Life skills are skills you need to learn to make
the most out of life. You can’t afford to leave the ‘nest’ without these basic
life skills if you want to succeed; besides there’s nothing worse than going out
into the world feeling overwhelmed and ill-equipped to handle your own life.
of your own life.
Personal Skills
These are essential skills
you need to maintain a healthy body and mind. They enhance your understanding of
the world and improve your quality of life. They primarily include how you
recognize, manage and cope with your emotions and the emotions of others around
you (emotional intelligence); an awareness of the benefits of a healthy diet and
the need for exercise or physical activity; and home and personal care
skills.
Interpersonal Communication Skills
You need to learn
how to properly communicate your thoughts, opinions and ideas if you truly want
to succeed. Interpersonal communication skills are skills we use to interact
directly with other people to promote understanding and clarification, and to
avoid misunderstandings. These skills are particularly important for effective
negotiations and for problem solving and decision making especially in the
workplace.
Literacy: Reading and Writing Skills
The beauty of
these skills is that you don’t need to go to school to learn them. If you are
determined enough, even if you can’t afford an education, you can solicit the
help of a friend or relative who has these skills and learn it from them. Being
able to read and write is a means to arm yourself with the most powerful tool
for success – knowledge. It is also a powerful way to communicate your thoughts
and intentions.
Numeracy Skills
You don’t need to be great at
mathematics or become a rocket scientist to have basic numeracy skills, you just
need an understanding of the basic principles of day-to-day numeracy, arithmetic
and maths and this alone can open many doors for you. Numeracy skills gives you
a great boost in life business wise, they make you more employable, save you
time and money, help you avoid being cheated etc.
Life Management and
Organization Skills
These include keeping your finances organized, time
management, knowing how to live within your means, knowing how to ask for things
you want, knowing how to say ‘no’ to things outside your plan or budget and how
to compromise when necessary, being able to manage your expenses and avoid
overspending etc. Until you master these particular skills, your life will
continue to control you rather than you being in control of your
life.
General Conscientiousness This is basically being aware of
your surroundings, being able to recognize and avoid potentially dangerous
situations, being socially responsible and avoiding things like driving while
drunk, being s*xually responsible and just generally being responsible and being
prepared for emergency situations.
