The COVID-19 global pandemic has changed society. The World Health Organization has recorded approximately 203,917 virus related deaths as at April 26th. Here are reasons why you should prepare for tech during the covid-19 outbreak.
Most countries around the world have placed quarantine measures in an attempt to control the covid-19 outbreak in their respective territories, but the virus’ economic impact is not slowing down any time soon. Some countries may even be on the verge of a financial crisis.
What is the tech industry doing?
Tech companies have rolled out distancing measures even in countries where governments have not adopted ideal quarantine measures to flatten the virus’ infection curve.
Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft have already implemented work from home policies for employees with jobs allowing them to do so. Twitter made working from home mandatory for all of its employees.
These are difficult times especially for essential workers whose job occupation does not allow them to work remotely. Many big companies prevent unemployment by sending some of these workers home on vacation time.
What to do?
The truth, as a result of the covid-19 outbreak is many people find themselves with more free time. Those working from home have all the time they use to commute to work and the ones on vacation do not have anywhere to go. This is the perfect time to keep yourself busy. Too much free time with nothing to do can bring anxiety and depression.
If you have been thinking about a change in your career path, this is it. Take the opportunity to take advantage of your free time by doing something useful that will change your life.
If you already have the tech skills and are unemployed due to the pandemic’s economic repercussions then use this moment to start applying for tech jobs. Even though companies are having a difficult time, many others are seeing incredible growth.
Companies that offer communication and management tools for remote teams are seeing an increase in demands for their products. These are the ones you should be targeting as they need recruits. Call centers and digital marketing firms are also looking for professionals to fill their ranks amid rising demand for services.
Learn a New Skill
As previously established, now is the perfect time to take advantage of your free time and learn something new.
The first step you must take is to research the skills needed in the future. According to a report by LinkedIn, blockchain, cloud computing, analytical reasoning, artificial intelligence, UX design, business analysis, affiliate marketing, sales, and scientific computing were skills in demand last year. There is no sense in learning something that will be obsolete in a few years.
From there, look into how you would fit. Decide if you are willing to learn the skills needed. Then choose your path to education.
There are many ways to obtain an education, with the most expensive one being a University
degree in computer science or engineering.
The second option is to enroll in an online course or coding bootcamp. These are cheaper and generally faster than college. A plus is that doing a coding bootcamp helps you network with classmates and teachers.
The last learning method is to teach yourself. There are resources online such as videos, books, GitHub and StackOverflow communities, and so on.
Author: Artur Meyster
