When you were in 6^th grade, what did you want to be?  When you talk to our students, what jobs do they want to have some day?  The amazing thing is that some of the jobs that my classmates are in did not exist when I was in 6^th grade.  How many jobs that our students will end up doing don’t even exist yet?  In a previous post I shared the following quote from Thomas Friedman:

“Today’s workers need to approach the workplace much like athletes preparing for the Olympics, with one difference. They have to prepare like someone who is training for the Olympics but doesn’t know what sport they are going to enter.”

A quick search of the top jobs for 2015 lists things like computer systems analyst, software/app developer, information security analyst, and IT manager.  These are all relatively new jobs.  A couple weeks ago, I talked about the importance of being able to learn, unlearn, and relearn.  What does this look like when we don’t even know what jobs may exist when our students enter the job market?

To me, there are a few skills that will always be valuable.  These are the skills that are most important for our students to learn.  Here is a list that Matt Miller shared of a few skills that will help our students be better prepared for the real world when they get there:

• Adding value
• Creating content online
• Continuously listening and watching for new ideas
• Glamorizing hard work
• Turning wasted time into productive time
• Cultivating relationships
• Being financially responsible
• Staying on the cutting edge
• Maintaining a balance between professionalism and being a real person
• Becoming a twenty-four-hour worker

Some of these may be hard to visualize in practice in the school building.  If you’re looking for further description on any of these skills, let me know and I can share a more detailed explanation.

Are there any skills that you feel are left off of the list above?  What would you add?  Share in the comments below!