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Life skills

The term ‘Life Skills’ refers to the skills you need to make the most out of life.

Any skill that is useful in your life can be considered a life skill. Tying your shoe laces,
swimming, driving a car and using a computer are, for most people, useful life skills. Broadly
speaking, the term ‘life skills’ is usually used for any of the skills needed to deal well and
effectively with the challenges of life.

It should therefore be clear that everyone will potentially have a different list of the skills they
consider most essential in life, and those that they consider unnecessary. Someone living in a
remote rural community might put driving a car high on their list of essential skills. A Londoner
or New Yorker, however, would probably rank that pretty low.

What Are Social Interaction Skills?

Well-developed social interaction skills are critical for developing positive self-esteem,
building relationships, and ultimately for acceptance into society. To communicate effectively
with others, establish friendships, positive social relationships, and be perceived as a likable
human being, a person must demonstrate good social skills.

Inherent in social interaction are the verbal or signed expressive and receptive language skills
required to carry on a conversation. Understanding and using nonverbal communication
skills—the nuances of facial expressions and body language—are also critical social skills used
to convey different emotions and feelings.

Social interaction skills are essential for engaging with others; yet, much of the content in this
area is typically learned through casual observation of others. Because children who are blind
or visually impaired are unable to casually observe how others interact and engage socially,
they need systematic and purposeful instruction in order to learn social skills.

There are distinct advantages to having well developed social skills.

1. More and Better Relationships

Identifying well with individuals leads to more relationships and, at times, friendships. By
developing your social skills, you become more charismatic, a desirable trait. People are more
interested in charismatic people as charismatic people are (or at least appear to be) more
interested in them. Most people know you cannot advance far in life without strong
interpersonal relationships. Focusing on relationships will help you get a job, get promoted
and make new friends. Well-honed social skills can increase your happiness and satisfaction
and give you a better outlook on life. More relationships can also help to reduce the negative
effects of stress and boost your self-esteem.
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2. Better Communication

Relating with people and being able to work in large groups naturally develops one's
communication skills. After all, you cannot have great social skills without good
communication skills and being able to convey one's thoughts and ideas may be the single
most important skill that you can develop in life..

3. Greater Efficiency

If you are good with people, you can more easily avoid being with the people you do not like
as much as others. Some people dread social interactions because they do not wish to spend
time with individuals who do not have similar interests and viewpoints. It is a lot easier to
attend a meeting at work or a party in your personal life if you know at least some of the
people who will be there.

If you are in a social situation and do not want to spend time with 'John' because you don't
like him or he cannot help you with a particular issue, a good set of social skills will allow you
to politely convey that you need to spend time with other people at the get together.

4. Advancing Career Prospects

Most worthwhile jobs have a 'people component' and the most lucrative positions often
involve a large amount of time spent interacting with employees, media and colleagues.

It is rare that an individual can remain isolated in their office and still excel in their job. Most
organisations are looking for individuals with a particular, tactical, skill set: the ability to work
well in a team and to influence and motivate people to get things done.

5. Increased Overall Happiness

Getting along and understanding people will help to open many personal and career-related
doors. Having the confidence to start a conversation at a work-related conference may lead
to a new job offer with a higher salary. A smile and 'hello' in a social situation may lead to a
friendship being formed.

Ways To Improve Social Skills

1. Behave Like a Social Person

You can behave like a more social creature, even if you don’t feel like it. Don’t allow anxiety
to hold you back. Make the decision to talk to new people and to enter into conversations
even when you’re feeling nervous about it. Over time, it will get easier and you’ll quickly start
improving your social skills.
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2. Start Small if Necessary

If going to a party or spending time in a crowd seems overwhelming, start small. Go into the
grocery store and say, “Thank you,” to the clerk or go to a restaurant and order your food.
Practice making small talk gradually.

3. Ask Open-Ended Questions

If you want the attention off you in a conversation, get familiar with open-ended questions.
Encourage others to talk so you won’t have to make the idle chit-chat. Ask questions that
require more than a yes or no answer and you may open the door to invite the other person
to keep the conversation going.

4. Encourage Others to Talk About Themselves

Most people really enjoy talking about themselves. Ask a question about a person’s career,
hobbies, or family. Show you’re interested in hearing what is being said.

5. Create Goals for Yourself

Establish some small goals for yourself. Perhaps you want to practice one particular skill or
maybe you want to start attending a social activity in your community. Establish a goal and
begin to work on strategies that will improve your social life.

6. Offer Compliments Generously

Compliments can be a great way to open the door to a conversation. Offer a co-worker a
compliment on a presentation he gave at a meeting or compliment your neighbor on his new
car.

7.Practice Good Manners

Good manners go a long way in improving social skills. Practice being polite, showing
gratitude, and using good table manners.

8. Pay Attention to Your Body Language

Non-verbal communication is very important. Pay attention to the type of body language you
use. Try to appear relaxed, make appropriate amounts of eye contact, and appear open to
conversation.

Self-awareness skills, as the term indicates, refer to one’s ability to be aware of or to recognize
his emotions, behaviors, beliefs, motivations and other characteristics such as strengths and
weaknesses, such that it enables him to identify and understand himself as a separate entity.

Having self-awareness skills not only enables you to understand your own personality but also
helps you apprehend other people, their perceptions about you, and your response to their
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actions. Apart from enabling you to understand, it also helps you to change your own
thoughts and interpretations in an effort to alter some unwarranted emotions.

Why is self-awareness important

• Developing self-awareness skills is important for learning about yourself and

discovering your true capabilities, which may be vital for a successful career. Following
are some of the most significant implications of self-awareness skills:
• Improves emotional intelligence. Developing self-awareness skills is the key to
developing emotional intelligence as a skill. The self-analysis that you conduct will help
you be aware of your own values which, if touched by any event or action, will
generate certain emotional responses. When you have a better understanding of the
problem, you can take more effective actions to address it.
• Gives a direction to your efforts. Knowing your strengths enables you to utilize them
more effectively and in appropriate situations. Whereas, knowing your weakness
helps you figure out when you need to draw on the strengths of others. Also,
acknowledging our weaknesses prevents us from reacting inappropriately at any point
in time and from making disastrous decisions.

How to improve self-awareness skills

• Knowing the importance of self-awareness skills for a successful career, you can try to
improve them in the following ways:
• Take personality tests. Taking some free or paid online personality tests will give you
a deeper insight into the person that you really are and will help you understand your
own behaviours better. Some of these may also give you recommendation about the
changes you can make in order to improve your performance at work.
• Write a journal. That’s right. Keep a track of all your feelings and thoughts regarding
day to day experiences. This process can be very enlightening since it makes you think
about your true thoughts and feelings.
• Ask for feedback actively. Always encourage honest suggestions and feedback from
your friends, family, colleagues, as well as your boss. It makes you aware of how others
perceive you. Listening to all such feedback and correcting yourself is very important.
Otherwise, you will be responsible for letting your weaknesses limit how far you can
take yourself.