“Make the most out of life- Life skills”

There are some skills inlife that everyone seems to just know. But, at what point did they learn how to do that? An Education should involve not only theoretical learning but should also encourage learning something that may help individuals in other aspects of life too like handling stress situations, handling relationships and so many other social and mental dilemmas .It should involve learning life skills that a person will carry with them lifelong in order to navigate relationships and careers and be a well – rounded, successful person.

WHO in 1993 Defined life skills as “the abilities for adaptive and positive behavior that enable individuals to deal effectively with demands and challenges of everyday life”.

UNICEF defines life skills as “a behavior change or behavior development approach designed to address a balance of three areas: knowledge, attitude, and skills”.

Life skills are one of the most important skills a person should learn. They are usually associated with managing and living a better quality of life. They help us to accomplish our ambitions and live to our full potential.

   Major life skills:

1.       Self-awareness which includes our recognition of ourselves, of our character, of our strengths and weaknesses, desires and dislikes.

2.       Decision making Abilities  to assess available options.

3.       Critical thinking is an ability to analyze information and experiences in an objective manner. 

4.       Creative thinking contributes to both decision making and problem solving by enabling us to explore the available alternatives and various consequences of our actions or non-action.

5.       Problem solving enables us to deal constructively with problems in our lives. Significant problems that are left unresolved can cause mental stress and give rise to accompanying physical strain.

6.       Interpersonal relationship skills help us to relate in positive ways with the people we interact with. This may mean being able to make and keep friendly relationships, which can be of great importance to our mental and social well being.

7.       Empathy is the ability to imagine what life is like for another person, even in a situation that we may not be familiar with.

8.       Effective communication means that we are able to express ourselves, both verbally and non-verbally, in ways that are appropriate to our cultures and situations.

9.       Managing feelings and emotions includes skills for increasing internal locus of control for managing emotions, anger and stress.
          
        Prepared By-
        Prof. Isha Jaiswal