“I have no skills” is not an excuse anymore, and it never was. Occasionally, we hear someone claim, “I have no skills,” as if it were an excuse for not being able to succeed in life. To what end does that serve? It is not difficult to acquire new skills. Nowadays, you can learn practically anything. With almost anything available these days, like online tutorials or instructional videos, you can get a grasp of almost anything. However, even if you are learning something, you should ensure that the skills you acquire are to the maximum of your ability.
Are you sure that just attending master classes or online tutorials will be enough to prepare you for a project? Will you be project- or job-ready by just browsing online videos or attending training sessions that cover theoretical sections? Have you ever questioned the potential of your academic qualifications? Skills are not related to a person’s education or certification. The criteria mentioned above are usually utilized as a basis for hiring. When an individual lacks the skills necessary to complete a given task, we call that a “skill gap” and develop methods to close the skill gap. A professional degree or certification does not guarantee proficiency in any given area, though.
There are famous quotes about practice, like
“Practice makes perfect, and you will learn and find solutions in ways you never imagined possible.” Jo Bradford
“Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.” Anton Chekhov
What do you infer from these phrases?
Learning takes place constantly. Integrate learning into your routine so that you are constantly acquiring relevant information. The simple idea behind “learning by doing” is that we can discover more about something by doing it.
Let’s imagine that you are considering learning to play an instrument. Most alternative methods have you playing the instrument alone in a recording studio. As an alternative, hands-on experience is invaluable for mastering the fundamentals of an instrument and preparing you to perform an improvised composition with other musicians. A whole other approach to this is to do something about it instead of just reading about it passively. The notion is that making mistakes is acceptable because learning from them is an integral part of the process, and that involvement and participation lead to more thorough learning. The term “experiential learning” was coined to describe this approach, which emphasizes learning through real-world experience or hands-on learning.
Nuvepro’s role in the transformation from “I have no skills” to “I have skills”
A few months ago, Nuvepro hired a handful of recent college graduates. In no way did their academic credentials reflect their actual skills. Nuvepro planned out six weeks of training. There were videos to watch that would help us get the skills they required, and that was all part of the plan. We included these skills in our project planning. Each team member was given a certain amount of time to complete their tasks and projects while watching training videos and receiving guidance from more experienced project team members.
The plan was for these recent graduates to dive right into projects from day one, with classroom instruction serving merely to help them acquire specific skills and knowledge as an add-on. Six weeks later, they were able to join the ranks of those making significant contributions to mainstream development.
Many of us are now left wondering what, exactly, these young graduates learned over the course of their graduation. What is the value of education? Might we shift the focus of formal education toward developing practical skill sets?
Final thoughts
If you don’t have any practical experience or skills right now, that doesn’t mean you can’t gain them. Learning by doing, or being hands-on, is the most effective method of picking up new skills. Learn AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, DevOps, programming, security, and much more through hands-on training provided by Nuvepro, and position yourself to join the dynamic and growing workforce of the future.