Learning A New Skill…

What would it take? Here are the steps…

Declaring Your Intention

It starts with intention.

You have to tell yourself, “I will learn X”.

“X” is something you are interested in learning…

…Like a language.

…Or, learning to cook.

Or, “X” is something you need to learn to move forward…

…Like a skill you don’t have, which may be an obstacle to getting a job.

…Or, a life-skill you don’t have, like managing your money, or learning to present yourself confidently.

Whatever the skill, you need to take action.

Don’t say “I have to learn X”, or “I should learn X”, or “I could learn X”.

Say “I will learn X”.

Declare your intention.

Taking Action

After declaring your intention, the next step is taking action.

Find out where and how, you can pick up the skill you want to pick up, or the skill you need to pick up.

Is it online?

Is it on the job?

Is it from a family member or friend?

Is it by working on a job with someone who already knows the skill?

Don’t be afraid to ask around.

Don’t be afraid to express interest.

You just may find someone who can help, or who opens a door for you.

Paying Attention

Once you find a learning resource, or find a learning opportunity, use your learning resource or learning opportunity well.

Be attentive.

Ask questions.

Make mental or physical notes.

Maximize the value of your learning.

Practicing

It goes without saying that you should practice what you’ve learned.

Practice, practice, practice!

Utilizing Your New Skill

Theoretical knowledge is different from applied knowledge.

Someone explaining how to do something is not the same as doing it yourself.

Knowing how to do something is not the same as actually using the knowledge in real life.

So become a doer by using what you’ve learned.

You can look at a recipe.

It becomes a dish only when you follow the recipe and cook the dish.

And you can’t stop after you’ve cooked your first dish, and say, “I’ve learned to cook.”

You may have learned to make a pot roast.

But have you learned to make rice?

Or learned to make chappathis?

Or learned to make Tiramisu?

In much the same way, whatever the skill, you can’t say “I know that” after using it once.

You have to use it again and again.

The more you utilize a new skill, the more competent and confident you will become in that skill.

Bouncing back from your mistakes

Every skill was new to everybody at one time or another.

Don’t be afraid of making mistakes, both when you are new, and when you are not so new.

You will bounce back from mistakes, if you stay the course.

This is true whether the skill is a physical skill like driving; an artistic skill like painting, a professional skill like new software; or a life skill like investing or public speaking.

Going from Starting to Master

Use all the resources available to you - formal and informal – to speed up your progress.

There is no set time to go from Starting to Master.

You can always add to your training and increase your competence.

And you do not have to depend on formal training - from a college, or a class – to do this.

You can find alternate resources to add to your training and increase your competence.

You can tap the knowledge and experience of people who have a better mastery of that skill than you.

Or you can use library books and online resources.

I learned public speaking by joining Toastmasters. 

I learned taxes online.

And I learned all the tools of the trade in my second career, Commissions Administration, without doing any formal training.

Initially, it was my manager who trained me.

After she went out on maternity leave, I turned to books.

Later still in my career, I turned to online resources, including vba code and Youtube videos.

As an example, when I was on my Fortinet assignment, I found vba code for 20 different Excel macros to use in my work.

Utilization is extremely important when it comes to any skill.

If you are learning a new language; you have to use the skill again and again, until speaking in that language, or writing in that language becomes natural for you.

It is the same with driving.

It is the same with public speaking.

It is the same with investing.

If you pick up any of these skills, but never use them, or use them for a while, then stop using them, or use them only in a limited way, you will develop only reluctant and hesitant competence and confidence in them.

As a result, you will get only limited use from them.

You will certainly not get full and meaningful use from them.

You want to make sure you are using your skills in such a way, it leads to a clear sense of mastery and accomplishment!

Reinventing Yourself

What do you do when your career reaches a dead end? How do you regroup and move forward? How do you get by until you find something new?

Reinventing Yourself...

This is a time of “portfolio careers”, rather than single careers.

You can suddenly be in a position of having to reinvent yourself.

Perhaps technology made what you do obsolete.

Or you spent many years in one company, and it suddenly closed down, or moved your job offshore.

Where do you go?

What do you do next?

Do you call it a day?

Or do you try to find something new?

What are your options, when it feels like it's so late in the game for you?

It may seem daunting to find something new - after having done one thing for years, or been in one company for years.

You assumed you would ride into the sunset doing that job.

But as it turns out, it was not to be.

It didn't work out, and you have to find something else to do.

The good news is you are not alone.

There are many people who were in the exact same position as you.

For one reason or another, their jobs began to lose steam, or abruptly ended.

What did they do?

Were they forced into early retirement?

Or did they find something else?

You don’t have to wonder.

I can suggest a website where you will find those answers.

It is called CareerPivot.

Marc Miller who created CareerPivot, says its purpose is to help people in the second half of life.

But the articles and podcasts are useful to anyone whose job or career has begun to lose steam, or come to a sudden halt.

You will learn what people in the same boat as you, did to regroup and move forward.

How they spent their time until they found something that made sense.

Marc Miller interviews many people from different walks of life in his CareerPivot podcasts.

All of them experienced jobs or careers that came to an end, slowly or suddenly.

They had to try out a few different things, before finding something that worked for them.

You may have to do the same.

Your background, personality, and make-up is unique.

Your gifts are unique.

Plus you have unique sensitivities and limitations, which may impact the kinds of work you can do, and the kinds of work you are willing to do.

Also, unique preferences regards the kinds of people, managers, and companies you would be comfortable working with.

Because of this, Marc recommends some of his clients do the Birkman assessment test, to figure out what kinds of future work (or business) might suit them.

You don’t have to do the Birkman assessment test.

Just listening to Marc interpret the assessment test of someone who did the test, may trigger some thoughts for you!

CareerPivot is packed with content for someone who is at a professional dead end.

I would listen to the podcasts in order - i.e. starting from Podcast 1, and moving through each of the podcasts.

The interviews with people who successfully made their way out of a job or career standstill, are so inspiring, you don’t want to miss even one of them.

You have other options besides CareerPivot.

If you are a reader, pick up Richard Bolles’ What Color Is Your Parachute? book.

You can get it at a library or a bookstore.

It is another incredible resource for someone whose job or career has come to a standstill.

When it comes to reinventing yourself, you can put together your own plan - by going through a bunch of online resources.

Or you can get professional help. There are organizations that can help you.

You can tap into EDD resources.

You can also enroll in a more formal paid program.

The Halftime Institute offers a bunch of programs for both individuals and couples.

Job search help and interview help is also abundantly available online, and may be something you should consider.

In fact, it may be all you need to get a fresh start.

Resources such as CaffeinatedKyle can help you tailor your resume and job search.

InterviewSuccessFormula can help you prep for interviews.

These online resources have both free and paid services.

Explore the free resources first.

I have researched all the suggestions I have made to you in this article thoroughly.

I find them to be excellent resources for anyone who is at a dead end in their current job or career.

Best of all, most of the resources are entirely free, unless you want to sign up for specific tools like the Birkman Assessment, or one of the Halftime Institute programs.

I have written a review of the book, What Color Is Your Parachute? earlier on my blog.

Appropriately titled, Can A Job Hunting Book Show You The Path Back to Yourself?, it will give you a taste of what’s in Richard Bolles’s best-selling and path-breaking job search and reinvention book.

If you haven’t read the post, do go back and read it.

It might give you some ideas about how to fine tune your approach to job search and reinventing yourself.

When you read it, I hope you will say to yourself (and I wouldn’t be surprised, if you do):

“This book is just what I am looking for!”

One final word…

A few posts back, I wrote a post about things you can do to earn money outside of a traditional job…

…Part time jobs, side hustles, and flexible jobs you can explore.

The good part is you can dive into many of those options almost instantly.

Don’t rule anything out, until you have tried it.

Don’t let your fears or pride hold you back from the self-respect you can gain from using your talents, gifts and abilities, and providing a service people will pay for.

Doing something is better than doing nothing.

That’s what you need to repeatedly tell yourself, as you begin the important process of Reinventing Yourself.