Unrestrained communication opportunities allow us to cooperate and outsource any type of work with no regard for physical borders. Technology opens an unlimited amount of doors for the new generation of job seekers to make use of.
In fact, the sheer amount of possibilities can be somewhat overwhelming. It is not uncommon for an aspiring professional to feel conflicted as to where to send a job application. And any career advice expert will tell you that to fix this problem you need to identify and focus on developing a set of key skills. Knowing your strengths (and weaknesses) will help you quickly land your first job.
Online courses can help you with that. Luckily, there are enough of those online to give you plenty of space for a maneuver. You can take all the time you need trying out different online courses for free.
Even though they are usually considered to be of lower quality than their paid counterparts, you can still get plenty of helpful advice to jump-start your career. And here are some of the most useful ones for you to mull over.
1. Resume Writing
Resume writing is a very important skill that is easy to underestimate. It is vital to master it. Especially when you are still at the early stages of your career.
Of course, you can get professional help from a resume builder service and save yourself some time and effort. But adding a personal touch can offer certain benefits that can help you out quite a bit in your quest for employment.
It is no easy task to craft a winning resume. Simply listing your qualifications may not be enough. As the ATS system becomes a widely accepted standard, more and more job applications get lost in the sea of information recruiters have no time to deal with.
The ATS bots may not be perfect, but they have to be accounted for if you want to increase your chances of getting more interviews. When it comes to learning about how to create a bot-beating resume, there is no better place to look than Udemy.
It’s a resource that offers a sizable collection of various online courses. Most of them require a financial investment. But there are some that are completely free. This difference usually reflects the amount of study material available in a given course. But that doesn’t mean you can’t find useful info for free, right?
2. Professional Communication
Even before you find yourself a suitable workplace, you will likely find yourself in need of some business communication knowledge. This skill will help you throughout your future career. And the first time you will get to make use of it will come as early as your first job interview.
It’s unlikely you will get hired on the spot. But it never hurts to be prepared. The language you would want to speak with your average hiring manager is vastly different from what you are used to in your daily life. And it’s not just about the formality of it.
There are plenty of invisible rules in business interactions. It’s a treacherous sea that can be pretty difficult to navigate. Especially if you are armed with nothing but your intuition.
Luckily, with the abundance of online classes on how to ace your interview you don’t have to go in underprepared. It’s really easy to find advice on how to ace your interviews.
Skillshare has one of the most helpful and comprehensive selections of online courses out there. Most of them aren’t exactly free. But you can always make use of the free trial this platform offers.
3. Digital Marketing
Digital marketing is one of those universal skills in-demand. It may sound like a very niche thing to study. But in reality, any modern professional can benefit from this sort of knowledge.
Virtually every aspect of our lives is slowly making its way online. And the global pandemic has greatly intensified this process, especially in the spheres like:
- Entertainment;
- Socializing;
- Education.
Work is not an exception. The Internet is a great tool to promote a young business project. It is also much easier to collect and analyze information about your online customers. Digital marketing encompasses all of these things.
A robust digital marketing campaign can give a huge PR boost to any business idea. Sometimes even to the detriment of the business itself.
Naturally, digital marketing has become one of the go-to courses for young entrepreneurs. FutureLearn has a great selection of free online classes to get started on this topic. And once you get the hang of it you can consider going into some of the more in-depth stuff. The time and money you invest in digital marketing courses are well worth the investment.
Most digital marketing classes will teach you how to promote your business. But only some will touch on the problem of overpromotion. You should carefully watch the levels of public expectations.
If you end up with a considerable gap between what you promised and what you can deliver you can face considerable backlash. At best you will have some disappointed customers on your hands. At worst you can be found liable for false advertisement.
Most of the knowledge you will need to build a successful and long-lasting career is pretty specific. But that doesn’t mean you should neglect general skills.
On the contrary, you should always remain open to new ideas. The world around us is constantly changing. And you should do your best to change alongside it. Honing your skills (general or otherwise) is the best way to do it.
Self-education is becoming the new norm today. With all the knowledge of the world available from the comfort of your home, you can manage your time more efficiently and customize your studying materials to fit your needs. Make use of it and you will have no problem building a splendid career.
