Create Your Own Learning Path

Sometimes I feel like I did my career in the wrong order.

I started off pretty conventionally: high school, university, getting a job...

But once I began working, I found that every few years I was making a change.

I switched my focus from standup comedy to advertising to writing fiction to TV writing, journalism, and ultimately to PR and digital communications.

Whew! It exhausts me just thinking about how I got from there to here.

Not to mention how I might express that in a way that tells a coherent story on say, a resume or on LinkedIn. (Hint: you have to make some choices about what to highlight and when.)

A few years back, I began another transition.

I started doing more teaching—mostly social and digital media.

And I realized if I wanted to continue or even build on that by teaching graduate-level courses, I'd need to upgrade my academic credentials.

I enrolled in the McMaster-Syracuse Master of Communications Management, an executive degree that combined communications and PR theory and best practices with a study of business. I can tell you I was nervous about going back to school after such a loooong time away.

But the program was the perfect combination for me and one of the best decisions I ever made. (Side note: I subsequently became an adjunct professor there.)

How Do You Adapt?

If I look back over my career, I notice a couple of things.

The first is that for me writing's the thread that keeps it all together.

The second is we all have to discover our own path. And it's often not easy to find it.

Even when you do, there's no guarantee you'll get to where you want to go. In fact, you may find you make some progress and then hit a brick wall—often more than once.

The key is to try to find your way around or over the obstacle in front of you. And that involves looking at things from a fresh angle and figuring out how to adapt.

It's not easy.

Especially these days, with all the job upheaval brought on by Covid-19. And that will likely be propelled even further by technology and artificial intelligence.

That's why it's important for all of us to stay agile and adapt.

Learn a New Skill

Of course, change is easier said than done.

Often there's a financial cost associated with any transition, and we may not be able to afford it.

That's why you may be interested in a new initiative from LinkedIn Learning. The company unlocked 10 Learning Pathways, that is, bundles of related courses that lead to a larger Certificate, and they're available to everyone—for free.

You can upgrade your skills in digital marketing (one of my courses is included in this offering), HR, graphic design, IT, software, data analysis, finance, project management, sales and customer service.

These are all areas where the data has shown there are or will be career opportunities and I'd encourage you to see if one of these is a good fit for you.

Testing the Waters as an Entrepreneur

Maybe the knowledge you gain along your journey will lead you to decide to launch your own business.

That's something I've done a few times. And from where I sit, the benefits outweigh the risks, though there are many risks and lots of ups and downs.

I'm going to let you in on a little secret.

How to become an entrepreneur is the subject of a new course I'm developing for LinkedIn Learning with my producer Max Wong.

The course is slated to be released late summer or early fall and I'll keep you posted on the details.

Your Business—Online

Or maybe you already have a business and you're thinking about what you can do to stay top of mind with your customers.

The big social media networks have been releasing more features recently that make it easier for businesses to connect, market and sell to customers online. And that's what I talk about in the latest Digital Marketing Trends video. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Connect with Martin

And with that, it's time to close the notebook on issue number 10.

As always, thank you for reading and subscribing! I really appreciate you being here and look forward to your thoughts and tips about how you developed your own learning paths.

Be sure to reach out if you have questions about any of the videos in Digital Marketing Trends, or my other LinkedIn Learning courses.

Feel free to follow me or connect on LinkedIn or Twitter. (And if you are connecting on LinkedIn, please add a short note so I know how you found me.)

And check out the #LiLDigTrends hashtag for quick updates between videos.

Happy studies!