Your career, livelihood, and the life you were used to living before the year 2019 were all disrupted with the emergence of Covid-19. At a time when working through online means has taken precedence, the need for new and relevant skills is on the rise.
For most people, staying home is the safest measure they can take at the moment. In that case, what can they do to learn new skills? Well, the best way would be to enroll themselves in online courses for the skills they want to learn.
What’s happening in Australia right now?
Without a doubt, people all around Australia have been affected by the raging pandemic that is still running rampant around the whole world. With worsening economic impacts, sporadic lockdowns, and reduced spending prowess, many Australians have become concerned about their jobs and the loss of income.
In fact, statistics from a local study show that about 20% of respondents suffered a substantial drop in their monthly income levels forcing them to reduce their spending, adopt new means of surviving, and look for other jobs or ways to earn a living.
However, as time has passed, Australia has slowly begun to recover from the implications of Covid-19 and is now starting to enjoy more freedom. The country is seeing a high of 66% in worker participation rates, meaning that there are more people than ever either working or looking for work across the country.
Should you consider moving away from these industries?
Covid-19 is still taking its toll in all countries across the world. As of June 2021, the end of the pandemic is still a blip on the horizon in the distance ahead. Having lived with the virus for over a year, we have seen how various industries have been affected. Restrictions to travel, closure of non-essential services, and reduced spending power meant that a few select industries bore the brunt of the negative outcomes.
1. Tourism– Travel restrictions around the world put a halt to the rising demand for tourism. A report for the year 2020 showed that tourism had dropped to levels that were only seen over 30 years ago.
2. Hospitality– This is an industry that was hit the hardest by the pandemic, not just in Australia but worldwide. Experts believe that even after other sectors start to improve, the hospitality industry will take a long time to come back to pre-covid levels.
3. Entertainment – We have seen a significant halt to the number of TV shows, movies, concerts, and other forms of entertainment worldwide. This is mainly owing to the fact that all of these require people to bunch together into small spaces. Due to restrictions in place, this is something that many countries have to forego for some time into the future as well.
4. Aviation – Both local and international flights were canceled for almost a year in 2020. With countries and states placing themselves in isolation, the only flights allowed were for provisions and exports.
Over the last few months, we have seen how each of these industries (and others) were greatly affected. Many people who worked for companies in these industries lost their jobs and could not find other work because their expertise was in these fields.
We cannot say for sure that there won’t be further issues that these industries face in the upcoming months. Even if the situation is improving (and we all hope it will continue), it is still likely that problems like this can come up again in the future. When Covid-19 first hit, no one was ready for the chaos that was brought along with it. Therefore, when they were thrust into it, people were affected a lot more than they would have been if they were better prepared.
So what can you do to prepare yourself in case of a future pandemic like Covid-19? Well, for starters, you can aim to improve yourself and your skill set by learning and implementing new skills that can help you find another job in another industry in case you’re laid off again.
Industries hardly affected (negatively) by Covid-19
As certain industries were crumbling in the wake of Covid-19, there were other industries that were able to hold their ground and smoothly transition into new methods of working, such as by working remotely, thus allowing them to continue with their jobs relatively unhindered. Some of these industries include:
● Farming– Many agricultural and farming businesses saw gains of about 20% during the course of the pandemic. As more people became health-aware because of the virus, the demand for organic food production increased, resulting in rapidly growing sustainable food production across Australia.
If you have ever had an interest in working in the farming industry, there isn’t a better time than now to consider a shift in your career/lifestyle. With online courses like dairy cattle farming and agriculture management, you can learn essential life skills that can lead to becoming self-sufficient in the future.
● Medical services– One of the most essential services during the pandemic has been the medical industry. Many of its workers were working 60-hour weeks and doing all they can to ensure that all of us were safe. It is safe to say that there was a definite boom in this industry, and there is still a need for more medical personnel in the field.
● Animal care– Having been stuck at home without friends and sometimes family, many people turned to their pets as a source of companionship. Due to this, there was a rise in the number of pet owners across the country. Considered to be an essential service, veterinarians continued their operations even during lockdown periods as more and more people brought their sick pets in for consultations.
Jobs related to animal care are always considered to be a stable role because of the high demand for veterinary and care services. As such, the industry as a whole saw a rise in growth rate during the Covid-19 period and is still seeing improvements to this day. If you are interested in learning about these jobs, you can look into online courses in Australia meant for animal care.
● Wellness – Talk of boosting immune systems, shifting diets, cleaner living, and mental health were constant topics in many households. This led to a rise in demand for dietary advice, home-based fitness, and online counselling sessions as people looked for ways to deal with this new way of living.
Practicing wellness techniques has the potential to bring peace and calm to both your body and mind and it is something that has been sought after by many people over the years. It has now become more prevalent due to people having more time to learn about these benefits and trying to incorporate them into their lives. Those who may want to work in the wellness industry at some point in their lives can search for online courses in mental health such as counselling or even look into learning about nutrition.
3 Pandemic-proof careers you could consider right now
If you have been laid off already or are between jobs, there is a need to learn new skills that fit the thriving industries right now. Learning these skills gives you a much better chance of finding a new job or even earning some extra money with a side hustle in one of these fields.
These jobs don’t require you to uproot your life and move in a completely different direction, such as with farming or medicine. If you have any background relating to business, then these are some career changes you could consider for your future.
Here are three of the most in-demand jobs related to business in the world right now:
1. Social media specialist– According to a report done by Datareportal in July 2020, social media usage around the world during the Covid period has seen a significant increase. There was a 10.5% annual growth rate in the number of social media users and a 43% increase in the amount of time spent on social media sites.
Even during pre-covid times, almost all businesses promoted their services and brand through social media. These numbers only increased further during the pandemic as businesses were forced to use online methods to compete and survive. As a result of this, there is a massive demand for social media specialists who can manage and coordinate the social media profiles of these businesses.
Social media is not a complicated subject, and it is something that all of us have grown up learning and using. It is a job that you can work remotely from anywhere in the world and for any company. To increase your chances of being hired by a good company, you can improve your skills and earn a certificate through an online course in social media marketing.
2. E-commerce business– As people were forced to stay home, there was a rapid rise in online shopping worldwide. People were purchasing essentials and food takeout through online stores and even creating new hobbies for themselves, such as collecting minerals, due to boredom at home.
The year 2020 alone saw a 32% increase in global online retail sales, and these numbers are continuing to rise in the first quarter of 2021, showing a massive 39% increase. Even in Australia, statistics show that there was over a $7 billion increase in online retail sales value from 2019 to 2020.
These numbers are all indicative of the fact that E-commerce is an excellent business to be in right now. The best part is that starting an E-commerce business has become so easy now that you only need a laptop and an internet connection to get started. Other than that, what you need is the knowledge and skills of the trade that you can learn from online courses in business and E-commerce management.
3. Bookkeeper– Many businesses affected by the pandemic would have also faced internal issues with bookkeeping and managing financials. Whether it was to obtain financial grants, keep the books updated, pay the proper taxes, or maintain a positive cash flow, a bookkeeper is essential to help the business with these issues.
Even away from the Covid-19 situation, a bookkeeper plays a vital role in a company’s success. It is an essential job, and businesses are always looking for competent bookkeepers who can manage their financials well.
If you have a background in accounting or even general math, then this may be a field that you should consider. There is a bit of a learning curve, but anyone can learn to become a fully-fledged bookkeeper with the proper guidance, knowledge, and experience in online courses. To get you started, you can check out this course on bookkeeping which comes with a certificate, giving you all the skills and tools you need to assess any business and give them constructive feedback.
The Covid-19 pandemic has become an eye-opener for many people around the world. It has made us realize that trying to stick to one industry, one job, or one profession may not be the best path to stabilizing our future.
There are various career options available to all of us and we don’t need to get a degree from top-rated colleges to learn new skills and go into new careers. With online courses such as those offered by Careers Collectiv, anyone can switch from a job they have been in all their lives to one that is more relevant to the state the world is in right now.
