Are You Employable?

Not everyone is under lockdown and not every economy has been badly affected by the global crissi. While some establishments have plummeted, others have either sprung up or rebranded. There are still Organizations out there looking for new skills and a diverse workforce.

If you are not employable today, don’t expect to get a new job. If your skills are not relevant to the needs of today, you may not be considered relevant. It’s a hard and harsh fact but we need to tell ourselves the truth. Call me the TOUGH LOVE sister 😊 if you may.

WE need to take our job security or cash inflow into our own hands. In today’s uncertain times of massive pay cuts and job losses, we can’t help but learn new skills or dust old ones. Many have come to grapple with the reality of putting aside skills and experiences which may have made them champions or the best staff of the year before the pandemic.

Having found their titles, degrees, certificates and skill sets becoming increasingly irrelevant today, they have also given up and hung up their ‘boots’. What does one do in a situation like this? The answer lies in looking out for jobs and opportunities where there is a demand and skill-up in those areas. Our skills need to match the demands.

Some areas that are still recruiting, despite the crisis are:

1. Climate change and agriculture. Conserving biodiversity is an area worth considering, in view of the present climate crisis and loss of biodiversity.

2. Food. Even when the entire world was under various degrees of lockdown as a result of the pandemic in 2020, food vendors and farmers developed innovative ways to feed people.

3. Healthcare/social work/humanitarian assistance. This is so much in demand today. Hospitals and health care centres for instance, still need more hands.  Therapists, counsellors and frontline workers  are also in high demand.

4. Entrepreneurship, digital and communication skills. You may be on your way to developing or finding the next solution to your community’s problems. Get positioned to transform your skills to business opportunities.

5. Working as an independent consultant. Online or on site, you can offer skills to individuals or organizations looking for diverse experiences from people in other regions.

While looking out for the next job, don’t forget to create or repackage some of the resources you have at your fingertips such as your LinkedIn account, to make sure they sell your skills and open you up for employment opportunities. Google currently offers free digital skills - hundreds of online courses in different in-demand areas. You may want to check them out: Google Digital Skills.

Now the tips above are with respect to becoming employable, this does not mean that you cannot start your own business. I will write about this in another blog – the secret to cashing into your own business. I will also share with you secrets to landing your desired job.