Samuel Okoruwa
Like me, at some point, you may have thought school was going to show you how to make money, be successful and conquer the world. Well, this is certainly not the way it goes. Unfortunately, a lot of people find that their education really begins after graduating from school and they often have to learn the hard way.
There are a good number of skills we don’t learn in school that are vital to our success. So what are these skills? Let’s get to it, shall we?
How To Make Friends And Network
From cashiers to CEOs to salesmen, people in different spheres of life have to relate with people on a daily basis. Being able to win friends and network is such a powerful skill, that it can get people far in life even if they don’t get the best grades in school. And yet, it is amazing how little people know about this essential skill.
Although a lot of people believe that some people are naturally born with this skill while others aren’t, the fact is that social skills can actually be studied. Yes! you can learn how to network with people, handle your relationships better, reach out to influencers in your industry, and stand boldly in front of an audience and speak. It takes practice but you can acquire this skill.
How To Find Your Passion
While school typically gives us a glimpse of the careers out there and their value in the real world, they never really teach you how to find your passion and choose a career you will love. A large majority of students entering the university have absolutely no idea what they want to do for the rest of their lives. As a result, they end up choosing careers just for the money or accept whatever their parents or schools recommend to them. The problem with this is that most people find out too late that they have no passion for the careers they’ve chosen and they end up feeling stuck.
If schools teach students about self awareness, they will have less difficulty choosing the careers that suit them. Fortunately, self awareness is a trait that you can develop on your own. The best way to learn how to be self aware is to try new things, experience the world for yourself and don’t limit yourself.
How To Manage Your Time
Unfortunately, knowing how to be productive and get things done is a skill that the school system has failed to teach so we have to learn it ourselves.
A lot of people find that they’ve been working all day but wonder what they’ve accomplished at the end of it. This all comes down to time management, blocking out distractions, and focusing on the task in front of you.
If you know how to be productive, you will able to accomplish a lot in less time than most people. It is a skill that everyone should have.
How To Market And Convince People
Before you say: “Wait, but I’m not in the marketing field!” hear me out. Even if you’re not in marketing, you still have to apply basic marketing skills to several aspects of your life. Remember the last time you had to convince your colleagues to see a particular movie? Or you needed an urgent favour from someone? Or you wanted to share an idea at work? All these situations require some form of marketing.
How To Think Independently
Think about it. In most schools, students are required to arrive at school at almost the same time, greet their teachers in the same manner, go for breaks at the same time everyday. While all these are not necessarily bad, they just teach you how to be obedient and thinks like others.
Yes! being obedient to higher authority is a good trait. But sometimes, people have to break the rules (I’m not saying commit crimes) and think independently in order to get far in life. If you look into the lives of a lot of successful people from Bill Gates to Mark Zuckerberg, you would find that they had to stop conforming to the rules in order to achieve the level of success they have achieved today.
Which other skills do you think should be taught in school? Tell us in the comment section below.
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