Transferrable Skills That Can Open Professional Pathways
by Arnab Dey Job & Career 01 June 2022
When you’re looking into new jobs to launch or develop your professional career, it can feel as though you’re restricted by a number of factors, some of which are seemingly beyond your control.
A good example of this might be your academic pathway: the resulting qualifications may have railroaded you into your current line of work and means it’s hard to get yourself a role in a completely different sector. However, qualifications aren’t the only tools when it comes to plotting your next career move.
Your transferrable skills might be a valuable asset that you haven’t even considered, and the jobs that you’ve thought of as “fillers”, might have been roles that actually allowed these skills to flourish.
Here are some of the most valuable professional skills that could open up new and exciting pathways.
»IT Skills
In the modern world, it’s unsurprising just how many different types of businesses value candidates and employees with IT skills. Being skilled in the field of IT is a definite advantage in many sectors, even if they don’t at first seem like they’re IT-specific.
What might intrigue you about this particular skill is the sheer variety of jobs and sectors you could find yourself in. While it’s tempting to assume that this area of expertise will inevitably lead you to IT-specific companies, it’s not always the case.
For example, if you’re interested in sales, knowing how to properly work with software such as Excel could come in handy. In in-game development, much of the work comes down to programming, which is an entire subset of IT skills.
However, with the various forms of technology that are available today, having IT skills is an incredibly broad spectrum, so you might find that you’re interested in honing in on one particular sector.
Not everyone is advanced enough to jumpstart to becoming an information security manager, but developing your basic IT skills can open up plenty of other jobs, such as the aforementioned examples of game development and sales, but also when it comes to marketing and social media management.
Read Also: Follow These Top Tips To Improve Your Leadership Skills
»Problem Solving
Another core soft skill that companies are always looking out for is the ability to problem-solve. While this aptitude might seem somewhat more abstract than being skilled in IT, it’s something that could take you very far in your professional career.
When facing problems, being able to stay calm under pressure, rationally analyze situations, and bring about solutions, is something highly valuable in almost any career.
In any job role, there’s always a situation where an unexpected disruption means you have to think on your feet and take the initiative.
If this is a skill you currently feel like you lack, then maybe speak to a more senior member of your business to ask them for advice on how they’ve dealt with situations in the past. Some of their past experiences will be invaluable in developing your own problem-solving skills.
»Social Skills
In any given work environment, having competent social skills will allow you to make friends and work well with those around you. In the long run, this means that your job not only becomes easier due to the support network that you create, but your day becomes more enjoyable as you interact with colleagues.
However, if you plan on climbing your way up the ladder, of whichever career path takes your interest, social skills can manifest into wider networking skills. These interactive connections can allow you to make headway and slide yourself into situations and professional positions that would not have been available to you otherwise.
This might be a daunting prospect for someone who isn’t comfortable with socializing, but sometimes putting yourself out there even a little bit and making the effort to mix with as many people as possible can help you further your career.
This could lead you to develop important, transferrable skills such as teamwork and communication, which can not only help you to thrive within a working environment but can also allow you to effectively navigate through your own career via networking.
Additionally, when it comes to focusing on how to be a more effective part of a team, there are other skills that can allow you to succeed here, such as time management.
Learning how to be punctual and to deliver results in such a way that makes good on the window you’re provided, allowing other people to work effectively.
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