Lacking Skill Sets and the Unemployed

I just read this article from CNN Money. It's about the jobless stories of seven individuals who are concerned that their current skill sets are just not cutting it in today’s uncertain job market. There are a number of common positions in the article such as IT professional, journalist and mortgage broker. These people remind me of many of the people that we all know; solid workers who have been toiling along for the past 10, 15, 20 or 30 years and then the rug was pulled out from under them. I meet many of these unemployed in every one of my classes and most of them have one thing in common; they never took advantage of any skill development or training offerings that their companies offered.

I know, I know, not all companies offer training. These companies are in the minority. What hits the suddenly unemployed is that they are unceremoniously shown the door and when everything calms down and they take a long look at themselves, they wonder if their current skill set can take them somewhere else. Many times the answer is no. It's scary.

I found myself in the same position when I lost my job. I however, didn't blame my company for not preparing me with the current skills in my field. That was my fault. I was too busy working to go to any classes. (I was too busy training other people to worry about my own development). I was comfortable; I knew my field inside and out and frankly didn’t want to waste a day attending a class. This is a serious mindset of many people and we need to change it. We all need to develop and learn the new technologies and theories in our particular fields. The problem is, we don't have time to take off from work or if we do go, the company doesn't support the training or "allow" us to use the new skills. Then, many of us just stop attending training. It's unfortunate and it seems as if many of the people in the CNN article went through the same thing. So what can we do?"

1. If you are currently unemployed. Go to the library, look on line, read and study everything there is to learn in your field. If you can afford if, take a couple of courses. Perhaps you can speak to a financial advisor at a college or technical school to learn if there are any incentives or grants to allow you to train for your current or a new position. Another suggestion is to take a free career assessment and measure your skill level in your field of interest. Finally, look for various professional groups and see if you can attend a meeting at no cost.

2. If you are currently employed. Go to training. Take advantage of everything your organization offers you both internally and externally. If your company allows, join a professional group and attend the meetings, lunch and dinner meetings and networking events.

There are other reasons that the unemployed are concerned about their limited skill sets and the lack of training is just one reason that I see as a major cause. There are jobs available but many employers are consolidating positions, hiring interns or younger, less experienced people or even, dare I say, discriminating against the unemployed. Still, I'd love to hear your thoughts about the article and any suggestions you may have to help people sharpen their skill sets.