3 Reasons Why the Ability to Learn is the New In-Demand Soft Skill

Professional Skills

Setting yourself apart from the competition in the job market is no easy task. To improve
your chances, consider improving your soft skills, particularly your ability to process and
learn new information.

The Most In-Demand Soft Skill: Ability to Learn

When you're in the market for a new job, it's important to know what talents employers are
looking for in new hires. ''Hard'' skills, like computer programming or proficiency in a
foreign language, are certainly important, but be sure not to neglect your soft skills. These are
skills that are less quantifiable, such as communication, leadership, and most importantly, the
ability to learn. By possessing the ability to learn new concepts quickly, you can distinguish
yourself as a valuable new hire for the following three reasons.

1: The Ability to Learn Acts Like an Umbrella

The ability to learn is an admittedly wide umbrella, but that's one of the reasons why it's so
in-demand. For example, take a look at this list of desirable skills from Fast Company. The
top two items on the list are problem-solving and adaptability. Adapting to new situations and
finding ways to solve problems are both areas that require the ability to learn.

Providing an exact definition for the ability to problem-solve and adapt can be tricky.
However, no matter how you attempt to explain it, several other key skills are in the mix,
which make the ability to learn all the more important.

2: The Ability to Learn Is the Key to Technology

As the world becomes more connected and technology continues to develop, contemporary
workers need to know how to keep up. Gone are the days where you can learn a process and
then continue to use that same process over the course of your work life.

Take office communication for example. In the span of just a few decades, we've gone from
snail mail, to e-mail, to instant messaging that you can use to connect with coworkers from
around the globe in just seconds. When you have a satellite office in Hong Kong, sending a
letter in the mail is horribly inefficient. You need to know how to get in touch sooner, and
adapting to new technology allows you to do that.

3: The Ability to Learn Can Serve as a Bridge

In the same way that knowing how to learn things incorporates other important skills, it's also
essential in the development of other talents. Think of learning as a bridge or stepping stone
on the path to acquiring other skills.
A new worker who knows little to nothing about an assignment or position, but knows how to
acquire that knowledge, is going to be far more valuable than someone who knows more but
lacks the capacity to improve his or her skills. When an employer sees that you can learn new
things, he or she will feel confident that you’ll be able to handle new challenges and fill in
any gaps that you may have in your background. If you possess this one particular skill, it's
easy to develop other soft skills. Acquiring soft skills is an excellent way to make yourself
stand out during the hiring process. Check out these courses and lessons from Study.com for
more information on how to improve your resume and land that new position.

https://study.com/blog/3-reasons-why-the-ability-to-learn-is-the-new-in-demand-soft-skill.html

What are adaptability and flexibility skills?

Adaptability - The ability to change (or be changed) to fit changed circumstances.

Flexibility - Capacity to be bent, usually without breaking

These are two very similar concepts and are often used interchangeably, or together in job
descriptions. In an employment context, it could include how responsive you are to new
information, changing conditions or circumstances, commitment to making ongoing
improvements in systems, processes or ways of working and how well you handle or make
use of uncertain situations.

Why do employers want them?

The ability to cope with change, or respond well to change, is extremely important in the
workplace. Situations, circumstances or workplaces can change extremely quickly, and if
individuals, and therefore organisations, cannot adapt to changes quickly, they are likely to be
left behind.

Examples of how adaptability and flexibility can be developed or evidenced

 Working part-time whilst studying, perhaps taking on last-minute shifts.

 Year abroad or independent travel abroad.

 Taking on different roles and responsibilities.

 Combining study with personal commitments.

 Moving from home to university.

 Becoming an integral part of a company on work experience or in a job (e.g. fitting in

with the team and forming working relationships, accommodating a different set of
expectations, following expected conventions, suggesting and implementing
improvements).

http://careerweb.leeds.ac.uk/info/4/make_yourself_employable/202/employability_skills/2
 Teamwork and Teams

So, how to define teamwork? Well the obvious place to start is with a dictionary. Typically,
teamwork is defined as:

Co-operation between those who are working on a task.

Teamwork is generally understood as the willingness of a group of people to work together to

achieve a common aim. For example we often use the phrase:” he or she is a good team
player”. This means someone has the interests of the team at heart, working for the good of
the team.

But teamwork is not exclusive to teams. For example, you can see evidence of teamwork in a
committee, which might not necessarily see itself as a team. In this context, teamwork might
be random co-operation, effectively working together for periods of time. But not always!

To define teamwork it might also be worth clarifying what it’s not, and thinking about the
distinction between teams and teamwork. In our view, a team exists when individual
strengths and skills are combined with teamwork, in the pursuit of a common direction or
cause, in order to produce meaningful results for the team members and the organisation. A
team combines individual strengths with a shared commitment to performance, it’s not just
about getting on well together.

Teamwork is absolutely fundamental for teams to work effectively. Only when the skills and
strengths of individual team members are joined with shared goals, and a focus on collective
performance, will you start to see the benefits of a team at work.

Why does this matter? Well language can sometimes be confusing. Teamwork is perhaps
more helpfully understood as only part of what’s needed to create an effective team.

Why is this distinction so important? Because whilst you can’t have a team without
teamwork, you can have teamwork without being a team!

Define teamwork: what you value and what you do

So having clarified the difference between a team and teamwork, what else should we
consider in order to define teamwork? One thing is to think of teamwork is as it’s often
commonly understood, as both a set of behaviours and as attitude.

Understanding and managing these factors will help you encourage people to work together
effectively. To become a team. The key to this is realising that:

Attitudes come from what you value and are expressed in how you behave.

The French language has a wonderful phrase for teamwork: esprit de corps. The spirit of a
group that makes the members want to succeed. There is a sense of unity, of enthusiasm
shared in common interests and responsibilities.
This means encouraging a high regard on such things as team spirit, respecting others, and
valuing their contributions. It also means fostering a sense that more can be achieved by
working together than as individuals. And once these attitudes are ingrained, it’s far more
likely that team members will behave accordingly.

This is one of the reasons we suggest that you define teamwork together with your team,
because it is your own shared understanding and commitment to behaviours which will make
teamwork work.

Think for a moment about how you would define teamwork. What do you value about
working in a team? Here are some thoughts and ideas which might help your thinking.

Teamwork suggests that people work in an atmosphere of mutual support and trust, working
together cohesively, with good inter-group relations. Each other’s strengths are valued. It
should also foster an increasing maturity of relationship, where people are free to disagree
constructively, and where both support and challenge are a part of helping teams work.

With real teamwork we tend to see positive attitudes and behaviours such as:

 Trust in colleagues to deliver what they promise

 Willingness to help when needed

 Sharing of a common vision of the future

 Co-operation and blending of each others’ strengths

 Positive attitudes, providing support and encouragement

 Active listening

 All members pulling their weight and in the same direction

 Giving the benefit of the doubt

 Consensus building

 Effective conflict resolution

 Open communication

So define teamwork now?

Taking all of this into consideration, perhaps the best way to define teamwork is:

when a group of people work together cohesively, towards a common goal, creating a
positive working atmosphere, and supporting each other to combine individual strengths to
enhance team performance.

https://the-happy-manager.com/articles/define-teamwork/