5 Skill sets You Must Master

vemuda.com - Have a look in your life’s toolkit. Which skills do you have? Which ones are you proud of? How many did you pick up in school and how many more did life teach you? Every adult is required to pick up essential skills that will aid their life. 

These skills could include cooking, cleaning, financial literacy and so much more. While many may have mastered these skills, there is still a vast majority of people who have not properly trained themselves.

Source: unsplash.com by Headway

The skills outlined today cover a broad  spectrum. These range from personal, social and financial capabilities. It is in everyone’s  best interest to adopt and master these skillsets.  

The following insights will encourage you to  reflect on the lessons you’ve learned thus far and determine what more you can acquire to help improve your quality of life.

On this blog, my goal is to help you take your game to the next level. Now, without any further ado, let’s begin.

1. Setting goals and getting out of your comfort zone for them

Change is difficult. Human beings are known as creatures of habit who yearn to feel comfortable and safe. This is why most of us get stuck in what is called ‘the comfort zone’. The dictionary describes the comfort zone as a place where ‘you feel comfortable and your abilities are not being tested’. 

Another definition states it as a place where ‘you don’t have to do anything new or different’. When you’re in this zone, everything feel secure and dandy. You know that saying ‘why change something if it’s not broken?’ This is how many of us feel when we’re in the comfort zone.

It feels like almost everything around is geared towards keeping us in this superficially safe territory. Think of social media as an example: you have the uttermost control of who you can interact with and what they can see about you. It’s a space where you can feel safe; you are able to predict exactly what happens next.

You curate this comforting allure of security. The harsh truth is that in order to grow, one needs to get out of the comfort zone, and it can be very challenging. Getting out of the comfort zone will tests the level of courage you have, how resilient you can be, and it also affects your self-esteem for better or for worse.

If you want to grow, whether it be personally or professionally, you have to ‘get more comfortable with feeling uncomfortable’. Dream big! What’s stopping you? Dream a dream so big that it gives your stomach butterflies! A dream that makes you feel giddy inside. A dream starts with making some adjustments to your usual routine and setting attainable goals.  

However, before you jump right into it, you  should appropriately analyse your current levels of comfort. Make a list of your usual habits and determine how you can tackle certain situations.  

Shine light on habits, people and even  thought patterns which are a waste of time. Deal with these time-wasters no matter how uncomfortable the process may be. Nothing screams ‘courage’ like setting big goals.  

The very idea of setting big, challenging,  exciting goals is so overwhelming that most quit even before they put anything into action. The thought itself, of changing, scares them. Everyone wants to better themselves but not everyone has the courage to face their shortcomings.  

You are not meant to settle for a mediocre life  just because you’re comfortable. Most of the time, the things we want are within reach - you only need to be courageous and take a leap of faith.

You are absolutely capable of training your mind into wanting better for yourself. When you have set your eyes on the goal, it’s surprising how easy you can break past your old habits and succeed past boundaries.  Life starts at the end of your comfort zone. 

2. Managing money for freedom – not material things

Ask almost anyone you know what their main goal in life is. I can guarantee that they’ll reply with “money, money, money!” Who doesn’t? here’s the strange thing: although this goal is so common, most of us don’t actually know how to properly  manage our money at all.

Many people will say they want money to buy expensive luxury brands and designer logos. There is nothing wrong with wanting to spend your hard-earned money on these  things, but you would be more wise to invest your money and acquire assets.

Think about this: so many people who have millions and millions still manage to dig themselves into debt. Many superstar athletes burn through their money quicker than they make it. They blow it on drugs and other frivolous endeavors.

Financial freedom means different things to  different people. For some it means meeting their monthly financial commitments with some extra money to invest. For others it may mean being able to quit their 9-5 and start their own business or simply being able to retire before 50.

I can say with full certainty that you would not be happy if you worked two jobs and still couldn’t make enough to eat one decent meal. Possessing luxuries brings happiness, but that doesn’t last forever.

A research conducted by Harvard University stated that luxury items, no matter how much you want them, lose their attractiveness in the long run. Just like celebrities who hit rock bottom, you will end up broke if you keep satisfying mindless expense cravings.

Answer honestly: how many times have you asked yourself ‘I can’t afford this’? Don’t you think you’d be more at ease if you could pursue whatever career you wanted instead of working a dead-end job just because you have to pay bills?

With all this in mind, you have to remember how important your mindset towards money is. You have to start  thinking positively about it. Invest in yourself and your growth instead of material goods. These money habits will lead to financial freedom. 

3. Basic home stuff: cooking, home repairs and first-aid

If you’re one of the lucky ones who had people clean up after you, firstly, I’m envious, but more importantly, you unfortunately missed out on learning some important day-to-day skills.  

Cleaning, although not a glamourous task, is one of vital importance. Having the ability to properly clean up after yourself is an asset.  

Aside from saving money (because you  won’t have to outsource these tasks), you could also gain some brownie points by being of service to others. Along with cleaning, knowing how to successfully preform first-aid tasks can also come in handy.

The same goes for being able to repair small things around the house like swapping out a fused light bulb with a fresh one.

Ever heard the phrase ‘the way to a man’s  heart is through the stomach’? Well trust me when I say that this is 100% true! While on one hand cooking can be seen as a survival skill, it’s also a great way to show someone your love.

Whether it’s knowing how to properly poach an egg or being able to cook a gourmet 5 course dinner, cooking is a great skill to have. I mean, imagine if you were the last person on this earth with all the supplies you needed but you didn’t have the skill… that’d be one hell of a story.

We live in the age of convenience. Type into YouTube any dish you’d like to cook and voila! You’ll be able to master the dish in less than a day.

There are so many small skills that many take  for granted. Having these skills under your belt, (driving is another example), makes life so much easier and convenient for you.

4. Time-management

Too often I see people ‘act busy’ or hear  them use the ‘sorry I couldn’t do it. I was too busy’ excuse. I don’t think they realise that this loosely translates to ‘sorry, I am too disorganized to get everything done. I don’t know how to set my priorities straight. I. Am. Lazy’.

All of us have the same 24 hours in a day.  However, only a small percentage of us actually manage to make the most out of our days. From the outside looking in, it may seem like those people have some superpower to slow down time. And while  that does sound super cool, the truth is that they have mastered the art of time management.

Here are some tips you can use to also maximise your time. In order to save time throughout the day, you first have to analyse what you usually spend your time doing and how long certain tasks take you. Observe how long it takes to do mundane things like commuting to work or settling into the office in the morning. Even note how long it takes to grab lunch and eat it. Use a notebook or your smartphone to keep track.

Set time limits for heavy-duty  tasks. Once the time is up, move onto the next thing on your list. When you  know you have a time limit to complete a task, you may be more likely to go full speed ahead on your task; you might finish something that usually  takes you 90 minutes, in just half an hour.

Another important tip is to limit the time wasted on ‘time bandits’. These are people who disrupt your schedule with meaningless chit-chat. Allocate this time to ‘thinking time’. This is exactly what it sounds like: time that should be spent focusing on your thoughts. 

Journal about them. Hold on to the  productive thoughts, business ideas for example. Let go of what doesn’t serve you. If your thoughts aren’t elevating you, drop them.

Use ignorance to your advantage. Ignore everything that is irrelevant, distracting and even negative. Selective ignore is bliss. Time management is based on the discernment of information flow. 

5. Continuous self-improvement

Improving your knowledge, status or character with your own efforts is known as self-improvement. This is an amazing skill to have as it pushes you to constantly better yourself in every facet of your life.

A human psychology research done by Andreas Steimer and Andre Mata on personality showed that people believe they can change their weaknesses more than their strengths.  

Keep this in mind and observe that people expect their strengths to remain constant while they put all of their energy focusing on their weaknesses. Due to this, many stop their self-improvement journey because of the feeling of helplessness.

If you’re serious about improving yourself, then the first step is to be brutally honest with yourself and know where you stand. Many can’t handle this.

Self-improvement is about continuous growth; the main principle is to be better than who you were yesterday. You can use the skill of self-analysis to build your organizational skills, management skills, leadership skills and so on. By focusing on the new version of yourself who has all these skills, you can build new, useful habits and completely turn your life around.

Look at every day and every choice you  make is an opportunity to work on yourself. If you intend to establish positive routines in your life, you have to work towards your goals one step at a time. Focus on what is important to you. Don’t waste your time  worrying about how long it will take you; enjoy the process and fall in love with the new version of yourself you are becoming every minute.

Well guys, that’s all I have for you today.  Thank you so much for reading today’s post. With that said, have a great day, and see you all in the next one.