Life skills are essentially those abilities that help promote mental well-being and competence in

young people as they face the realities of life. Most development professionals agree that life

skills are generally applied in the context of health and social events. They can be utilized in

many content areas: prevention of drug use, sexual violence, teenage pregnancy, HIV/AIDS

prevention and suicide prevention. In short, life skills empower young people to take positive

action to protect them and promote health and positive social relationships. Here there is a story

where Stella was pledged her to a local businessman who pays her school fees. The businessman

now wants Stella to drop out of school so that he can marry her. She wants to continue with her

education. This essay seeks to analyses any three life skills that she could apply in order to

manage her situation.

Life skills can be defined as “a behavior change or behavior development approach designed to

address a balance of three areas: knowledge, attitude and skills” (Griffins, 2015). According to

Anjali (2018) Life skills are defined as “a group of psychosocial competencies and interpersonal

skills that help people make informed decisions, solve problems, think critically and creatively,

communicate effectively, build healthy relationships, empathize with others, and cope with and

manage their lives in a healthy and productive manner. Therefore, Life skills are abilities for

adaptive and positive behavior that enable humans to deal effectively with the demands and

challenges of life.

According to Ramesht and Farshad (2006), Pledging refers to an agreement on the basis of which

a pledgor lodges its property (the pledge) with the creditor in security for the payment of its own

obligation or that of another person, company or institution (the principal debt). Pledging is an

undertaking by which the pledger gives specified property (the pledge) to the creditor as security

for the fulfilment of his/her own or another person's obligation. Therefore pledge is something

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done for the purpose of creating security for repayment of debt, engagement or fulfilment of a

promise.

To begin with, Decision-making skill is a life skill which can be applied to manage Stella’s

situation. Decision making involves logical steps in choosing the best alternatives based on a

particular situation. It is a course of action chosen from a number of possible alternatives. To

decide something means to make a choice or come to a conclusion (UNICEF, 2012). A good

decision would be one whose outcome would be positive of beneficial. Stella must be skilled at

evaluating the future consequences of their present actions and the actions of others. They need

to be able to determine alternative solutions and to analyze the influence of their own values and

the values of those around them. Information gathering is the process

of collecting information about something. In order to manage her situation effectively Stella

should have as much information about the matter. She is under the legal marriage age and

therefore is communicate with the right people she can be protected. Stella should gather

information on who she should talk to about her situation. The people Stella could talk to include

responsible authorities such as the Zimbabwe Republic Police and other family members who do

not share the same view as her parents.

In addition, Effective Communication skill can be also applied by Stella to manage her situation.
Communication is the process of transmitting massages and sharing knowledge, facts, thouts,
feelings and ideas. Communication includes verbal and non-verbal communication, active
listening, and the ability to express feelings and give feedback (Anjali, 2018). To communicate,
we need a sender, receiver, a medium and massage. Stella as a sender can send her situation to
different organization or platforms which protect and provide good advice about human rights
for example police, church elders or radio stations gathering ideas, using cell phone as a medium.
Development of this skill set enables the adolescent to be accepted in society. These skills result
in the acceptance of social norms that provide the foundation for adult social behavior.

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Communication is one of the essential social skills required for any individual to survive.
Effectively communicating ensures that you not only convey your message to someone but also
let them know about your feelings and emotions. Stella is now facing a very big challenge of
dropping out from school, if not solved before it’s too early it might affect her future life.
According to Vranda and Pavo (2011) argues that successfully effective communication can
deepen relations on personal life or professional life. Developing effective communication skills
can help Stella avoid conflicts compromise, and help better in decision making. This skill allows
her to share her situation with different people.

More so, another life skill which can be applied to manage Stella’s situation is self-management
skill. Self-management skill refers to skills to increase the internal locus of control, so that the
individual believes that they can make a difference in the world and affect change. Self esteem,
self-awareness, self-evaluation skills and the ability to set goals are also part of the more general
category of self-management skills (Plan International, 2011). Anger, grief and anxiety must all
be dealt with, and the individual learns to cope loss or trauma. Stress and time management are
key, as are positive thinking and relaxation techniques. Stella could be suffering emotionally,
with a lot of anger and stress. Stella should be able to deal with the anger she might feel towards
her parents and or the business man not letting her emotions control her decision .With Stella’s
situation Stress and time management are key, otherwise if not managed well her stress could her
to a stroke or even commit suicide. Stella should also be able to manage her time knowing
where to be as time might not be on her side with all the pressure from her parents and the
business men.

In conclusion, developing life skills among adolescents will empower girls to avoid pregnancy
until they reach physical and emotional maturity, develop in both boys and girls responsible and
safe sexual behavior, sensitivity and equity in gender relations, prepare boys and young men to
be responsible fathers and friends, encourage adults, especially parents, to listen and respond to
young people, help young people avoid risks and hardships and involve them in decisions that
affect their lives.

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REFERENCES

Anjali, J. (2018) Effective Communication. Available at https://theinvestorsbook.com/effective-

communication.html [Accessed on 19 March 2022]

Plan International (2019) Adolescent girls in crisis: Voices from Beirut - Final Report. Available

at: https://plan-international.org/publications/adolescent-girls-crisis-beirut. [Accessed on

21 March 2022]

Puspakumara, J. (2011). Effectiveness of life-skills training program in preventing common

issues among adolescents: a community based quasi experimental study (ALST).

Ramesht, M., & Farshad, C. (2006). Study of life skills training in prevention of drug abuse in

students. Iran University of Science and Technology; Persian

Vranda, M., & Rao, M. (2011). Life Skills Education for Young Adolescents and Indian

Experience. Journal of The Indian Academy of Applied Psychology, 37(Special Issue), 9-

15.

UNICEF (2012) Standard National Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Available at :

http://www.unicef.org/lifeskills/index which skills.html [ Accessed on 16 March 2022]

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