The Most Important Work Skills In 2030
And why you can't learn them even by going to Harvard.
How future-proof are you?
Do you have what it takes to not only survive but thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution?
When we look at the research done by the World Economic Forum, we find that 7 out of 10 most essential skills in the next ten years are cognitive.
Critical thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving top the list of skills employers believe will grow in prominence in the next five years. Newly emerging this year are skills in self-management, such as active learning, resilience, stress tolerance, and flexibility. Respondents to the Future of Jobs Survey estimate that around 40% of workers will require reskilling of six months or less.
A similar study was conducted by McKinsey & Company. They identified 56 foundational skills that will help citizens thrive in future work.
Those skills were divided into four categories – cognitive, interpersonal, self-leadership, and digital.
As you can see, cognitive and self-leadership skills also top this list.
We need critical thinking skills to navigate a world full of doubtful claims and fake news. To have good judgment and make high-quality decisions. It’s crucial that we can evaluate data and look at things from multiple perspectives. Otherwise, we might end up where we don’t want to.
The job market is changing at an unseen pace. Automation through robotics and artificial intelligence demands us to continuously re-invent ourselves or be left behind. The world is increasingly more uncertain. To combat the uncertainty, you need tools that help you manage your mindset and emotions to get clarity, structure your days, develop a plan, and make good decisions that get you ahead of the competition.
Going to University (even Harvard) doesn’t improve critical thinking skills
In the #1 New York Times bestseller Range, David Epstein came across a study by James Flynn, a professor of political studies, that changed how psychologists think about thinking:
He [James Flynn] conducted a study in which he compared the grade point averages of seniors at one of America’s top state universities, from neuroscience to English majors, to their performance on a test of critical thinking. The test gauged students’ ability to apply fundamental abstract concepts from economics, social and physical sciences, and logic to common, real-world scenarios.
Flynn was bemused to find that the correlation between the test of broad conceptual thinking and GPA was about zero. In Flynn’s words, “the traits that earn good grades do not include the critical ability of any broad significance,” he continued, “they were no better at thinking critically when they came out of university than when they went in.
He also added: “Even the best universities aren’t developing critical intelligence. They aren’t giving students the tools to analyze the modern world, except in their area of specialization. Their education is too narrow.”
How Mindsera helps you to train critical thinking skills
College departments rush to develop students in a narrow specialty area while failing to sharpen the tools of thinking that can serve them in every area.
What we need to do is learn to think before learning what to think.
Mindsera is a cognitive science backed software that helps train decision-making, problem solving, and critical thinking skills with mental models and writing. Learn more.
