If you want to enjoy success throughout your career, you’ll need to consistently work at it. The world moves quickly, and your competition is moving fast right along with it. So if you’re trying to be more successful, you’ll need to stay ahead of the game.
Being better than the competition doesn’t just miraculously happen. However, You can make a concerted effort to improve yourself beyond the day-to-day work and life experiences. Since everybody else is constantly growing, you’ll need a boost to get an edge.
No matter what stage of your career you’re in, these five free outside-the-box tips will help you grow:
Take Free Online Classes — From Harvard or Yale!
Everybody knows education is one of the quickest ways to grow, but it’s not always easy to find the time or the money necessary for further education. For these reasons Harvard and MIT created edX, a platform dedicated to provide access to free online education from top universities around the world including schools such as Harvard, Yale, and MIT. These universities offer courses ranging from various business classes to surveys of literature and history to Microsoft Excel and data analysis. Sign up to get started earning a verified certificate of achievement.
Don’t Attend Free Seminars, Teach Them.
It’s easy to find free seminars provided by business development centers, libraries, or a local chamber of commerce. However, the people that benefit the most from these seminars are the presenters. Having to prepare a presentation forces you to push your expertise. You will retain this knowledge for much longer as teaching is the best way to learn, refresh, and retain information.
There are many ancillary benefits as well. You will be able to practice public speaking and be perceived as an expert. These benefits come in handy whether you’re a freelancer, business owner, or an employee trying to build your personal brand.
Teach Yourself How to Code.
Coding is one of the most valuable skills you can learn. It’s estimated to be even more valuable than earning a Harvard degree. Even if you aren’t in a technical position, there are plenty of benefits to learning to code. In a world driven more and more by technology, you will have an edge over colleagues that don’t have coding experience. Coding also trains you to become more systematic and tackle problems from a different angle.
Fortunately, learning to code is easier than ever. CodeCademy.com offers free, interactive courses that take you through the basics of coding into advanced techniques. Upon finishing this course, you’ll have the skills necessary to build websites. CodeCademy offers a wide variety of coding language courses including Java, HTML, PHP, and much more.
Get Real-Life Experience at Any Skill You Want.
Many people have an excellent resumes with impressive experiences, but they are missing some key critical skills. It’s not always possible to learn these skills through work environment, you’ll need to look elsewhere to polish these skills.
Opportunities like these surface from sites like VolunteerMatch.org. You are able to search for volunteer opportunities to learn real and marketable skills such as: event planning, social media marketing, consulting, and more. Almost half of the hiring managers find volunteer experiences equal paid experiences, it can give you an edge quickly.
Play More Video Games.
Gaming certainly isn’t a frequently discussed topic around businesses. In fact, many people dismiss video games as destructive or addictive. However, there are a lot of empirical evidences suggesting that playing fast-moving action games can provide benefits.
Playing video games can help you:
- Improve your eyesight by reducing lazy eyes and poor vision, and increasing visual contrast sensitivity.
- Become a better multitasker.
- Make decisions and solve problems quicker.
- Boost your hand-eye coordination.
- Refine your attention to detail and memory skills.
Today’s world moves at a breakneck pace, making it easier than ever to grow continually. By following the tips above, you will overcome challenges that are coming your way, whether it’s professional, personal, or a little bit of both.
Do you have any tips of your own on how to challenge yourself and grow personally and professionally? Make sure to drop a line below and let us know!