If you want to increase your salary or achieve success in your career, gaming may be the perfect strategy. There is evidence that gaming as a child is linked with better pay and more promotion as an adult—and you can accomplish similar results with continued gaming as well.
It’s a tough job market today and there is tons of competition not only for the best roles, but also the best projects and promotions. Employers are looking for those with brilliant thinking and problem-solving skills in addition to people who embrace tech and who can cope with all of the current challenges.
Gaming can set you apart and cause you to shine, so you can reap the rewards of your efforts.
Gaming Drives Great Results
Lots of us apparently played video games as children, with 89% who report they played and 96% who believe their experience has had a positive effect on their lives, according to a survey and sentiment analysis by Prodigy.
Play has been linked with productivity as well. In particular, when coworkers played video games together, they increased their productivity by 20% according to an academic study at Brigham Young University.
Gaming can have powerful effects on your career as well. Those who played video games as children were 71% more likely to have received promotions recently. In addition, they earned an average of $5,451 more in annual salary compared with those who didn’t play, based on Prodigy’s data.
3 Big Ways Gaming Helps Your Career
Gaming is a big deal for children who played, but it can also continue to drive positive outcomes for adults—and it has big benefits for your career.
1. Gaming Helps You Cope
Interestingly, 63% of people say gaming helped them with stress relief, relaxation, entertainment and fun, based on Prodigy data.
These are huge advantages, because 88% to 61% of people are fearful of everything from job loss or inflation to information war, according to Edelman’s Trust Barometer Global Report. In addition, 84% of all employees reported they were stressed, and 98% of Gen Z respondents said they were burned out, based on data from Cigna,
The ability to manage stress, relax and rejuvenate is critical for your wellbeing and also for your ability to contribute over time—and ensure your ongoing resilience. All of this is very good for your career success.
2. Gaming Helps You Embrace Technology
Another advantage of gaming: 45% of those who played video games report increased technological literacy, according to Prodigy. This too has huge career implications.
The world of work is changing significantly based on technology—and the integration of AI into all kinds of work. Predications about AI suggest its use in the U.S. will grow to 117 million users in 2025—based on natural language processing, robotics, machine learning and more. This is in addition to the 882% increase in the use of Chat GPT.
AI won’t take your job, but someone using it will. As a result, comfort and acumen with technology will be currency for your career in terms of the ability to embrace it for your role and incorporate it in your career. Gaming can set you up for success.
3. Gaming Helps You Think and Solve Problems
Perhaps the most significant advantage with gaming is its effects on all kinds of thinking processes. According to the Prodigy data,
- 59% say it helps the development of strategic thinking
- 67% say it improves problem solving
- 50% say it boosts creativity and imagination
- 49% say it encourages curiosity and exploration
- 43% say it improves reaction time and reflexes
- 40% say it improves memory and cognitive skills
Work has become increasingly complex, fast-moving and challenging with new problems coming up all the time, and the need for new innovations ever-present.
The ability to think strategically, solve problems creatively and bring new perspectives based on curiosity and strong cognitive skills will matter in who succeeds in their work.
And the ability to work through problems and lean into the future will make work more rewarding as well. Again, gamers will be well-suited for this reality.
Use Gaming to Succeed
You can apply the benefits of gaming individually or as a team (think: gaming over your lunch hour with your colleagues).
You can also leverage gaming as an organization. As an example, a global manufacturing company has established a gaming community. The employee resource group meets monthly for game nights that include not just video games, but also board games and even chess and Dungeons and Dragons. They also have a team that competes in esports events against other companies.
The membership in the group continues to grow because people are sustaining and growing their capabilities, but also because they appreciate the community, the camaraderie and the inclusivity that result from the time together and the supportive experiences. They also say it’s a demonstration of positive culture.
Of course there are plenty of ways to build your skills, but gaming is a terrific path to success.