Have you learnt a new skill or improved upon your existing skill in the last six months to one year?

According to the world acclaimed management guru and Writer Professor Peter Drucker - "The only skill that will be important in the 21st century is the skill of learning news skills. Everything else will become obsolete over time."

It has often been said that: "whatever got you to where you are today is not enough to keep you there."

The trust is that we now live in a well-informed economy where your skills, knowledge and ability are the keys to your success in your chosen field of profession. In a nutshell to rise to the top rapidly you must be a knowledge worker because the value of your work is not determined by the hours that you put in but by the results you produce.

These days you must not only develop your existing skill but you must also develop other skills to have a competitive edge in the labour market.

One of my friends once applied for a job with a company that had its head office in Paris. One of the reasons he got the job was because he could communicate fluently in French.

It is important that you develop new skills because it enables you adapt to change. You also have to work on your new skills by being abreast with new technology in your chosen profession. Some people find it difficult getting a job simply because they are not compliant with the new technology of that profession.

There can be few professionals who have been unaffected by the rapid pace of change which has influenced the professions over the past decade. Professionalism relies increasingly on an ability to respond quickly to changing market conditions, to client requirements and to the influences of government policies. We are all being encouraged to embrace change and foster innovation. To adapt to these changes we need new skills. No longer can keeping up to date be optional; it is increasingly central to professional and organisational success. The response of many professions to this challenge has been to embrace the concept of Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

Remember you can not achieve more on the outside than what you have achieved and become on the inside. Your outer life is a reflection of your inner life. If you wish to achieve worthwhile things in your personal and professional life, you must become a worthwhile person in your self-development. You must build yourself if you want to build your life. Perhaps, the greatest secret of success is that you can become anything you really want to become, achieve any goal you really want to achieve; and to do this, you must work on your self and never stop.

Few years ago, I had only one skill which is writing but later on I improved the skill by going to a School of Journalism and after that I developed other skills in Informational Technology, Public Relation, image consultancy, building personal brand and public speaking.

Jim Rohn, the America's foremost business philosopher suggested 3 strategies you can use:

The first and most important is to make a commitment to work on yourself. Do you want to improve or remain the same? No matter what you have achieved, you are at a certain point right now. What you have achieved in the past is fine, but it doesn't make a difference for the future. The decision about what you will become is made each day. Each day someone is making the decision to better him or herself. Let that person be you!

The second is to make a plan. Once you have decided to become better you will need to have a plan. It doesn't have to be a long, intricate plan. It can be simple. Save a dollar a day. Walk a mile a day. Read an article a day. That is a simple plan with achievable goals. Develop a plan that will take you into the future of your dreams. Why not do that today!

The third is to begin to act. All of the great ideas, without action, become stale and useless. The key to turning dreams into reality is action. People who have great ideas are a dime a dozen. People who act on their dreams and ideas are the selected few, but they are the ones who gain the wealth, wealth and wisdom that is available. Someone will act today. Let that person be you.

You really need to reinvent and rediscover yourself. It is important to develop new skills and expand your knowledge. That will distinguish you from your peers when up for a promotion. This is the way to put yourself on the side of the angel and to put your career onto the fast track. You are, by so doing, adapting to change in this changing world.

See you at the top!

Dayo Olomu is a UK-based Motivational Speaker, Writer, Business/Life Coach, Trainer, Media Entrepreneur and Competent Toastmaster. His core belief is that we are all endowed with seeds of greatness, and his mission is to help individuals and organisations achieve their full potentials. He is the author of best selling "4 Indispensable Strategies for Success" and the President of Croydon Communicators Toastmasters. Get his FREE monthly Rise to the Top ezine by sending a blank email to subscribe@dayoolomu.com or visit his website at: www.dayoolomu.com