Irrespective of your field, career path, your geographical diversity or culture, these 5 skills WILL help you; and sooner you conquer them, better you get at it over time.
01 Learn to Communicate Well
Many people think good communication is equal to having a good command on any language. This is not true. Good communication is the ability to express yourself, the way you want, by expressions, by body language, by hand gestures and finally by choice of words. If you have managed to express something with the same emotion as you feel, you are very good in communication. Making sure the other person or group of people are able to understand you. English happens to be a globally (well almost) spoken and/or understood language. Once you know how to communicate well, adapting it to any one language is not going to be that difficult.
02 Networking and Building Relationships
Building your network is like an investment, the sooner you start, the better returns it will yield. Participate in the group of your interest / hobby by means of conferences, meet-ups or workshops. Be an active member of this network and start building relationships with people. Your motive to network should always be an opportunity to learn something and give back to the community. The kind of perspective you will gain from peers and people around you, will give you miles and miles of head start.
03 Problem Solving
Start with your own small problems, commit to it and fix it. In an Indian parenting and ecosystem, most parents tend to unknowingly help TOO MUCH to solve your problems, taking away the learning you may have had. Taking ownership of your work, committing to it and solving problems in it one by one, is by far, the best skill any business organisation seek in their employees. This skill alone will super boost your confidence, self esteem and make you feel good about yourself by the sense of achievement.
04 Prioritising & Time Management
Many struggle with this and get away by saying couldn’t find time. Don’t be that person. College can be the best place to learn effective time management when you are juggling between classes, assignments, homework, practicals, taking meals, socialising and all the extra curricular activities. Before time management, learn to understand your priorities of that day, week, month etc and allocate it a proper time slot. Add more structure to your day, organize it a little bit and cherish the wonders this small act of discipline will give you.
05 Learn to fight Procrastination
Procrastination is the act of delaying things. Do you need to see the entire staircase just to take the first step? Learn to overcome procrastination. Make smaller achievable goals at first, motivate yourself, learn to embrace imperfection and improve over time, in multiple iterations.
I am 100% confident, that these 5 skills will make you a better version of yourself and help you succeed in your goals. I know the title of this article says “….before graduation”, but if you already are a working professional, is it really too late?