HOW EDUCATION HELPED ME EARN MORE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

If there is anything this COVID-19 period taught us, it is that we need to make more investments for ourselves. Ever since this COVID-19 pandemic started, a lot of people lost their jobs, schools had to shut down and we were left with not much to do.

After all, these had happened, investment strategies came into play, people wanted to take advantage of this period to invest in themselves in any way they could.

After so much research and opinions, it was concluded that the best investment strategy is education.

Empowering education

Education is the acquisition and application of skills, knowledge, values, belief and moral norms and it is the best investment an individual can have.

Education is the one thing that seems to fit a lot of criteria for this pandemic period.

· Education is for the children, the young and the old

· It could be done from the comfort of your home

· It could also be used to gain knowledge on how to make money as well

· Education is for everyone

Ways To Invest In Yourself Through Education

1. Apply for online classes

Since this COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of online classes have reduced their prices and we have so many free online classes now. Let’s talk about a few features of online classes that can be of advantage to you

• Various online classes are free and a few of the ones which are not free now have discounts and reduced prices.

• You can take the class at your own pace.

• They can be done from the comfort of your home, you don’t need to leave your house to have access to the classes.

• A few online classes give tips on how to apply your knowledge during this period.

• You will be able to engage with other students and learn something from them.

· Some Online classes provide certificates of completion as an added advantage to you.

Due to the skills and knowledge gained during these various online classes, the number of remote workers increased and remote job opportunities also increased.

Online classes became an added advantage to people in the job market, students have used these classes to gain skills and knowledge, and students also learned better methods on how to successfully gain admission to universities and colleges.

Online classes are of benefit to everyone. It is best to select the online classes that will help you achieve your goals and also try to participate in online classes that have certificates at the end of the class.

It is important to note that you don’t just take online classes for the certificates, you take online certificates to learn and to apply skills and knowledge gained.

2. Teach During the COVID-19 Pandemic

A woman teaching children in a class

The best way to gain knowledge and to engage with other people is to teach. You learn more when you teach. Teaching allows you to invest in yourself and make money.

We have all taught in one way or the other, you may have taught a classmate who had difficulty with a subject or you have taught you siblings, friends or family members a thing or two, and this makes us teachers, the difference is some of us didn’t make teaching our daily job.

However, for you to teach a large number of students effectively, you need to train and learn how to become a good teacher. You can follow this process

• Find something you are very good at

• Take online classes to increase your knowledge

• Practice what you have learnt frequently and diligently

• Note down your mistakes and lesson learnt

• Take a few classes on proper teaching methods

• Teach other people

• Learn while teaching

To be a teacher is not only about learning and making money, as a teacher you

• Share Your Passion and knowledge.

• Make a big difference in the world.

• Build a community of educators.

• Motivate and inspire others.

• Change the future of education.

A few online classes are currently in need of teachers to teach and create new curriculums for students, make use of this opportunity to invest in yourself while teaching in the COVID-19 pandemic.

3. Scholarship and Grants

Scholarships and grants are one of the best means you can invest in yourself through education.

Scholarship and grants have helped a lot of students, businesses and individuals just like you to invest in education.

Scholarships and grants come in different forms, they have different requirements and different funding systems. So when you research for a scholarship, choose the one that suits you the most

The factors you have to consider when applying for scholarships and grants are:

• Eligibility

• Deadlines

• The country you want to study

• Course of study

• Language requirements

• Research topic, proposal and budget if it is a research course

• Requirements from the school

• Funds needed for other things if scholarship or grant doesn’t cover it

• Available official transcripts

• Available referees

• Rules and regulations of the country

• Read the fine print, some scholarships and grants have various conditions attached to them, so be sure you can comply with it all.

Why should you apply for a scholarship or grant?

Apart from the fact that it paves the way for affordable and quality education, Scholarships and Grants also

  • Gets you out of debt: this period is not the best period to rack up debts. Education is quite expensive, so it is better to find an affordable way and easy way to invest in yourself
  • It is an affordable investment: It allows you to invest in yourself through education and paves the way for employment opportunities, acquisition of advanced skills and also creates well able business owners
  • It improves performance: With scholarship or grants, you worry less about your financial needs and this give you more time to focus on school and perform excellently

Scholarships are quite easy to find online, a lot of websites and blogs provide scholarship opportunities, a recommended website to search for scholarships is Scholars4Dev, scholarships on this website are categorized by country, funding type and deadlines, and it is quite easy to use. These blogs and websites made searching for scholarships and grants easier.

4. Learn a New Language During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Books

Learning of new languages has become essential and popular. Most companies no longer want apps to translate for them. This is because apps have low accuracy, meaning can be lost in translation, apps can’t translate context, translations sometimes contain grammatical errors, and translation apps are not 100% reliable.

Businesses can’t afford the mistakes and inaccuracies of translation apps. Due to all of these, businesses would rather hire people to translate their documents.

Learning one or more new languages apart from your native language is a huge investment, you get to work as a translator freelance or full time, and you get to understand various business cultures in different countries.

Other benefits of learning a new language include:

• Gain a new perspective of a different language and culture.

• Gain connections to different established businesses and individuals.

• Advance your career – You can use a new language as a stepping stone to a new level in your career.

• Advance your education.

• It boosts confidence and creativity.

• After learning one new language, it is easier to learn more.

• It creates opportunities to meet new people.

• It improves the level of intelligence.

• Deepen connections and perspective to other languages and cultures.

5. Be a Mentor

A woman teaching or talking to a man

Being a Mentor is not only about investing in yourself but about investing in an individual. You will teach and guide a person about the things you know better than he or she, it could be more than one individual, depending on how many individuals you can mentor.

You can decide to be a mentor for free or not. Either you decide to mentor for free or not, there are some amazing benefits about being a Mentor you should know

• It improves communication and interpersonal skills.

• It develops leadership and management skills.

• It boosts motivation and confidence.

• Reinforce your study skills and knowledge of your subject(s).

• It increases networking opportunities.

• It provides volunteer opportunities.

• It gives a sense of fulfilment and personal development.

An Extra Tip For Investments to Make in the Covid-19 Pandemic.

While education has been known as the best investment anyone can get, there is one investment which seems to be gaining popularity and that is-buying of stocks.

Buying stocks has been known as a risk and it is mostly for well-established individuals, so not everyone is able to buy stocks. But now, social media came into light and it allowed young individuals who are just starting a business or salary income earners to buy stock from businesses such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

Buying of stocks from these businesses currently doesn’t have high risks and the value of your stocks increases due to increased use of social media during this pandemic. Most individuals now have stocks in Facebook, Tik Tok and other businesses.

When buying stocks from these businesses, do a proper research and invest in the one that suits you properly.

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic there has been a rise in the stock prices of social media businesses, this is because of the #stayathome protocol brought on by the COVID-19

Bottom Line

By now, you should be filled with enough knowledge on how to invest in yourself, you can decide to take it one by one or decide to do it all together, just remember to follow the process of each of the ways diligently and gain the knowledge and skills required.

Invest in yourself during the COVID-19 pandemic.

About the Author: Esther Ilori

Esther Ilori has been a content writer since 2017 and she currently works as a digital marketing manager at WayMaker Digital. She brings her years of experience to her current role where she is dedicated to educating and inspiring the world on how to effectively use content writing and digital marketing in various companies, careers and to achieve various goals.

Links to her published articles can be found here. You can find Esther on LinkedInInstagramFacebook, or Twitter.

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