The world of work is constantly changing, and the skills employers value can change with it. A qualification or job title that works for you today may not be enough to prepare you for your next opportunity.
That does not mean you need to completely change your career every few years. Instead, developing a broader set of transferable skills can make it easier to adapt, move between roles, and respond to new opportunities.
Employers generally look for a combination of technical or hard skills and transferable soft skills, including communication, teamwork, and problem-solving.
Whether you are currently employed, looking for your first job, returning to work, or considering a career change, investing in the right skills can make your career more flexible.
Here are some skill areas worth developing.
1. Digital Skills
Digital skills have become important across a wide range of careers.
You do not necessarily need to become a software developer or technology specialist. The right digital skills depend on the type of work you want to do.
Depending on your career goals, this could include:
- Microsoft Office and productivity tools
- Data analysis
- Digital communication
- Online collaboration
- Digital marketing
- Spreadsheet skills
- Basic cybersecurity awareness
- Industry-specific software
- Online research
- Digital project management
The National Careers Service recommends developing digital skills as part of improving your employability and preparing for new career opportunities.
Start With the Skills Employers Actually Request
Don’t learn a technology simply because it is popular.
Look at job descriptions for positions that interest you.
Identify the skills that appear repeatedly and prioritize those.
This approach helps ensure that the time you spend learning is connected to your career goals.
2. Communication Skills
Being able to communicate clearly can make a significant difference in almost any workplace.
Communication includes more than speaking confidently.
It can involve:
- Writing professional emails
- Giving presentations
- Explaining complex information
- Listening actively
- Participating in meetings
- Communicating with customers
- Giving and receiving feedback
- Adapting your communication to different audiences
Someone with excellent technical knowledge may still struggle professionally if they cannot explain their ideas clearly.
Improving communication can therefore make your existing expertise more valuable.
3. Problem-Solving Skills
Employers need people who can do more than follow instructions.
They also need employees who can identify problems, understand what is causing them, and work toward practical solutions.
You can develop problem-solving skills through:
- Workplace projects
- Volunteering
- Personal projects
- Group assignments
- Practical training
- Work experience
- Everyday responsibilities
When describing these skills on your CV, try to demonstrate them rather than simply listing “problem solving” as a skill.
For example:
“Identified a recurring reporting problem and developed a simplified process that reduced the time required to complete the report.”
That gives an employer evidence of how you applied the skill.
4. Teamwork and People Skills
Most careers involve working with other people.
That could mean working with colleagues, customers, suppliers, managers, clients, or members of the public.
Teamwork skills include:
- Cooperation
- Active listening
- Respect
- Conflict resolution
- Reliability
- Collaboration
- Empathy
- Relationship building
You do not necessarily need a formal job to develop these abilities.
Volunteering, community activities, university projects, clubs, and other forms of work experience can provide opportunities to strengthen people skills.
5. Adaptability
Your career may not follow the path you originally imagined.
Industries change. Organizations restructure. New technologies emerge. Roles evolve.
Being adaptable can help you respond to these changes rather than becoming stuck when your existing responsibilities change.
Adaptability can mean being willing to:
- Learn a new system
- Take on a different responsibility
- Work with new people
- Learn from mistakes
- Change your approach
- Develop new skills
- Explore a different career direction
A flexible career plan does not mean having no goals.
It means having a long-term direction while remaining open to different ways of reaching it.
The National Careers Service recommends developing career plans with long-term aims alongside shorter-term goals and considering different routes toward the same career objective.
6. Numerical and Analytical Skills
Numerical skills can be useful far beyond traditionally mathematical careers.
You may need them to:
- Understand budgets
- Analyze information
- Interpret statistics
- Track performance
- Compare costs
- Prepare reports
- Make business decisions
Analytical thinking can also help you evaluate information and make better decisions.
If you want to strengthen these abilities, consider starting with practical applications relevant to your work rather than trying to learn everything at once.
For example, you could improve your spreadsheet skills by learning how to organize data, use formulas, create charts, and analyze information.
7. Interview Skills
Having the right qualifications does not automatically guarantee that you will perform well during an interview.
Interviewing is itself a skill that improves through preparation and practice.
You can develop it by:
- Practicing common interview questions
- Recording yourself answering questions
- Conducting mock interviews
- Researching employers
- Preparing examples from your experience
- Learning how to structure answers
- Asking for feedback
The National Careers Service specifically identifies interview skills as an area people can develop as part of improving their employability.
The more familiar you become with explaining your experience, the easier it can become to communicate your strengths during an actual interview.
You Don’t Always Need a Formal Course
One common misconception about upskilling is that every new skill requires an expensive qualification.
That is not necessarily the case.
The National Careers Service highlights several ways to develop skills, including courses, apprenticeships, learning on the job, online learning, short courses, evening classes, volunteering, work experience, and self-directed learning.
You can also teach yourself by:
- Watching educational videos
- Listening to professional podcasts
- Joining online communities
- Practicing with free tools
- Reading industry publications
- Working on personal projects
The important thing is to choose a learning method that fits your circumstances.
Use Volunteering to Build Transferable Skills
Volunteering can be particularly useful if you lack professional experience or are trying to move into a different field.
You may not always find a volunteer position that exactly matches your desired career.
However, the experience can still help you develop transferable skills.
For example, volunteering at a community organization could help you develop:
- Communication
- Organization
- Customer service
- Teamwork
- Time management
- Responsibility
The National Careers Service notes that relevant volunteering and work experience can strengthen job applications and CVs even when the experience is not an exact match for the job you eventually want.
Don’t Try to Learn Everything at Once
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to upskill is attempting to learn too many things simultaneously.
You might create a list containing:
- Python
- Excel
- Digital marketing
- Project management
- Public speaking
- Data analytics
- Leadership
- Cybersecurity
Then become overwhelmed and stop learning altogether.
Instead, choose one or two skills that are closely connected to your immediate career goal.
For example:
Goal: Become a data analyst.
Priority skills: Excel, SQL, data visualization.
Or:
Goal: Move into digital marketing.
Priority skills: SEO, content marketing, analytics.
Your learning should have a purpose.
Create a Simple Career Development Plan
A useful way to stay focused is to create a SMART goal.
SMART goals are:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Time-bound
The National Careers Service recommends using SMART goals when planning career development and learning.
Instead of saying:
“I want to improve my communication skills.”
Create a more specific goal:
“I will improve my presentation skills by delivering one presentation each month for the next three months and asking for feedback after each one.”
The second goal gives you something measurable to work toward.
Update Your CV as You Learn
Don’t wait until you are applying for a job to remember everything you have learned.
Keep your CV updated as you develop new skills.
Record:
- New courses
- Certifications
- Projects
- Volunteer experience
- Work experience
- New software skills
- Achievements
- Responsibilities
- Practical examples
Most importantly, explain how you gained and used the skill.
For example, rather than simply writing:
Project Management
you could write:
“Coordinated a four-person project team, tracked deadlines, assigned responsibilities, and delivered the project ahead of schedule.”
The National Careers Service recommends keeping your CV updated with new skills and explaining how you gained them so that you can tailor your CV to the jobs you want.
Skills Can Open More Than One Career Path
One of the biggest benefits of developing transferable skills is that they can give you more options.
For example, strong communication skills can be useful in:
- Marketing
- Sales
- Customer service
- Human resources
- Project management
- Public relations
- Education
Similarly, analytical skills can be useful in:
- Finance
- Data analysis
- Business operations
- Marketing
- Research
- Consulting
- Technology
You don’t necessarily need to start from zero when changing careers.
Sometimes, the skills you already have can become the foundation for your next career.
Final Takeaway
A flexible career is not necessarily one where you constantly change jobs.
It is a career where you continue developing skills that allow you to adapt when opportunities, industries, technologies, and personal circumstances change.
Start by identifying the skills you already have. Then look at the jobs you are interested in and identify the skills employers are asking for.
Choose a few areas to develop, use courses, online learning, volunteering, work experience, or self-directed practice to build them, and keep evidence of what you accomplish.
Most importantly, don’t treat career development as something you only do when you are unemployed.
Keep learning while you are working, update your skills as your industry changes, and remain open to different paths.
The skills you develop today could give you more choices about where your career goes tomorrow.
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