Yesterday, Drew at The Marketing Minute responded to my post about 15 points of advice that hiring managers gave to me, and challenged me to say which one I believe is the most significant.
Luckily, since I've read tons of excellent advice over the last year and a half, I knew right away which one I think all college students should read:
The days of learning one skill and staying in a job using that skill are LONG gone....You must also be prepared to "go to school" for the rest of your life, but not in a traditional sense. By this, I mean that the business world changes so quickly, that one must have the ability to adapt and change along with it. This means constant study and updating your skills. Businesses (and successful employees) will always be adapting new technologies, conforming to new legislation, using new tools & incorporating new ideas...
Why do I choose this one? It's because so much of the advice I've found is incredibly helpful. There are SO many things that students can do to set themselves up for success in a fast-changing world. They can work on their communications skills, or they can become great at solving problems and thinking of new ideas, or they can devote themselves to learning as much as they can about an emerging technology. They can do all that, or something completely different!
The main thing every student needs to know is that they must expect the business world to change, and they must know that it's their responsibility to keep themselves current and employable. If they can internalize the need for lifelong learning, and actively use it to acquire new in-demand skills, they will go far.
There we go. Before I was unable to click "Remember personal info?" and the "Post" button didn't function.
It's working now..if you get this comment :-D
I said in my previous attempted comment that I enjoyed this post, and a bunch of other insightful thoughts. ;-)
Posted by: Bryan Baker | March 13, 2007 at 10:04 PM