Why supercharging your skills is the best decision for a Youth?

Today’s International Youth Day and this day serve as a reminder for one and all to look into the needs of the Youth. Also, what is of bigger importance is for the ‘Youth’ to look into their current state to see if they have what it takes to be ready to face the impending future!

Let me start by asking a few questions -

Why should their needs be looked into??

Why ‘skills’ are being given so much importance?

Why is the need to look into the present?

Why are the foundational skills a lot more important than what’s really trending?

Well, if I go deeper into these and many such questions that I keep encountering – the aspect that comes loud and clear is to build clarity and support the Youth on what’s important for them.

Should it be what the herd mentality says i.e., go where the water is flowing or should it be to look within and build a base for yourself to ensure that you adjust in any shape and form as you are ready to take bigger leaps in your career?

On this day of significance, the thoughts that connect to me the most are the skills of developing yourself and the skills of service i.e., looking beyond yourself.

How should this be done?

Does this address all the questions raised above?

Let’s go deeper...

A Youth or a Young Working Professional needs to aim at developing their soft skills since hard skills are relatively easier to grasp, learn and improve upon.

Why do I say that?

As per research, over 80% of the Urban Employers believe that they would be happy to teach the skills relevant for work however they are unable to teach the aspects that people should have learned before entering into their career.

The India Skills Report 2021 aptly talks about the average age of our country which stands at 26.8 years. This is indeed the much spoken about ‘Demographic Dividend’ and just to share most of the developed countries have leveraged on this dividend in their early years to move into the developed state that they are now. ??

So, what are some of those aspects that can set a person apart not just from others but also their own self in relation to the past?

Collaboration – The need for this was always there however pandemic has taken this to a whole new level.

Learning Attitude – The world is evolving much faster than we can even imagine. This is an attitude to unlearn and re-learn on the go. Thus, the concept of Self-learning is evolving and it will take a bigger leap in the years to come.

Critical Thinking – The ability to deal with complex problems for which there is no past process or even if it is available…probability is that it needs to be re-looked from newer perspectives. The demand for this skill is at an all-time high since workplaces are becoming innovative and creative in their approaches and pandemic has a lot to contribute on that front.

Leadership Skills – Today, one need not join full-time work to learn and imbibe the associated skills. It has become much simpler to work selflessly in an NGO/Social organization/Youth centric organization that allows youngsters to lead people in real-time.

Communication – It is beyond just speaking in English. It is about being Multi-lingual and developing the ability to express and communicating with each other. There are so many facets to this from verbal to non-verbal and not to forget listening skills are one of the most needed ones.

Discipline – The aspect of Self-discipline is like an all-encompassing one since it also includes the areas of punctuality and time management.

Creativity – Thinking out of the box is always heard as a statement however how many times it is practiced in reality. A lot of times, the issue is to realize that one is already creative. The need today is to start exploring ways and means to both identify as well as be creative in our approaches to situations, challenges, and engagements. ?

Empathy - The ability to relate and understand others for the situation that they are in. For anyone, who has ever been associated with social or community, services - this is an automatic output that one receives for the commitment and dedication they show towards this area.

Mindset – If the mindset is agile enough, then crises will only appear to be opportunities. This is the perspective that one needs to adapt to thrive in this new world. ?

What has been taught in the education system so far is going to change radically and the seed for that bigger change has already been sown.

Let me quote Robin Sharma who said - One of the most important of all personal leadership skills is self-awareness

While this quote is speaking about self-awareness, the entire aspect of knowing yourself is the starting point to what follows in your journey!?

What do you think? Comment below