How To Use The Five-Hour Rule For Career Success

How To Use The Five-Hour Rule For Career Success

Professionals are increasingly navigating a disrupted job market where no one can predict with confidence what jobs will look like in five years. The current disrupted job market increases a professional's need to take proactive steps to keep their career on track. Career success depends on focusing on what you can control, not the unknown, to create a career path that multiplies opportunities and increases income. We live in a learning-driven economy where upskilling and reskilling is a key component to success. Success depends on being a "knowledge worker."

In 1996, Peter Drucker noted in his book landmark of tomorrow that knowledge workers would be the most valuable assets of a 21st-century organization because of their high level of productivity and creativity. Knowledge workers can solve complex problems, collaborate, innovate and transform organizations. By 2022, everyone will need?an extra 101 days of learning ?to be a knowledge worker. Why is 2022 the pivot point from old skills to new skills? By 2022, the percent of jobs performed via automation will increase to about 42%. Human jobs will increasingly be around innovation and creativity on top of a global digital environment. We are in an age of rapid disruption and increased creativity.

The Five-Hour Rule For A Knowledge-Based Economy

The five-hour rule is a process first implemented by Benjamin Franklin for constant and deliberate learning. It involves spending one hour a day or five hours a week learning, reflecting and experimenting.

1. Online Book Clubs:?An online book club is different than a typical book club. The book is just the jumping-off point for a bigger and wider discussion. The typical structure of an online book club is reading followed by online discussions started by administrators or members of a Facebook group. Many book clubs also include live discussions with the author.

Book clubs allow you to learn something new, reflect, and experiment with new thoughts and ideas. Every time you expose yourself to different people and ways of thinking, you improve your ability to collaborate and innovate, the cornerstone of knowledge work.

Some examples of popular book clubs include:

??The World Economic Forum Book Club : Anyone can join with a request to the Facebook administrator. Global businesses need professionals who understand Global Cultures. The World Economic Forum Book Club gives you a chance to participate in a global discussion.

? The Next Big Idea Club: In this club, books are hand-selected from some of the world's most brilliant authors, and the discussion expands even further than the book. There are written course materials, including interactive exercises and a reading quiz, plus a live Q&A session with the book's author via Facebook Live.

??Now Read This: PBS NewsHour and The New York Times Book Club : Anyone can join via the club's?Facebook group , which is public. Every month, the club will "discuss a work of fiction or nonfiction that helps people make sense of today's world."

2. Audiobooks:?Listen to audiobooks to and from work or during exercise. There are two great places to start for audiobook ideas:

??Bill Gate's Reading List, GateNotes :?Harvard Business Review?suggests that business leaders?need to read more science fiction . Innovation and creativity live in a world of possibilities of taking things further. This list is diverse. Gates reads nonfiction and fiction, including science fiction.

??BookAuthority's "15 Best New Information Technology Books To Read In 2020" : This list is based on reviews and recommendations from multiple sources.

3. Podcasts:?According to?Citi GPS , for every artificial and machine learning job added between 2002 and 2012, 33 legacy jobs were lost. It's important to choose podcasts that are focused on emerging technologies and the future.

??Recode : Host Kara Swisher interviews tech executives, politicians and other professionals about big ideas and on how technology is changing our world.

??Stanford's eCorner : These podcasts discuss the ideas and research coming out of Stanford and are a place for entrepreneurs to find inspiration.

??Killer Innovations with Phil McKinney : This podcast focuses on how innovation is changing our lives.

4. University And Corporate Online Learning:??Online courses offer flexibility in learning and allow you to fit upskilling into your five-hour plan. Some examples of quality online education:

? EdX: You can enroll in classes offered by top global universities and colleges.

??Class Central : Google's free classes offer training in emerging technologies and digital skills.

??LinkedIn Learning : LinkedIn offers stand-alone courses for upskilling and course paths the lead to new jobs.

Ways To Reflect

Take time to explore your new thoughts and ideas.?Try one or more of the following methods of facilitating reflection:

? Write it down.?Go old school. Use vision boards with pictures and write on a large poster board or whiteboard. Or brainstorm with colored pencils and markers in a journal.

? Mind map.?Mind mapping means visually structuring your ideas. You can use mind mapping software to organize your thoughts more easily. Some examples include MindMup, Mindmeister, Trello and Coggle.

? Share new ideas.?This is the best way to get feedback. You can write a blog sharing your ideas on LinkedIn, post a discussion starter on your social media feed to test your new ideas, create and share a video showcasing your new ideas or enter a contest to see how your ideas stack up.

It's important to create your five-hour plan now. Professionals who take active steps to become knowledge workers will know how to solve complex problems through innovation, collaboration, transformation and will always be in-demand.