There is always another skill to learn or article to read, yet there is often limited time and attention to devote to these activities. If you are short on time and looking to upskill here are some tips.
Drawing on your past experiences
If you are less than a year away from applying for jobs you may be better off building a surface level understanding of the core consulting skills and then trying to identify places where you have already applied these tools in your life. For example, reading a few articles on the fundamentals of project management can help you build some basic vocabulary and identify best practices. This can help you identify times when you have managed a project and articulate those experiences in the language of project management. You won’t be building any new skills but you will be learning to understand the relevance of what you already know and filling in gaps in your knowledge.
The goal of this exercise is to:
- Build your technical vocabulary and identify best practices
- Identify when and where you have applied certain skills
- Define what you could have done differently or better
- Determine what you need to learn next to fill gaps in your knowledge and competencies
There are plenty of YouTube videos, blogs, and book summaries that can help you get a surface level knowledge of various topics. Don’t spend more than 2-4 hours learning about a new topic before you start to dive into your own experiences. Always take notes in an organized way so you can build on them in the future.
As a bonus, this exercise will also help you craft stories for your interviews and could help you sharpen your resume by using more technical terms.
Learning new skills
As you start to learn more about consulting and the skills required to be a successful consultant you may want to upskill by taking some online classes. These classes can provide general skills, business skills, or skills specific to your industry.
When learning new skills, here are a few tips:
- Focus on skills that can have an immediate impact with the potential to compound in the future
- Focus on things you will be able to use with some frequency once the course ends
- Focus on skills that are in high demand and will make you unique
It’s great that you want to take the initiative to learn new skills. It’s a good sign that the consulting job may be a good fit as you will consistently be learning new things.
Where to find content
There is a lot of content out there and finding the right course to take can be an event in its self. You can find courses on online learning platforms such as Coursera, Udemy, and other MOOC websites. There are learning platforms that are specific to a field of study like ibiology.com. There are also short courses provided by professional organizations and Universities that will take a bit more effort to find. Another place to find content is through firms (e.g. consulting, VC, and PE) who are hosting classes.
Some things to consider when selecting a class would be:
- Length of class and topics covered
- Who is teaching the course (both the professor and the institution)
- How relevant is the content to consulting
- If the course has been recommended by others or has good reviews
The best way to find courses is to ask others what they have taken or would recommend. Look on the LinkedIn profiles of consultants to see what courses they have taken and who offered them. If you are coming from a non-target school it may be helpful to have some brand name schools or companies on your resume – in which case you may want to take courses they offer.
How to build a learning plan
A good target to shoot for is 3-6 hours a week of course content as that will translate into spending about 10 hours per week learning the material. Only do one online course at a time and focus on mastering that content. The goal is to get things into your long term memory and transition from learning to applying the content.
Taking 3-4 courses a year is reasonable. Try to plan out your courses in advance and in parallel with other things that are going on in your school and work schedule.
Importantly, don’t distract from your interview preparation by taking extra courses when you really need to be practicing for the interviews and networking with consultants.
Growth mindset = Always learning
It’s good to get breadth and depth on numerous skills. Take the time to do an inventory of your own skills and identify what your strengths and weaknesses are and where you lack experience and have room to grow.
Structure your learning and create a plan, then upskill and make yourself a more competitive applicant and a better consultant. As you take courses pay attention to what you like and don’t like. This will help you identify your natural tendencies towards specific projects and may help you find your fit in a firm.
If you are not sure where to start, check out a very popular MOOC called Learning How to Learn.
Andrew Kuczmarski is a PhD candidate at the University of Delaware whose passion lies at the intersection of science and business.
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