There are plenty of skills available in the market today. However, not all skills are created equal. Some are significantly more important than the rest when it comes to practical, real-world usage and value. Now, it’s impossible to be great at absolutely everything. You can be anything you want, but not everything. That’s why we have compiled some of the most valuable skill sets you should have and acquire in order to thrive in life.
1. Financial Intelligence
This is a no brainer. You need to have control over your own finances or you’ll suffer a great consequence from it. That’s why financial management is one of the most important skillsets you should have.
There are three things you want to pay attention to:
- How you make your money
- How you manage your money
- How you spend your money
- How you multiply your money
Once you have awareness over these three, you can start handling them properly. It’s important to have multiple streams of income but it’s also important to know how to manage your money properly. It’s not just about how much money you make, it’s also about how much money you keep.
2. Business
Next in the list is business. You don’t need to be an expert on it, but you need to at least understand the basic on how a business function. The purpose of a business is to make sales and profits. What you need to learn now is how you can fulfill that exact purpose. Figure out the steps to open a business.
How to get a loan, the structure of your kind of business and the methods of revenue. You also want to pay attention to taxes and all the legal aspect of it. This is not something you can do alone, but you need to understand at least the basic of everything it takes to start a business.
3. Marketing
Marketing is not just about business. It can also be your own personal branding and how you carry yourself. Now, in a business, sales is the end goal while marketing is the way to reach that goal. You may have a great product, ideas or talent.
However, if you don’t know how to market yourself and your business and get people to know you, it’s useless. Marketing is a valuable skill set because it helps you to reach your goal and get people to know you at the same time.
4. Public Speaking
You should never underestimate the power of words and ideas. Public speaking is a highly valuable skill because it allows you to express your ideas and opinions to the public. It has the ability to influence others and shape society.
A few key aspects to a good public speaking is confidence, clarity and credibility. If you are able to practice public speaking and master it, you are one step away into becoming unstoppable.
5. Creative Skills
The world loves creative people. Now, creativity comes in different shapes and form. Being able to play musical instrument, creating art pieces or writing a book is part of creativity.
Creativity is also the mother of invention. Having abilities such as graphic and interior design is also fantastic. These are some of the best paying skills available on the market right now.
6. Languages
You know we love languages. There are plenty of reasons why you should learn a new language and we highly recommend you to pick up a new language as it’s one of the most valuable skill you can have.
7. Cooking
We need food to live. Yes, we are living in a fortunate era of technology when you can just order food anywhere you want. However, It’s still important to know how to cook your own meal.
Learn about different types of ingredients and food, try out recipes and see what you like and don’t. You don’t have to be a master chef, but you need to at least know how to utilize ingredients just in case.
8. Psychology
The ability to read people and understand basic psychology is essential. Every day, we are dealing with people and the reality is, not everyone’s going to have the best intention for you and you should figure it out before they manipulate you.
Learning about psychology won’t just save you from people with malicious intent, it will also help you to get what you want and help to understand others.
9. Negotiation
Negotiation can seem scary at first, but it’s essential to learn. Almost everything is negotiable and if you know how to properly negotiate and get things to work in your advantage or create a win-win solution, success is almost guaranteed to be yours.
Two books we recommend you to read to learn how to negotiate is ‘Everything is Negotiable’ by Gavin Kennedy and ‘Never Split the Difference’ by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz.
10. Communication
A lot of the things we mentioned earlier is also a part of communication. Humans are social creatures and we need to communicate with others on a daily basis. We already know that there are two forms of communication, verbal and non-verbal. While we pay so much attention on our verbal communication skills, we may neglect the non-verbal communication.
Learn how to master both your verbal and non-verbal communication skills.
Two books we recommend for it is “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” by Dale Carneige, Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell and ‘Influence, the Psychology of Persuasion’ by Robert B. Cialdini.
Bonus Skill: Seduction
When you hear the word seduction, you’re probably thinking about romance and lust. However, seduction goes beyond the dating and sex realm. Seduction is also applicable in daily life. If you’re in any kind of leadership position or work in the limelight, you need to be able to seduce others. We cannot recommend any book better than ‘The Art of Seduction’ by Robert Greene for this topic.
Conclusion
Those were some of the most important skill sets you should have for yourself. You don’t need to master absolutely everything, but you need to know at least the basic of them.
