Staying in the same job until retirement is no longer a realistic scenario. It's time to embrace lifelong learning and be ready to retrain. Some people will throw up their hands, while others will see it as a chance for an interesting life and an opportunity to try out more than one profession.
The grandmother of 42-year-old Karolina, Emilia, finished only seven grades of primary school. "When the war broke out, instead of books, my grandmother was sent to dig ditches. She married young, had four children, and never returned to school," her granddaughter says.
Yet it was uneducated Grandma Emilia who instilled in Karolina one of the most important rules for life: "She used to say: never miss a chance to learn something. She remained curious about new things her whole life. After forty, she learned to drive a car; after seventy, she mastered sending texts and emoticons. She read a lot and passionately watched quiz shows. She taught me, among other things, to crochet. It came in handy during the pandemic. I saved my mental health back then by knitting hats and scarves," Karolina recalls.
From Socrates to the 21st Century
The life advice from Karolina’s wise grandmother has a name: lifelong learning (LLL). In Polish, we call it "kształcenie ustawiczne." LLL is an idea as old as the hills. Even Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and Confucius were convinced that continuous education—not necessarily in a school setting—was a human duty. After World War II, it became clear that lifelong learning was crucial to rebuilding societies and economies, and organizations such as UNESCO, the European Union, and the OECD began to promote policies supporting skill development throughout life.
In the 21st century, lifelong learning is everywhere. Why? Because advances in technology, automation, artificial intelligence, ecological and demographic challenges, and more mean some professions are becoming obsolete and new ones are taking their place. The readiness to learn and retrain is now a fundamental adaptive skill and the key to surviving in the job market.
Cybersecurity Experts and Nurses
We’re fully aware in Greater Poland that LLL is not just a trend, but a necessity facing anyone navigating the job market—one of the leading regions of the last two decades. We’re at the forefront of using European funds, and the region’s GDP per capita exceeds 84% of the European average and is 8.5% higher than the national average.
The province’s successes go hand in hand with opportunities and challenges. Greater Poland is moving away from coal mining, investing in automation and robotics. It’s experiencing an aging society and migration. Foreigners are stepping in to fill the gaps in the workforce—more than 123,000 were registered in 2023, especially citizens of Ukraine.
What does this mean for workers? Change is coming. There's growing demand for specialists in IT, cybersecurity, logistics, renewable energy, and healthcare. Forecasts point to especially high demand in professions linked to electromobility, automation, mechatronics, elder care, and mental health. There's also a need for staff to train future professionals: teachers of science and vocational subjects, career counselors, and specialists in inclusive education, who can also support students with special needs.
A New Profession Begins After Forty
Karolina spent most of her life working in marketing agencies. During the pandemic, she realized she couldn't see herself in this job in ten years. "At first, that terrified me. Then I sat down with a cup of tea and felt that, at this stage of my life, I wanted to do something that would give me not just money, but also a sense of purpose. I enrolled in nursing school. I’m currently interning at a hospital, learning everything from scratch. It’s not easy, but I feel alive again. If necessary, I can always go back to crocheting or learn something new."