So you go to college (or trade school, or an apprenticeship, or internship) and you learn the skills you need for your chosen profession.
Then, once you’ve finished learning, you start doing the job.
That’s how it works, right?
Wrong. Totally wrong.
In today’s work culture, we have this misconception that the path toward a career is a linear one: Learning first, then the job — once you’ve learned enough to be qualified for it.
That’s especially true for engineers.
Technology is such a rapidly and constantly changing field, there’s always more to learn. That’s why the idea that learning comes before work begins is completely backward. In reality, learning is a continuous process, and the best engineers are the ones who treat learning new skills as a part of their job — and never stop learning.
Engineers should take learning so seriously, it’s a part of their everyday work. Here’s why, and some strategies you can use to make sure you always keep learning.
Work == Learning && Learning == Work
Why is it so important to keep learning throughout your career?
There are a lot of reasons.
For one, no matter your job experience and educational background, you probably aren’t immediately qualified for any role. Also, your field and job responsibilities aren’t going to stay static forever. Industries change. Technology changes. Job roles evolve. If you don’t learn new skills and technologies as they become relevant to your job, you’ll just get left behind by engineers who do take learning seriously.
Whether you’re motivated by wanting to be better at your job, or any of the myriad other benefits, it’s clear that lifelong learning is an important practice that all people should make a priority. Professionals need to find time to pursue learning on a regular basis.
The landscape of technology and tech jobs is changing all the time. The only way to stay responsive to all those changes is by always being open to learning, and by striving to learn new things as often as possible.
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