Why we love work skills and so should you!

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Welcome to my blog!

We  learn things at home, at school, at college, higher education. However all these things we learn do not equip us with the skills we need to live life independently. Very soon people realised that only academic education was not enough and there came up hundreds of small companies offering work and life skills training programs. Things like interpersonal skills, personality development, interviewing skills, group discussions, presentation skills, delegation, telephone etiquette, team building, team building, people management etc..are some of the worklife skills that were and are popular.

So what are worklife skills? These are skills that make it easier to navigate, through life's twists, turns and trials. The worklife skills required a decade ago may be different from those we need today. For eg; In the past a lot of importance was given to communication skills in English, because it is the internationally used and understood language. However these days with translation software it is not important in which language you communicate, what is more important is the confidence, conviction and enthusiasm with which you convey your message. Because no matter what language you communicate in, it can be translated into any language you want to translate your message to, either by using a translation software or hiring a translator at a nominal cost.

 Life skills in today's world are mostly about expertise, impact and speed.

Here are some reasons, why we love work skills and so should you:

1. You breeze through life- With basic work skills like communication skills, interpersonal skills etc you learn how to interact with people in all walks of life. There are people who dread going to the groceries, talking to their neighbors or making friends. They don't know how to start where to start and without making a fool of themselves. With communication skills, interpersonal skills and confidence building skills you can develop great acquaintances and be comfortable with, necessary interaction with people.


2. Don't have to get stuck- Work skills teach you how to get your day to day work done, without being dependent on someone else. Skills like effective communication will help you ask the right questions and get answers to get difficult work done. I have noticed people looking so lost in a bank, or at a railway station, or even on the roads. All they need to do is go to ask someone, who seems to know and looks decent enough. If you have studied and understood non verbal communication skills, it will be easier for you to identify the right person to approach, and who to avoid, just by observing them from a distance before talking to them. Then you can frame your questions to be brief and complete to get the answer you need. Sometimes you may not get the answer from the very first person you ask, so you would need to ask a few people before you find what you are looking for, while at the same time exercising reasonable caution.

3. Survive the difficult times in life- Skills like dealing with emotions well will give you the tools to deal with trying times in your life, for eg: loss of a job, major illness, loss of a loved one etc. We have seen people suffering all the time. Life is not always a bed of roses, it is sometimes a bed of thorns. During these mishaps we are alone at times, we are in denial for most part, so it becomes difficult for even our near and dear ones to help us. Also, many times we don't have the time or the resource to help another because we are busy battling the problems in our own lives. There fore, instead of blaming others and shaming ourselves it is wiser to develop skills that help us deal and overcome these difficult and painful situations in our lives. We may even be able to assist those who we love and need our emotional support.

4. Increases confidence- Most people don't even try to do what they have to do, because of lack of confidence, life skills like personality development and presentation skills can help you build confidence and achieve whatever you need to. The importance of confidence cannot be overemphasized. We need it to perform every task be it small or big. An obvious thing like going for a walk in the morning requires confidence that you can walk. Without confidence you cant even lift your hand and do anything. Everything we do needs us to be confident that we can do it. People think that confidence comes only after we have perfected something, however that is not entirely true. We cannot get good at something unless we first have the confidence to try it while we are still struggling to understand the nuances of the art or craft we are trying to excel in. I don't particularly agree with the use of the word perfection, because, according to me,  such a thing doesn't exist.

5. Have a purpose in life- Instead of being preoccupied about whether you have the ability to perform your task well, you will be able to fulfill the purpose for your life. "Don't give silly excuses!" is what we have continually heard our parents, teachers and mentors tell us, when we try to explain why we haven't even tried to work on the task at hand. The common excuses we give are "I was very busy." " I am not smart enough." "I may not do it perfectly." etc..etc..etc..The real answer however is, most of us struggle with doing anything purposeful in our lives, is because it is challenging and requires certain skills for us to take the first step. When we have developed our personality and conquered our personal fears, like making presentations, or speaking to difficult people, or being able to maintain your enthusiasm when you are faced with obstacles, it is then we can move towards the true purpose of our lives.

6. Focus on what needs to be done- Once you have mastered these skills, you can concentrate on the job at hand and do it well. This is an extension of having a purpose in life. Once you have a purpose and work towards starting the project, you will need more skills to keep on going, till you complete it. Focus is extremely important when you are going deeper into the goal you have set for yourself. There are plenty of distractions that can derail you, but if you have developed, goal setting and have the courage of conviction, then nothing can distract you.




7. Opens opportunities that didn't exist before- Without life skill like interviewing skills, communication skills, presentation skills etc.. it would be difficult to even apply for a job. Once you have these skills you would have access to opportunities that would not be available to others. Imagine a person who is a topper from one of the most prestigious institutions in the world, however when it comes to communicating with people he or she is not effective. The silver lining is that these skills can be learned, so no worries, all we need to do is be mindful and eager to learn these skills. Knowledge is power, only if we can present it well and are able to apply it to access the opportunities that are there in front of us.

8. Solve simple problems- There are many simple problems in life that we worry about, for eg: opening a bank account, how to address a senior, how to get official work done etc..We all live in society and so there are lots of things that we need to get done. All of us need a bank account, to pay our bills, apply for jobs, go for interviews, buy clothes, food and look for a decent place to live in. In trying to achieve each of these we will encounter certain  problems. There are rules and regulations and formalities to get things done the right way. Our job is to understand what they are and then to make a plan to tackle them step by step. People management skills and conflict resolution skills could help us solve many problems in life.

9. Move to higher level of achievement- Work skills are a stepping stone to aim higher, once you master these skills you can move on to being more efficient and effective in the goals you want to achieve. So far I have only discussed about how to go about doing your regular tasks in life, be it going to the supermarket or socializing with your neighbors or getting a job. This point is about moving higher in your level of interaction, to enrich the experience for yourself and others. For eg: When you have presentation skills, communication skills, interpersonal skills, telephone etiquette you can further excel in these and get promotions and accolades in your professional lives and build stronger and more meaningful personal relationships.

10. Clarity in decision making- Life throws situations at us that need decisions to be made. Unless we understand what the basic problem is , solving it wouldn't be possible. Work and life skills give you the tools to be able to deal with these problems with clarity and even find a solution if applied correctly. Decision making is one skill that we need the most after confidence. We live in a world now where we are presented with a million choices for a single need. Decision making has become that much more challenging and so it is so important for us to be connected with our inner values and objectives in life to be able to make the right decision for us. This clarity can be achieved by learning and developing decision making, time management, stress management, delegation skills and using them regularly.

The reasons we love work skills are plenty, given above are just a few, so if you need to upgrade your work skills in any area of your work life do please do not waste anytime. It will definitely help you in boldly and fearlessly approaching your professional challenges.

That's all for now dear readers. Bye for now till we meet in my next post take care!

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