One of the causes of the current “skills gap” in so many fields is the need to learn too much to do a particular job. The editors at Harvard Business Review agreed with me because they have recently published my blog post on “Learning Overload,” which you can read by clicking here.

One thing the editors did not include in the post, which still deserves attention, is how learning overload is impacting the job search process. One of the reasons new college grads struggle in today’s job market is because there is so much to learn to succeed in the highly demanding search process. For starters, how to:

–Effectively research prospective employers and interviewers on the Internet
–Define and articulate career objectives that fit rapidly evolving job descriptions
–Conduct an effective Skype or phone interview
–Format a resume to survive an applicant tracking system
–Network successfully using LinkedIn
–Navigate different digital channels to properly communicate with prospective employers

If you don’t think mastering all these areas is much harder and more complicated than it used to be, then you haven’t looked for a job for a while. Or you have forgotten what it’s like not to know all this stuff.

Whether you’re a new college grad, a mid-career engineer, or a veteran executive, “learning is the new form of labor,” as my old colleague Shoshana Zuboff has written. Successful careers today are going to call for really intense learning at different times.

Do you want to know how to keep that learning load under control? Then check out my HBR post here and let me know what you think? Do you feel overloaded with too much to learn sometimes? How do you handle it? What are the negative consequences for you and your organization? Feel free to comment below.