How I plan to develop skills

My most recent post outlined the skills I identified as necessary next steps in my new position as associate professor.

Maybe it is also of your interest to read about how I plan to develop skills (I like to lay out plans for myself, in case you didn’t notice it yet…).

So, in today’s post I have outlined the general principles I use for developing skills:

Outline goals: The first step to obtaining my new skills, is to clarify to myself what it is that I want to learn, how I want to learn it, and by when I want to achieve this.
Outline timelines and plans: Once I have the overall goal clearly defined, I sketch the timelines, milestones, intermediate goals, and necessary resources to achieve my goals.
Use my think days: When it comes to plotting world domination, I use my think days to think strategically. I plan to set aside one of my upcoming think days to have a deep dive into TU Delft’s vision documents.
Get involved: You learn skills by doing, so if I want to learn new skills, I need to take on new tasks. I plan to volunteer and get involved in new efforts to get hands-on experience.
Talk to colleagues: Of course, I can be plotting and planning as much as I want, the most important aspect is talking to colleagues to learn about how they develop their skills, what is important on a day to day basis, and how to grow into my new tasks.
Take courses: I like learning, so I plan to take a variety of courses. If I continue to have access to the Coursera program via USFQ, I plan to take a number of courses to develop my skills.
Get mentoring: I am also looking forward to continue receiving the advice and mentoring of those who have more experience than me.