Why is willingness at the center of the process when it comes to managing your career readiness?

1. Interviewing
2. How To Demonstrate Your Willingness To Learn at Work

By Indeed Editorial Team

Updated August 5, 2022 | Published January 22, 2021

Updated August 5, 2022

Published January 22, 2021

Demonstrating a willingness to learn is a great way to prove your commitment to a company or role. It also tells employers that you have the drive, self-discipline and motivation to enhance your skills and abilities. Taking on more responsibilities or improving your qualifications can lead to advancement opportunities, raises or promotions.

In this article, we'll review what having a willingness to learn means, why it's important and how to demonstrate it in an interview.

What is a willingness to learn?

A willingness to learn is the desire to gain knowledge and develop skills to improve your work performance. Employees who demonstrate a willingness to learn are typically always searching for new opportunities to stay ahead of modern trends, achieve professional goals and complete more challenging tasks. Showing that you're willing to learn tells employers that you're a hardworking, driven and motivated team member.

Related: How to Show Willingness to Learn on a Resume (With Examples)

Why is a willingness to learn important?

A willingness to learn is important because it shows that:

• You keep your skills up to date: It allows you to learn new skills and abilities that evolve as technology and modern work techniques change. By learning new skills, you're showing that you're dedicated to staying on top of industry trends.

• You're a motivated and quick learner: You can impress employers with your drive and determination to learn new job responsibilities. Being a quick learner is a desirable trait for most employers.

• You're a good long-term investment: Managers may feel comfortable promoting you to higher positions because they know you're willing to learn how to complete more complex and big-picture tasks that will improve the organization's performance.

When complex and unexpected workplace problems arise, your willingness to learn allows you to work hard to overcome these challenges and grow from the experience. Letting yourself learn from each workplace situation helps you understand which areas you excel in and where you can improve. As you gain more hands-on knowledge and advance your skill set, you'll feel more confident in your work performance, which may impress supervisors and motivate team members.

Related: How To Be More Willing To Learn (And Why It's Important)

How to demonstrate your willingness to learn in an interview

The interview is a great chance to prove your dedication to learning new skills and growing in your career. Follow these steps to show your supervisor you're willing to learn and improve yourself:

1. Ask plenty of questions

Use the interview to ask plenty of questions about the company and the role. Research the organization beforehand to have thought-out questions prepared. You can also ask questions after learning more about the role during the interview.

Asking questions shows hiring managers you want to gain as much information as possible about the role to ensure it's right for you. This also tells interviewers that you won't be hesitant to ask questions if you're having difficulties performing a workplace task or when you want to learn more about a certain skill or responsibility.

Related: 54 Great Questions To Ask During an Interview

2. Demonstrate your passion for gaining new skills

If you have little to no work experience, expressing a willingness to learn new skills can still pique interviewers' interests, as it tells them you're a hard worker who's passionate about moving up in the company.

When you're willing to learn, you typically have the self-motivation and determination to teach yourself new skills. In the interview, highlight moments when you found ways to teach yourself new skills, such as a time you attended an industry conference or took a seminar. You may impress employers with your drive to learn more without needing close supervision or guidance. Consider providing further details about how you used these newly gained skills to provide value or bring in results to the company.

3. Earn certifications and take additional courses

A great way to catch the hiring manager's attention in your interview is to earn additional certifications or enroll yourself in relevant courses. If you're interested in roles that require or prefer certain skills or abilities you don't have, conduct online research to see if you can take classes or gain certifications to build these skills. Talking about these newly acquired qualifications in the interview can make you stand out from other candidates and express your dedication to building on your strengths.

4. Request information about training and growth opportunities

During your interview, ask hiring managers if they offer any opportunities to help employees enhance their skills and grow in their careers. This tells them that you're willing to take time to gain knowledge to better perform in their organization. Interviewers typically search for candidates who want to stay with the company long term as they advance to senior-level positions and make big-picture decisions.

Related: The Value of Learning and Development in the Workplace

5. Pitch new ideas based on your research

Conduct research on the company beforehand and find ways to show hiring managers that you already have ideas to improve the company. For instance, if you're applying for a marketing coordinator role, you could review their social media pages and provide hiring managers with suggestions on ways to earn more followers. You may impress interviewers with your self-motivation to independently research and learn more about the company.

Related: How To Show You’re a Quick Learner in a Job Interview in 4 Steps

Tips for advancing in your career with a willingness to learn

Once you've earned a position with the company, continue demonstrating your passion for improving your performance and building on your strengths. Use these tips to help advance your career using a willingness to learn:

Remain updated on technological advancements

As technology continues to grow and improve organizational efficiencies, it's important that you keep up with regular advancements. By doing so, you can teach yourself how to use new software systems or tools. You can then inform leadership about these new tools, their features and how adapting them can benefit the company. This shows your dedication to finding innovative ways to enhance company efficiencies and overcome any organizational obstacles.

Volunteer for additional responsibilities and tasks

A great way to demonstrate your willingness to learn is to volunteer to complete tasks outside of your role responsibilities. For instance, if your manager expresses that they're overwhelmed with their duties, ask if you can finish any tasks for them. This displays a willingness to take on new workplace challenges and to gain skills by completing more complex responsibilities.

Related: 6 Qualities That Make a Great Team Player

Find industry events to attend

Show employers your willingness to enhance your knowledge by locating industry events, like conferences, webinars or workshops teaching about certain subjects within the industry. Tell employers about upcoming team-building events as well and ask if you and your team can attend. Employers will notice your initiative to teach yourself and other employees new skills to perform more effectively.

Related: Top Interview Tips: Common Questions, Body Language & More

In this video, we dissect an entire job interview from start to finish. We analyze everything from common interview questions to etiquette and how to follow up.