Around the globe, more and more awareness is getting created around the inevitable, the eventual reality that greater worth is placed on the skills you have acquired rather than the amounts of certificates you have obtained. In this article I want to present 7 tips for learning new skills in everyday life.
Self-Positioning in the Era of Continuous Skill Acquisition
In 2020, speaking at the Graduation Lecture of the National Defence College Course 28, titled; “Digital Economy and
National Development in Nigeria”, Dr. Isa Pantami, Minister of Communication and Digital Economy advised that in order for
the actualization of Nigeria’s digital economic drive to thrive, there’s a need for a shift of focus from certificate to skills education.
“The digital literacy and skills pillar recognizes the fact that citizens are the greatest assets in any economy, including the digital economy. It will support the development of a large pool of digitally literate and digitally skilled citizens,” affirmed Dr. Pantami.
This is not so far-fetched considering the simple fact that there was not a time when learning was as easy as it is in the 21st century. Look around. You are exposed to a wealth of resources both online and offline. There was no point in time in history when you were more capable of teaching yourself just about anything—be it culinary skills, technical skills, or writing skills, among others—than it is today. Despite this aforementioned, in this age of enlightenment, level of exposure, and access to information, only a few people take full advantage of the opportunity they have for self-directed learning.
However, this can be solved if you acknowledge that picking up new skills is way beyond hitting up Google and giving instructions or requesting information. To achieve the right learning culture, you have to push yourself through to reach the plateaus. After years of having knowledge spoon-fed to you, how well you can take advantage of the pool of information available to you to grow your skill set will take you farther in the landscape of work and technology. For self-directed learning, here are simple techniques to teach yourself just about any skill.
7 Tips for Learning New Skills in Everyday Life
Be Open-minded when Learning New Skills
Being open-minded in learning gives you the ability to be willing to consider new and different ideas or opinions. You should understand that if you try to force yourself to just memorize, you’re likely to forget them. Break free from the chains of abstractions in order to make your learning stick. It’s important that you make real-life connections and see how it fits in the larger scheme of things.
Learn by Doing in Everyday Life
The best way to learn anything at all is to go through the process of actively engaging in its activities. You cannot learn fashion design, photography, coding, etc. by simply going through its resources or watching videos of how it is done. Observe! Then know when to get your hands dirty and do something practical about that skill that interests you.
Study the ‘Greats’ when Learning New Skills
There is the highest possibility that someone has learned and excelled in that skill that interests you. Find that person, whether physically or virtually. Study their pattern, then put it into practice where necessary. After all, most of our thought processes are not really fresh ones. We only look for creative and modern ways to present our ideas.
Teach what you Learn in Everyday Life
To be confident about a thing you have learned, there is a need to teach it to someone else. By doing so, you receive questions
which help reconsider your stance on whether or not you have established yourself in that knowledge or getting better at it.
Either way, it’s a win.
Spend MORE Time Practicing Things you Find Difficult
Time management in learning is a top priority and you should take it into consideration. There is a high likelihood that you
have a very limited time to teach yourself since you would have other endeavors to fulfill. That is one more reason why you should not dwell on your areas of strength. But rather, on your weakness in order to straighten things out as quickly as possible.
Test Yourself
Every once in a while, in an attempt to evaluate how far you have come, test yourself. You could do this by having a friend access you. Or use resources online, or through Artificial Intelligence (AI) for more technically-inclined skill sets.
Find a Mentor when Learning New Skills
As much as we set out to outline how you can successfully teach yourself any skill, we also need to stress the importance of an intermittent mentor for proper assessment. Your mentor could be virtual. Perhaps that person you admire so much, but has to be an expert in the field of what you aim to teach yourself. Note that, starting to embrace this new manner of self-education might be intimidating. But with resilience, you will find it just as helpful as it is liberating. See you soon at the top of your game.
