Published: 11:19 am February 18, 2022 | Updated: 3:56 pm April 11, 2022
The world is becoming increasingly fast paced. That’s why it’s important for young individuals like you to develop specific skills as early as possible. These are skills that will prove to be beneficial as you build your careers and improve your competitive edge in the real world.
Some of today’s professionals agree that these are the top 5 soft skills they wish they learned in high school. Read on and find out what skills you may still be missing.
- 1. Good Communication Skills
In college, you will no longer be dealing with matching type or multiple-choice questions. Of course, the same is true when you enter the work environment. You may be expected to conduct research, write correspondences and reports, prepare a presentation for a client meeting, or facilitate a discussion among stakeholders, and even more. Aside from speaking fluently, you must also be able to listen effectively. You must know how to express yourself clearly and have the confidence when communicating with others. Confidence can be seen through your body language, eye contact, tone of voice, and language proficiency.
- 2. Being a Team Player
Regardless if you are an extrovert or introvert, expect that you will work with a team at some point. Even in high school you are already experiencing working within a group. This will continue when you move to college, start your own business, or work for companies. Everyone knows that a good teamwork creates great results. You will meet and need to work with people who may share or oppose your opinions. Every senior high school graduate must learn how to work in a team by collaborating, managing conflict, and harmonizing with others. A good team player can build a relationship with their team where there is a mutual feeling of dependability.
- 3. Empathy
This trait has become more valuable today especially with the ongoing pandemic. Empathy means being considerate and understanding other people’s feelings and situation. This can be achieved, for instance, by imagining yourself in the shoes of others. Empathy is key to developing compassion. Remember that similar experiences are dealt by every person differently. An exam may be easier or more difficult for you than for others. A break-up that may be devastating for your friend may seem irrational for you. When you possess empathy and compassion, people may feel more comfortable being around you and may even return the same act of kindness.
- 4. Leadership
Having the ability to engage with people, motivate and influence them, and make sound decisions can set you up to succeed in the path you wish to pursue. Developing qualities of a good leader comes handy as you tackle challenges in your business or the company you will be working for. It doesn’t matter how big or small is the team you’re working with, neither is it important what level you are in your career. Leadership is the ability to perform and achieve personal and collective goals. At an early age, you should invest in building your confidence and the ownership of your learning experience so that when the time calls for you to lead, you can.
- 5. Time Management
School life exposed you to academic deadlines and extra-curricular activities. This experience is teaching you how to manage your time and priorities well. In the real world, having multiple tasks at the same time with tight deadlines is the way of life which can be overwhelming. Prepare yourself by learning how to prioritize tasks and to plan your daily or weekly activities to ensure that you meet, if not, beat the deadlines with the best quality of work possible. One trick in time management not often used is saying “No”. Learning to juggle several responsibilities and delivering are important but know that you can also say “No”. Set your priorities and don’t compromise your productivity, the quality of your work, and of course, yourself.
How can you acquire these skills?
The K to 12 curricula of the Department of Education (DepEd) do not only aim to develop the students’ mastery in technical subjects but also gives special focus on building the 21st century skills in this global competitive market. The Performance Tasks or PETA, when done in groups, allow students to develop collaboration and management skills by developing their sense of responsibility to finish the task on time, and making time for group meetings and accomplishing the task despite the busy schedule. It also allows students to enhance their communication skills and practice empathy as it enables them to build mutual understanding and judgment amid the diversity of skills and views among the team members.
FEU Academy also offers an online learning program that builds student mastery in the English language through the English Language Fundamentals Learning Acceleration Program (LAP). It helps students, from any grade level, boost their confidence in both verbal and written communication. For as low as Php 500 per month, the student gains access to this Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning solution that personalizes the modules based on the set of skills the student needs to master. By the time you complete the program, you have acquired the skills needed for you to write an impressive email correspondence, project proposal, and ace your pitch presentation with your English communication skills.
You can book a free demo at FEU Academy via https://bit.ly/feuacademy-freedemo. The online course is in a monthly subscription basis and done online so you can learn at your own pace, in your own time and your own place. Unleash you #LearningPower at FEU Academy.
