21st Century Skills — Introduction

Last week, you learned that you can make millions of dollars in your career if you possess 21st century skills. But what are the 21st century skills?

Here's a simple answer: The skills, knowledge and expertise required for success in the job you take.

That's really broad! What does it mean? How are 21st century skills different from skills used by the last generation?

Every generation needs skills, knowledge and expertise, but more is expected of today's employees:

• Jobs require creativity. You'll be expected to come up with creative ways of looking at problems and then develop solutions that others might not think about.

• Jobs are technology based. And technology changes quickly. So you must be able to keep up.

• Jobs are global. The product or service you provide may be sold or produced around the world. You'll need to learn how to communicate and collaborate with people on the other side of the globe.

• Jobs require constant learning. School will never be over. You must keep learning new things, sometimes in a formal situation and sometimes on your own.

• Jobs connect more to your personal responsibilities and to being a good citizen. You may work from home, put in flexible hours, or communicate virtually. You'll have to find the balance that allows you to meet your obligations as a parent, a citizen and an on-call employee.

The next Career Headlines will begin showing you how to apply 21st century skills on the job. We'll start with "creativity," so you can learn how to think in new and different ways at work.