Use Your Down Time to Upgrade Your Skills

In the current economic situation many people are finding themselves either unemployed or with jobs that have been cut back to part time. While it is frustrating to worry about paying bills during this time or be continually stressed by looking for a new job, it is encouraging to know that although many companies have cut back there are just as many that are still hiring.

It can be really useful to take this rare free time and use it to add to your job skills. This will make you more desirable to employers and can actually help you find a job faster. Many job seekers are using this time to start a graduate degree, which is a fantastic boost for any career. Those who cannot afford tuition during the crunch need not lose out; there are many free online courses that offer incredibly useful, practical information that you can put to use at your new job.

Nearly any job today requires some sort of computer skills. Many people learn the skills they need on the job, but knowing how to perform certain tasks in Word or Excel won’t necessarily translate into knowing different tasks that might be needed for a new job. Take the time to learn how to use all the available features in a program and you’ll be able to jump right into a new job and prove your productivity from day one.

Free Online Computer Class Resources
http://distancelearn.about.com/od/isitforyou/a/FreeComputer.htm
http://www.gcflearnfree.org/computer/
http://www.homeandlearn.co.uk/
http://www.free-ed.net/free%2Ded/InfoTech/default.asp

The workplace today has really become a global environment. Businessmen routinely travel to Europe or the Far East for jobs that used to be much more local. Foreign languages are now required for certain jobs and are a big plus for many more. You can brush up on your foreign language skills by taking a free online language class and add more punch to your resume.

Free Online Foreign Language Class Resources
http://www.studyspanish.com/
http://www.learn-spanish-online.de/
http://www.zigzagworld.com/class/
http://www.bible101.org/hebrew/home.html
http://www.deutsch-lernen.com/
http://www.germanfortravellers.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=24&Itemid=40
http://www.travlang.com/languages/german/ihgg/

Since MIT launched its OpenCourseWare Initiative and put content from hundreds of classes online and made it available for free many universities have followed suit. You cannot earn college credit by taking these courses but you can access course materials and lectures for many high level university courses on almost any topic.

Free OpenCourseWare Resources
http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm
http://ocw.jhsph.edu/
http://www.cmu.edu/oli/
http://ocw.utah.edu/

For no investment other than your time you can have access to nearly unlimited free resources. Use your time wisely; skill improvement is an important part of job hunting and can make the process go faster.

Good luck!