5 Skills you'll need in the Future and aren't as Important Today

Most of us have been educated in a world where the skills we are taught are those that are vital to get you a job after school, college, or higher education. The problem is these skills are for current jobs, even though you'll be employed years later. If you're a student who is a few years away from their first job, here is a look at 5 skills that you'll need in the future, which may not be as important or even academically imparted today.

1 - Soft Skills

According to the World Economic Forum, over a third of the skills you are taught now, which are vital for success today, won't be the same in the next 5 years. According to a study by the Argentinian Ministry of Education, covering roughly 900 organizations, soft skills such as responsibility, teamwork, commitment and loyalty are all skills that will be crucial in the future.

To meet the growing demand for soft skills, the ministry is changing its curriculum to ensure these skills are being taught in a variety of ways, both in and out of the classroom.

In fact, according to over 200 studies, individuals who displayed mastery of soft skills such as empathy and social awareness had higher chances of being employed.

2 - Data Analytics and Empathy

Data - we all know how important data, especially big data, has become in the last 5 years. What most of us don't realize is just how important it will become in the future. What's interesting is that the same people must be masters of empathy as well.

Known as "data literacy," this skill will be crucial over the next 10 years. In fact, according to Belinda Parmer, CEO of The Empathy Business, companies are going to be searching for leaders who not only know how to gather, use, and interpret data, but be empathetic with the use of that data as well. It's not just a numbers game anymore; it's all about having an empathetic drive with your data analytics. Why?

Because mountains of data don't mean much if you cannot persuade people to use and act on them. Being empathetic teaches you to understand others and work with them. If you have the right data, you'll need empathy in order to make full use of it.

According to another study, data analytics, specifically big data analytics, will play a big role in business strategy in the future.

3 - Critical Thinking - Digital Edition

Known as the ability to analyze, evaluate, and form judgment based on objectivity is a critical factor for success in today's world. However, we're moving away from traditional critical thinking where we take problems and form judgments from them. In the future, you will need to be able to sieve through mines of data, often from dashboards, ERPs, and analytic programs, and be able to analyze, interpret, and make correlations from it.

Let's be honest. Everyone knows how to read data; a dashboard isn't hard to read or interpret. However, in the future, you will need to be able to make quick decisions from the correlations you make from their interpretations and how it affects your organization as a whole. According to Biola Alabi, founder of Grooming for Greatness, there's a lot of 'noise' in the digital age and you're going to need to soon be able to make quick decisions from a quicker look, interpretation, and possible correlations of lots of data.

4 - Entrepreneurship

Soon, gone will be the days where you sit at a desk and do the work you are handed. The age of entrepreneurs will overshadow us, not only in the market but in our own workplaces in the coming future. You will need an entrepreneurial mind and soul. You will need to be able to think in entrepreneurial capacities in order to find innovative solutions to everyday problems.

According to Veronica Colondam, CEO of the YCAB Foundation, the marriage of innovation and creativity in people will be the keys to success in the future. In other words, you need to be able to use your innovation to contribute to improving the world around you, either through your own organization or the organization you work for.

According to HSMGlobal and their interview with the top leaders, where they try to identify what makes a great leader, entrepreneurial mindset was rated the highest.

5 - Adaptability

Since we're on the topic of a changing world, adaptability will be the key to success in the future. Time and time again we have seen change and people showcasing great deal of resistance to it. Organization will be challenged far more often, in  many ways, and from more places than ever before over the next few decades and organization and its people need to be able to adapt to the changing dynamics that govern these challenges.

They will need to be able to realize that current processes may not be able to tackle future problems, and that new technology, skills, perspectives, and even people will be required to overcome them, or be doomed to fail and wither away. They not only need to know how to change, but how to do so quickly.

The world is changing so fast that most of us have no idea what will happen tomorrow. If you're a skeptic, the 2016 American presidential election should serve as proof.