[nabs-l] 5 Awesome Resources for Learning Today's Most Marketable Skills

[Deb Mendelsohn]

5 Awesome Resources for Learning Today's Most Marketable Skills

By BEN WEISS <http://money.usnews.com/topics/author/ben_weiss>
July 2, 2013 RSS
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[image: Ben Weiss]

Ben Weiss
<http://www.infusivesolutions.com/>

*"I'm excited by the possibilities." - Bill Gates*

One characteristic connecting many of history's greatest minds is a
fanatical desire for continuous learning. Bill Gates is notorious for
reading Time Magazine cover-to-cover so he can go on to his next activity
having learned something new (even if what he learned didn't interest him
specifically). Abraham Lincoln – argued by many to be one of the most
prolific communicators<http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2012/12/11/if-you-want-a-great-job-tell-a-great-story>
ever
– developed his rhetoric skills in part through impassioned study of
William Shakespeare's work. Steve Jobs, George Washington, Ansel Adams, Ray
Bradbury, Stanley Kubrick and legions of other American icons also share a
common passion for independent skills development outside the traditional
classroom setting.

And in the digital age when so many tools exist to help the workforce
develop and refine those skills that get jobs, we could all take a lesson
from the above-mentioned figures and take some time to educate ourselves.

But, how?

One excellent resource is SkilledUp <http://skilledup.com/>, an education
startup founded by Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumnus Nick
Gidwani that synthesizes thousands of digital learning tools into one
easily navigable platform. While SkilledUp is rather broad, for this
article Gidwani helped source some of the best resources for building
specific skills that are getting professionals hired in 2013.

Let's take a closer look.

*1. To learn design, frontend development and UX: Team Treehouse.* In an
article for CareerBuilder, Susan Ricker writes that design and user
experience specialists (professionals responsible for the
conceptualization, design, layout and formatting of corporate identity
materials) have the most in-demand
skills<http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/rankings/best-technology-jobs>
in
the creative industry today.

When it comes to developing these skills, Gidwani suggests patronizing Team
Treehouse (teamtreehouse.com) – a thorough resource that enables
professionals of any experience to learn both graphic design through tools
like Adobe Photoshop, in addition to HTML, CSS and Ruby on Rails code.
Combining these skills is incredibly powerful as professionals may then
manage a firm's aesthetics while also enabling end users to engage in
interactive content and modules. "They are one of few training libraries
that does everything well," Gidwani says. "Very high production quality,
excellent content and support, a great value and everything they do is
focused on getting employable skills. The future of online
education<http://money.usnews.com/money/careers/slideshows/what-will-the-job-market-look-like-in-2020>
."

*2. To learn backend coding: Code School.* According to the Treehouse blog,
if frontend development determines what you see when you're buying concert
tickets, backend development pertains to where and how your personal
information is stored and secured through databases and servers you don't
see. It's an incredibly marketable skill needed by virtually every firm.
Gidwani suggests those interested in backend technologies patronize Code
School (www.codeschool.com) – a tech-skills learning platform that enables
users to develop backend coding proficiency by getting their hands dirty
rather than studying theory.

*3. To learn search engine optimization: Distilled.net.* According to a
recent study by the search engine optimization (SEO) tech firm Conductor,
there's been a 112 percent year over year increase in the demand for SEO
professionals who can develop innovative digital strategies that facilitate
meaningful online exposure for a brand.

If this field strikes your fancy, Gidwani suggests one of the best
resources for upping your SEO employability is Distilled.net – an outlet
providing specifically tailored SEO services to help clients generate
tangible business value. "The instructors are leaders in their field," he
says. "And the amount and quality of content you get is extraordinary. Most
importantly, SEO changes constantly and Distilled takes efforts to keep the
content fresh. It's by far the best value of any SEO training we've seen."

*4. To learn content marketing: Copyblogger.* The folks at Google are well
aware of sordid digital marketing practices and have made it a salient
priority to boost content that's useful, relevant and high quality.

Consequently, it's no surprise that marketing and public relations
professionals<http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/rankings/best-creative-jobs>
are
ditching traditional mass marketing strategies for hyper-targeted content
that builds rapport and provides value for a target group of consumers. If
you fancy yourself a writer, frequenting Copyblogger.com is an excellent
way to learn the skills that position professionals as experts in the
field. "Excellent, high-quality content is where online marketing has been
moving," Gidwani says. "This is a critical skill and Copyblogger has the
experts and the content. It's also extremely easy to use and take advantage
of."

*5. To learn email/affiliate marketing and overall online entrepreneurship:
Fizzle.co.* There are numerous tools that go into launching and maintaining
an online business including influencer connection, email/affiliate
marketing, content development and of course, sales.

Fizzle.co has put all the resources for interested users to learn and
master these concepts with truly next-level support within its platform.
"With weekly office hours with the founders to ask questions and an active
discussion forum that offers real and meaningful help, Fizzle elevates far
above many of their competitors," Gidwani says.

*Bonus: Learning people skills (human management, public speaking,
relationship building).* According to Gidwani, while people skills have
immense value in the business world, they are more likely to result in a
promotion/upward mobility rather than increase your odds for getting a job
in the first place.

However, to develop these skills, the Dale Carnegie leadership courses are
industry standard when it comes to refining great leadership tendencies.

*Ben Weiss** is the digital marketing strategist for Infusive
Solutions<http://www.infusivesolutions.com/> –
an NYC-based IT staffing firm in the Microsoft Partner Network that
specializes in the placement of .NET, SharePoint and SQL Server developers
as well as Windows Systems Engineers, DBAs and help desk support
professionals in verticals such as legal, finance, fashion and media.
Connect with him on Twitter: @InfusiveInc or at Facebook.com/InfusiveInc.*
Tags: job searching, <http://money.usnews.com/topics/subjects/job_searching>
 careers, <http://money.usnews.com/topics/subjects/careers> STEM
jobs<http://money.usnews.com/topics/subjects/stem_jobs>
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