10 Ways to Learn New Skills

Many workplaces offer upskilling and training days for their staff to acquire new skills on-the-job.

Be sure to sign up and attend any expert talks or relevant training days.

You can also gain new skills and knowledge at work by working on new challenges or projects. By helping out in a new area, you will inadvertently learn something new.

Some organizations encourage and often pay for their employees to pick up new skills.

They appreciate when their employees proactively seek further training to expand their skill set and would be willing to invest in your training.

If your schedule or organization doesn’t allow you to attend training courses or if there are none suitable in your area, there are many online learning and training opportunities.

The benefits of online learning are that there are many low-cost options such as Coursera, Udemy, LinkedIn Learning, Codeacademy, Duolingo, Google Analytics Academy, and more.

It can be very tempting to learn from multiple sources or sign up for too many courses, but this can feel overwhelming fast. Stay focused and work towards achieving your end goal.

A tip with online learning – make sure you check the credentials of the course you are taking to make sure you learn and gain skills that will be recognized professionally. If you can get a formal certification on completion, that would be ideal.

Your co-workers or more senior colleagues will have skills, tips and training that would be useful for you to learn a new skill.

Ask to work alongside them on a project, shadow them or find out how they gained their skill set.

If there is something you want to learn about – the internet has the information you need.

There are YouTube videos, live videos, webinars or podcasts on pretty much any topic, and they are all very accessible, even if you have no prior knowledge.

Webinars and live videos are often on-demand or live, and YouTube, podcasts or other instructional videos can be streamed at any time.

Check if any experts in your field are offering a webinar or podcast and be sure to tune in. As you listen, take some notes to remember the details and areas you want to follow up on.

Finding and working with a mentor is a valuable way to gain new skills and knowledge.

If you enjoy your workplace and want to proceed further in the organization, finding a company mentor would be very beneficial.

A good mentor will help you navigate the various challenges you face and provide you with guidance on your next steps.

In many ways, a mentor is like having a teacher or parent in the workforce; they will give you real feedback and guidance to advance your career and encourage you to gain new experiences.

It is also useful to offer to be a mentor to more junior colleagues. Finding a promising protégé can expose you to new skills and techniques in your field (as they might have trained more recently than you) and help you practice your own skills while teaching.

You can read more about the area you work for, the company you work for and their competitors. Check who the experts in your field are and read their books.

By staying informed, you can provide solutions to challenges your company may face.

If you are looking to change careers or gain experience outside your current specialty, the internet is full of knowledge and experts willing to share their knowledge.

Books remain a valuable information source. Many can be downloaded to a preferred device to read wherever you are. You can also listen to specialist books in your area of interest. Audiobooks are very popular as you can listen to them while commuting or completing other tasks.

Traditional networking methods such as industry events or joining a professional association are generally useful for meeting new people and forming connections.

However, networking internally with colleagues can help if you want to find out about different jobs and sectors in your organization.

Get to know your co-workers in other teams, offices and departments and find out more about their skills and the jobs they perform.

Ask them about the skills and knowledge they use and see if you can help out with their projects to grow your skill set and expertise.

Any new person you meet or get to know can teach you something – they can inspire a new innovative idea for your work, teach you a more efficient way to complete a task, reignite your motivation, and you can even learn from their mistakes.

For certain types of skill development, volunteer work is an ideal way to gain experience and knowledge. It is very hands-on, which makes learning a lot easier, and you are also helping your community.

If you are looking to develop skills and knowledge in a specific career or industry, an internship is one of the best ways to gain experience.

You will also gain valuable insights into the industry and connect with people previously outside your social network, helping you form connections.

Both volunteering and internships enable you to step outside your comfort zone and allow you to meet new people and gain new skills and insights.

You learn better when you teach others. You can run a training session at your workplace, start a blog, do freelance work or create a discussion group.

Writing for a blog will let you build on your existing knowledge and allow you to share any new knowledge you are learning.

If you have recently learned about a new topic, leading a discussion group will open up conversations and give you insights from others in the same field.

Once you are more confident in your newly learned skills, you can use them in the freelance marketplace and gain more experience to help your career.

You need to make the time you spend learning a new skill or gaining new knowledge efficient. Use schedule apps or make a small daily or weekly to-do list with a few achievable goals. Learn how to prioritize tasks and keep on top of your deadlines, but be realistic about how much you can do and be sure to allocate time for your personal life.

Effectively communicating with others and being personable is an easy way to get to know other people and learn new skills and knowledge through your interactions.

Aside from learning new skills and knowledge, you must have good digital skills and be aware of new and emerging digital technologies in the workplace that can help you work better and protect your job for the future.

Whether you are looking to learn a specific skill for your career or learn something unrelated, you need to identify the skills and knowledge you want to acquire. If it is specific to your career, you can ask your colleagues, management or mentor. If it is to do with a career change, look over job descriptions of a job you would like to have and identify your missing skills.

Learning a new skill can be motivating, but an end goal or career plan is essential to keep you going. Setting short, medium and long-term goals is a necessary part of your development and will give you an idea of the route you need to take to get there.