It’s hard to predict the future, especially if you’re still struggling to figure out what’s happening in today’s economy. But predicting the future is exactly what you need to do if you’re in school or college, starting a fresh career, or investing in new skills.
As the world evolves, so do job trends and job descriptions. Picking the right career field can keep you from experiencing disappointment when job hunting. It’s important to structure your career so that your job will be in demand for several years, not eliminated. There is so much competition for jobs right now and little job growth in many industries. That is why it is important to find a career track that is growing and not contracting.

What we need to do is explore professions, both emerging and long-standing, that will be secure in the future. So, what are the best jobs? That question can be difficult to answer. The need is to consider the best potential for job growth, pay, stress level, job satisfaction, and other factors. It would be most helpful to look at these jobs by their broader career fields.

Content Creation
As marketing becomes education-based and less sales-based, demand for business writers who specialize in blogs, newsletters, website articles and special reports is bound to increase .While there is no typical education for professionals who specialize in content creation you would need at least a bachelor’s degree, with additional education in areas of specialization. Excellent communication and writing with high creativity and originality is required. A person needs to be self-motivated and self-disciplined in order to meet deadlines.

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
Market research analysts study market conditions, as well as sales and pricing trends of products and services. It allows corporates to monitor, evaluate, and analyse customer satisfaction, and come up with new ways of improving their product and service offerings. New jobs in this field are projected to grow in the future at a phenomenal rate as a result of organizations across all industries recognizing the need for sound market research and analysis in order to stay competitive.

Digital Marketing
Increased competition and the desire for companies to find new ways of differentiating their products and services will ensure that marketing professionals are kept in high demand. With most of businesses planning to increase their investment in digital marketing, the demand for specialist digital marketers with strong content creation, social media and online community management expertise has significantly increased. Today there is a real focus on building communities and using content and social media to facilitate brand engagement directly with audiences to develop an awareness, as well as an affinity, with that brand. It’s not just about increasing brand exposure but establishing a position in the digital market as a thought-leader, driving quality traffic to the site, lead generation and improved search rankings.

Interpreters and Translators
Becoming an interpreter or translator is not easy, usually requiring a bachelor’s degree, fluency in English and at least one other language. Additionally, work experience is critical as many employers will only hire interpreters and translators with past work history. There will be an increase in the jobs for interpreters and translators as the world is moving to become a global market with increasingly diverse population and expanding international trade.

International Law
As the emphasis on global business and trade grows, organizations will be looking for individuals who will have the education, experience, and skill set to navigate areas like international law, tax codes, work and environmental regulations, and even ethics. Individuals who want to take advantage of this trend will need a law degree with an emphasis on international law. Excellent communication skills, as well as knowledge and fluency in one or more languages will be must. Individuals who follow this path should also be willing to live in several different countries over the course of their careers.

Alternative Energy
Oil and Gas are going to stay, but alternative energies such as wind power, hydrogen power, geothermal power, and solar power will create dozens of new careers, from mechanics and plant managers to scientists, engineers, and even sales and marketing professionals, as these energies become more mainstream. Those with scientific minds who enjoy research can have a career in alternative energy. As this field becomes more popular, colleges and universities are offering degrees, and even MBAs in green energy

Information Technology
Think of all the technology we didn’t have just a few decades ago, a decade ago, a few years ago. Computers, the Internet, and Smartphones have changed the way we do business and communicate. And they will continue to do so. As more technology is developed, IT professionals such as programmers, security specialists, and administrators will continue to be in high demand. Those in this field should enjoy analytical thinking, but should also be creative problem solvers. As this career becomes more central, more institutions of higher learning are responding by offering course work and majors in areas such as computer networking and information security, applied computer science, and computer science and innovation.

Entrepreneurship
It’s often overlooked, but the need for innovators running their own businesses could be more important than ever in the future. There will be a strong growth in traditional businesses with the boom in the Mobile Application based retailing. This means anybody able to come up with better, cheaper ways to serve customers will reap a windfall. Technology start-up’s will no doubt keep changing the way consumers work and live. And nobody really knows what the next Smart Phone would be —except, perhaps, some entrepreneur who’s dreaming about it right now. He or she may have a bigger impact on life in the future than anything that we all can see.

Career choice is a personal thing. One person’s dream job may well seem a nightmare to others. However, it’s useful to know how jobs compare on things that matter . We cannot be predicting the future , but we can get an idea of longer-term job prospects based on past trends and is a good basis for thinking about the future

Manu Anand
Director Alpha Mindz, Goa
Email: manu@alphamindz.com