Upskilling in the digital age
Today I’d like to write about increasing your knowledge in a way that won’t hurt your wallet.
As a Millennial growing up through the fall of the soviet union, Y2K, 2012, the global financial crisis, the great recession, and now covid-19.
I’ve learned to be pretty adaptable.
I want to share some information for anyone in the content creation field about how you can upskill now and pay very little if not nothing.
Depending on your country, but if you’re in North America for example a lot of these tips will be perfect for you! (I’ll include some international options as well)
Specifically for content marketing, so many institutions and organizations are offering courses at a fraction of the cost of attending a physical school.
If you’re looking for FREE and are located internationally then the brainchild of MIT and Harvard might be for you; edx (now owned by 2U) offer more than 2,000 courses from 160 partner institutions including NYU, GeorgeTown, Stanford & more.
You can also pay a small fee and complete the certification (verified track of the course).
There are some companies/government initiatives that offer FREE certification as well, depending on factors like income, age and location.
Canada:
Nationwide: Npower offers google/it certificates to Canadians in certain provinces.
America:
Nationwide: NPower offers google/it certificates to Americans in certain states.
In fact there’s many comprehensive lists for domestic students available online. Maybe list’s just aren't your thing, so here’s an impressive slideshow.
Even the US department of education has a database of programs by location.
My point in providing you with this information is that at every level of your career, you will be learning.
That’s the power of leadership in the age of deep understanding, we may not know as much as our combined teams. But leadership is learning, it’s knowing your limitations and branching out and filling that knowledge gap, in your spare time, on your speaker or in your ear on the way to work.
Maybe you’re an entrepreneur that wants a more customer centric approach to your content marketing.
Perhaps you’re in the executive suite and want to brush up on the latest trends in marketing analytics to give your organization a leading edge or just to keep current.
There’s a plethora of NGO’s in Canada the United States and even grants available to businesses that assist employees in upskilling so don’t be deterred by cost or taking time to work around a class.
Join 1.1 million students in a deep learning course from Coursera.
Or consider upgrading to an MBA 100% online.
Another option aside from courses, certifications and the education rigmarole is MOOC’s (massive open online courses) and Masterclasses. There is a Content Marketing Masterclass for just $20 on Udemy for example.
Maybe you’re looking for a MOOC that’s pay as you go for upgrading your knowledge on growth management.
Whether you have a team of 5 or 500 staying ahead of the curve is a lifelong endeavour, if you’re a social media manager, content creator, marketing manager or occupy a c-suite position there is some level of course that could benefit or even transform your career.
With the advent of the corona virus, in the digital age, the importance of online education has never been emphasized more.
Upskilling is for any level of learner, from associates to doctorates we’ve been hearing about it for years. But what is it, at it’s core?
It’s more than just watching TED talks and YouTube videos, it’s more than attending conferences and reading articles.
It’s taking a deep dive into your knowledge base and identifying then filling gaps with new information therefor extracting new skills.
Our hyper-connected world has brought the historic radio correspondence courses to life with vibrant video/material hybrid courses for the digital age.
Content Marketers can upskill as easily as ever.
There are whole communities dedicated now to connecting freelancers with each other, prospective clients and the like.
The truth is as companies evolve and duties become more technical, the need for current employees to learn new skills is ever-present and is not going away anytime soon. Smart corporations getting ahead of the curve and utilizing the right research and tools to implement upskilling methods.
Now more than ever do entire industries have the ability to be upset by innovation. And entire industries will continue to be disrupted by technological innovation.
Keep yourself, or your company in-the-know by upskilling for the future!
