Digital/ Tech Skill Is The New Blood Money!
WE are in a generation where making quick money doesn’t necessarily need to be diabolic. All you need to do is to acquire a digital/ tech skill that resonates with your passion, gift and inner genius. If you ever have the goal to make quick money, then acquire a digital/ tech skill! We are living in a generation where access to wealth has been democratised through the acquisition of digital/ tech skills. We are in an era where it is the easiest to make money. No matter what your career line is, there is a digital/ tech skill for you. Everybody must have a digital/ tech career tailored to his/ her gifting.
If you are still into online fraud ( Yahoo- Yahoo), then you are short- circuiting your life and potentials. You don’t need to be fraudulent or diabolic to make money. I mentored a youth that was previously into Yahoo- Yahoo. This young man normally sends close to a thousand mail every day trying to scam people of their hard earned money. I asked him to send me a copy of the mail he normally use to scam people and right there I saw in him someone with a huge potential for content development and copy writing. I want to specially advise EFCC( Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) to have a special department for rehabilitating Yahoo- Yahoo boys with digital/ tech skills.
Every present day youth wants to make quick money. The drive to do this is not the problem, the problem is actually in using the wrong medium. The dynamic of wealth has changed over a decade ago, the present Gen Z youths don’t believe in suffering for long to make money. It is either we help them to achieve this with digital/ tech skills or they become victims of fraudulent and diabolic routes to wealth! One of my core purpose in life is creating a digital/ tech platform for youths to make quick money.
I want to specially recommend the book, “The Blood Money In Tech”, written by Olabanjiewenla to all the youths out there. The book offers a road map for anybody that is willing to transit from any career to tech. No matter what your background is in education, whether Science, Art or Business/ Commerce, you can effortlessly metamorphose into a tech genius. I have seen Art students making huge money from content creation and copy writing. I have seen commercial students attracting wealth with data management and social media marketing. I have seen science students going into cloud computing and AI in a unique dimension to unleash their inner genius.
My first magazine, ‘ Maximum Impact’, was designed and published by a medical doctor that has now metamorphose from Medicine into graphic design and content creation. I am a columnist on several tabloids both nationally and internationally and you know what my digital skills are? I have complemented and fortified my writing career with content writing and copywriting. I am now proceeding into UX and UI Designs. It will surprise you to know that I actually studied Chemistry from the University of Ibadan at graduate and post graduate levels. The basic truth of life is that the skills that are needed to be much sought after and become more successful in life are not really found within the walls of the classrooms.
A college degree is no longer the main ticket to success; skills and continuous learning matter the most. The future of work won’t be about college degrees, it will be about job skills. Your level of education is not the barrier to your ability to solve problems. The real barrier is lack of requisite skills, especially new age and digital skills.
It has now become imperative for any graduate who wish to thrive in this digital era to acquire essential digital skills. Professionals who want their business or themselves to stay relevant in a digitalised world will have to acquire necessary digital skills. There is a digital/ tech skill for everybody and I will be doing justice to list out the famous thirteen digital/ tech skills:
• Mobile App Development: Mobile app development is the act or process by which a mobile App is developed for mobile devices. The world is gradually becoming an ecosystem of mobile Apps and the graduates that will thrive in this transition must acquire this critical skill.
• Web Development: The expansion of e- commerce is expected to be the main driver of web developer job growth in the next decade. There is a huge demand for web developers for organizations, celebrities and even individuals. Graduates with Web development skills will undoubtedly have an edge over their colleagues.
• Digital Marketing/ SEO: Businesses leverage digital channels such as search engines, social media, e- mails, and websites to connect with current and prospective customers. Knowing how to reach out to target audience on Youtube, Instagram, Twitter ( X), Facebook, Whatsapp and other social media platforms is a necessary skill in this digital era.
• Programming & Coding: Coders, or programmers, are people who write the programmes behind everything we see and do on a computer. When people learn to code, it helps them to develop essential skills such as problem solving, logic and critical thinking. Whether you are a designer, financial analyst, marketer, teacher, Coding is fast becoming a required part of the curriculum in many profession. • Copywriting/ Content Development: Whether you want to design content to educate and inform ( content writing) or to enable a call- to- action with respect to selling a product ( Copy writing), the demand for content design is now very huge and enormous. There is literally nothing nowadays that doesn’t require content creation, be it for skit- making, social media marketing or even for PR, content creation is key!
• Video Creation And Editing: The face of content creation has changed with the advent of short videos that can catch viewers’ attention and also affect consumers’ behavior. Video as content is easier and more fascinating to consume than a typical blog post. It is also more entertaining and appeals to millennials.
• UI/ UX Design/ Graphic Designs: Everybody is a user of a product, be it physical or digital. Whether it is User Interface ( UI) or User Experience ( UX), UI/ UX design is significant and sacrosanct to the success of any product in the market. It is a digital skill for all times!
• Artificial Intelligence: AI is a hot topic because it’s usually associated with potential job loss, and there are experts’ claim that automation will eliminate 73 million more jobs by 2030. Although artificial intelligence will eliminate many jobs but it will also create jobs for those with AI skills. A 21st century graduate must embrace artificial intelligence to become perpetually relevant as many jobs will become obsolete in the future.
• Cloud Computing: Cloud computing is the use of remote servers over a network. These servers can provide functionality like storage, processing, security, analytics etc. Digital technologies require heavy computing power, storage, and IT infrastructure. Cloud computing provides these services based on a company’s individual requirements.
• Blockchain Technology: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cryptocurrency, Digital Currency, Virtual Currency, Digital Wallets, Proof of Work( POW) and Digital Ledger are blockchain terms that are poised to disrupt trading, financial transactions, health care delivery and government services in this digital era. The face of financial transactions are changing with the entrance of cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin.
• Cyber Security: As long as we have hackers, we will have cyber security as an emerging technology because it will constantly evolve to defend against those hackers. The number of cyber security jobs is growing three times faster than other tech jobs. Big corporations are putting very high premium on cyber security because it is inextricably linked to their integrity.
• Data Analysis & Analytics: We are living in an era where data is real wealth. Future decisions will be driven 100% by data analysis and graduates that can interprete, analyze and manage data will be in high demand. • Digital Project Management: Gone are the days of managing work using pen and paper, whiteboards and dry erase markers, sticky notes, and your cubicle walls. The world has already moved online and project management has gone beyond the use of pen and paper to a digitalized way of organizing and streamlining our ideas into digital products or services. An understanding of a range of methodologies such as SCRUM and AGILE will stand out on any CV.
There is no unemployment with digital/ tech skills as we have limitless demand across the globe for people with digital/ tech skills. There is no limit or restriction in the digital space. You can be local geographically while you are solving problems globally with digital/ tech skills. It is a form of internal ‘ Japa’. In a time where foreign exchange is very scarce in Nigeria, digital/ tech skills afford the youths the opportunities to earn in foreign currencies.
No matter what you career line is, look out for at least a digital/ tech skill that will help you do what you are presently doing better. Remember this always: An analogue youth cannot thrive in a digital generation!
“A college degree is no longer the main ticket to success; skills and continuous learning matter the most. The future of work won’t be about college degrees, it will be about job skills. Your level of education is not the barrier to your ability to solve problems. The real barrier is lack of requisite skills, especially new age and digital skills. ”