Learning How to Learn is the Only Super-Power you need.
Author: Saga Briggs. Saga Briggs is a journalist covering trends in learning, creativity, intelligence, and educational technology.
The truly “future-proof” skill isn’t a specific job qualification; it’s knowing how to learn.
If you empower yourself to do one thing in the near future, make it this: learn how to learn. As the jobs of the future will require multiple skillsets —weaving technical skills together with creativity, interpersonal skills, and adaptability — we can no longer afford to specialise. The most important skill of all will be the ability to diversify your toolbox.
“There is, I think, a case to be made for a new area of study to counter the monopathic drift of the modern world,” says the British writer Robert Twigger. “It might focus on rapid methods of learning that allow you to master multiple fields. It might also work to develop transferable learning methods. A large part of it would naturally be concerned with creativity—crossing unrelated things to invent something new. But it would not just be another name for innovation. It would, I believe, help build better judgement in all areas.”
That said, we can’t wait for academia to catch up. Before this new area of study formally exists, let’s start teaching ourselves how to do many things well. Sara covers these topic areas:
- Becoming an autodidact
- How to identify which skills you need
- How to make time to learn
- How to stay motivated
- How to learn efficiently
