. Keep the learning muscle ready so you are ready to meet new requirements.

With my new knowledge I managed to not only do my master’s degree but also topping with a Doctoral Degree! Just by realizing how to sharpen my learning muscle.

Now you might think that ‘what’s that to do with me’?

Quit a bit as the world is changing faster than ever. “On average, employers expect to offer reskilling and upskilling to just over 70% of their employees by 2025. However, employee engagement into those courses is lagging, with only 42% of employees taking up employer-supported reskilling and upskilling opportunities” (World Economic Forum report, 2020).

So – if you not already decided to improve your learning skills – then now might be a good time!