The Uphill Upskill
In the age of pandemic and automation, we’re all scrambling to remain relevant.
To that end, there’s an article over at Forbes that offers a few pointers on upskilling.
It offers sound counsel, but here I offer a few notes and caveats:
“1. Keep up with emerging technology and trends in your sector.”
Staying current with tech and trends that affect you and what you “do” is critical … but you should have a very keen and strict filter when doing so, otherwise you might fall into a bottomless black hole that greedily leeches your time, energy and focus.
In my Remain Relevant course, we go through an in-depth exercise in self-reflection by leveraging the Japanese framework of Ikigai. Part of Ikigai delves deeply into the identification and prioritization of values. This is hella-key as it should drive everything we do. That’s capital-E “Everything.”
We explore what matters to you,
then we explore what you believe you want to achieve & why. How do those findings dovetail with your value stack? Prioritize and focus.
Ultimately: what’s salient?
Looking at yourself and the world via this perceptive “lens” can be very helpful … even when deciding what trends and technologies you should focus on. It all comes down to values.
“2. Work on your social media presence.”
This one’s tricky. Yes. Working on social media presence is important, I suppose … but there’s a lot of noise there [most of it empty-calorie and unpleasant]. Best to emit signal that can overcome the noise by saying something unique, or saying something not-so-fresh in a new and different way. Just be yourself [unless you’re a knuckle-dragging asshole — then pretend to be someone smart and nice].
Also: social media is a hyper-addictive time-suck. Spending time on Facebook trying to outzealot someone on the ‘important’ issue du jour doesn’t advance your strategic evolution one whit — in fact, it probably sets you back because it gets you all frothed up on the wrong fronts for the wrong reasons.
“3. Seek out formal training.”
“Formal training” is an interesting thing. Our culture and society has come to value the traditional, mechanistic approach to education. This system treats everyone like raw materials to which a certain amount of time and curriculum are applied … and then viola! A specialist springs from the machine, is given a golden ticket that can then be waved under the noses of potential employers, proving that the bearer has undergone formal training and may now apply for a job. [Note: they aren’t guaranteed a job — it’s just that they can now apply.]
Don’t get me wrong: we need specialists. You don’t want to use a surgeon who “dabbles.”
However, in this crazy-chaotic world of massive change, you need to be capable of deftly pivoting into new professional territory if the need arises. If you’re too specialized, that becomes an additional challenge. To wit, if you’ve hyper-specialized in one area and that area is suddenly, heavily impacted by automation, where do you go? Where can you go?
Leverage your values and what you need right now. Will formal training deliver what’s required to achieve your desired end? If so, will it do so fast enough? [Or do you have to go through a 2- or 4-year program? By such programs’ end, the world will look very different.]
Use formal training if it’s required and/or gets the job done. But always remember to keep your eye on the Big Picture and try not to get pigeonholed.
“4. Read as much as possible.”
I see this kind of instruction and I get a little giddy. I’m a voracious reader … always have been, always will be. No apologies.
However … I’m not always the most focused reader. I tend to get distracted and read a lot of content that’s less than in alignment with my goals.
That’s when a little Ikigai helps me to align my reading and focus with my goals and values.
[Don’t get me wrong … diving into reading material that has absolutely nothing to do with constructive progress is a good thing. I just try to keep that tendency more reined in than I used to.]
Find your values, define your goals, read about the subjects in that space and keep your eyes and mind open to adjacent areas you can explore in order to better prepare you for a pivot, should you need to.
“5. Find a mentor.”
Having a mentor is good … if they can deliver what you need. Again, you have to define what that need is, and why the need exists.
Also: what’s in it for your prospective mentor? Most folks whom you’d want to actually have as a mentor have a lot going on — that’s part of why they’re desirable in the first place.
Consider what value you’ll bring to them and clearly communicate that. It might just help.
“6. Develop a plan.”
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” ~ Mike Tyson
Plans are good. It’s wise to know where you’re going and how you intend to get there. About what I just wrote: focus on intent.
I used to tell my university students, “Anyone can follow a recipe and be a cook. To be a chef, you must be willing to go off-book.”
Recipes, plans; potato …
It’s always wise to think ahead and work toward goals. However, we also need to be capable of improvisation and taking inspired, creative action should the opportunity present itself — even if it doesn’t appear to jibe with “the plan.”
Remember, you’re not married to any plan, ever. That way leads to cerebral calcification. Trust yourself and riff the situation when you need to.
Finally, the article closes by stating: “Your next challenge awaits you.”
Well, sure. And the next one, and the next one.
Per the ancient sage Miley Cyrus: “There’s always gonna be another mountain
I’m always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be an uphill battle
Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose”
Uhyuhp.
But she goes on, you see …
“Ain’t about how fast I get there
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side
It’s the climb.”
The climb. The uphill upskill. It’s always there. Approached properly, it can greatly enhance us by moving us toward what we truly value.
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