The term ‘Life Skills’ refers to the skills you need to make the most out of life.
Any skill that is useful in your life can be considered a life skill. University students have an increase in personal responsibility and a lot less external structure.
Life skills are ablities for adaptive and positive behavior that enables human to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of life. Every University student needs these life skills in order to develop themselves and the following are some essential life skills that can help students.
1. Communication and interpersonal skills: This broadly describes the skills needed to get on and work with other people, and particularly to transfer and receive messages either in writing or verbally.
2. Decison-making and problem-solving: This describes the skills required to understand problems, find solutions to them, alone or with others, and then take action to address them.
3. Creative thinking and critical thinking: This describes the ability to think in different and unusual ways about problems, and find new solutions, or generate new ideas, coupled with the ability to assess information carefully and understand its relevance.
4. Self- awareness and empathy: They are two key parts of emotional intelligence. They describe understanding yourself and being able to feel for other people as if their experiences were happening to you.
5. Assertiveness and equanimity, or self control: These describe the skills needed to stand up for yourself and other people, and remain calm even in the face of considerable provocation.
6. Resilience and ability to cope with problems: These describe the ability to recover from setbacks, and treat them as opportunities to learn, or simply experiences.
7. Time management: prepare weekly schedule that includes time in class, studying, activities, work, meals. Being a university student is like having a full time job.
8. Stress management: Regular exercise, adequate rest, good nutrition,prayer and meditation are all suggested ways of enagaging in self care that reduces stress.
9.Money management: It’s important to have experience in independently handling money, balancing a check book, using an ATM, reading a bank statement and learning to make responsible decisions about living on a budget.
10. Displaying honesty, intergrity and perseverance: Learning to corporate personal values and ethics into every aspect of life is a significant part of personal growth during University experience. Part of the path of intergrity is learning how to hang in there and stay committed to goals even when situations are challenging.
It might be difficult being a University student and even extra difficult being a Nigerian University student but having these skills are elevating. What did we miss? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.
