I recently partook in a discussion among some fellow community managers on the best ways to learn about the industry and how to train its future generations. When the conversation reached the point where we all shared the “training” we went through ourselves, the answers began getting interesting.

“I studied marketing in college.”

“I studied communications and the art of rhetoric.”

“The job I’ve had that contributed most to the development of my community management skills was being a community manager.”

“My social life and interactions with others have been one of the biggest contributors to my professional skill set.”

It’s no secret that there just isn’t a degree to be earned in social media or community management. In fact, I graduated college one short year ago, and never even knew that this extensive professional field existed until I was thrown into it.

The reality is, this isn’t only the case for community management. It’s the case for SEO. It’s the case for entrepreneurship. It’s the case for social advertising and Internet marketing. We’re living in the transition phase from analog to digital; from broadcasting to social conversing.

How, then, can we find the proper education and training to become experts in these fields? Though there’s not one training program fit for everyone, there is one thing we can all do: learn how to learn.

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