What are your top 5 skills?

Not just obtaining a degree but also finding a job after graduation should be considered the end aim of college attendance. Employers want to make sure that you are qualified for the position by ensuring that you have the right degree, but they also need to know whether you have the skill set in order to make a hiring decision.

The following are the top five talents sought for by employers:

Analytical pondering and creative solution-finding

Coordination and cooperation as a team effort

Having a high level of professionalism and work ethic

Competence in both oral and writing communication

Leadership

Why is it Important to Have Critical Thinking?

Thinking critically is an ability that is required for practically every profession. Employees are expected to be able to evaluate evidence, challenge preconceived notions, put ideas to the test, make observations, and draw conclusions based on any kind of data. The ability to think critically is not simply a talent, but also a habit that may be developed to assist in problem-solving.

Critical thinking is something that may be taught in the classroom, but in order to make it a habit of utilizing critical thinking in everyday life, it has to be practiced throughout one's studies as well as during events that take place in the real world. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, critical thinking abilities are the most important factor for an employer to consider when hiring a potential candidate. The majority of companies believe that new graduates are only "fairly skilled" in critical thinking abilities, despite the fact that critical thinking skills are what they value the most and consider to be the most vital. This indicates that just 55.8 percent of graduates are skilled in critical thinking abilities, despite the fact that employers believe critical thinking skills are 99.2 percent vital.

How to Develop Your Capacity for Critical Thinking

Students will begin to apply their critical thinking abilities to their work after they participate in active learning activities. Learning that is active takes place via exposure to a variety of chances. Active learning places students in the very same circumstances that they will face in their future careers, whether it be in the form of a cooperative educational opportunity, an internship, practicums, laboratories, or field experience. The student will not only get experience that is relevant to the real world, but they will also have the opportunity to put their problem-solving abilities to the test and genuinely start developing them.

Engaging students in the material they are studying in class may also help them build their capacity for critical thinking. You will not only build your problem-solving abilities via cooperation with other students and the instructor if you participate actively in class discussions and activities; you will also work on improving your ability to work effectively in teams if you do so.

The Value of Working Together and Communicating Effectively in the Workplace

Despite the fact that working on group projects at college may, at times, seem like a hardship, these tasks can help you become more comfortable working in a team setting in the real world. Work in almost every field requires effective collaboration with others. Teamwork and cooperation are essential components in the operation of any business or organization, whether it is the construction industry, the marketing industry, the medical field, or the entertainment industry.

You may contribute to the expansion and success of the organization or firm you work for by engaging in conversation with and working in conjunction with your coworkers. Everyone in the room brings a unique set of capabilities to the discussion. You could arrive at a better conclusion or idea by collaborating with the other people in your workplace than you would have by thinking about it by yourself. If you enter a new line of work already possessing valuable talents in the area of collaboration, you have a distinct advantage over other candidates for the position. Despite the fact that many businesses believed graduates had room for improvement in their critical thinking abilities, the skills of cooperation and collaboration were talents that the majority of employers were quite pleased with. 97.5 percent of employers feel that cooperation and collaboration are crucial in the workplace; yet, only 77.0 percent believe that graduates are displaying these qualities adequately.

Employers seek graduates with skills in teamwork for a variety of other reasons, including the fact that such skills have the potential to foster unity in the workplace, that teamwork can provide increased productivity, that it promotes work synergy, and that it can provide new opportunities for learning.

Observance of Professional Standards and a Fierce Work Ethic

One thing that all employers have in common is the expectation that their staff members will maintain a high level of professionalism and a solid work ethic. After receiving your degree, your employer will anticipate that you will have a high level of professionalism and a strong work ethic in whatever job or career path you choose to pursue.

Professionalism and a strong commitment to one's job are two qualities that are highly desired by employers in those who want to fill open positions. Your employer will expect you to have strong, professional social skills and a wonderful work ethic when you graduate, and it doesn't matter what career you end up doing after college, you'll have to have them. In the poll of Employer Career Competencies, every single employer evaluated "Professionalism/Work Ethic" as being absolutely necessary, despite the fact that only 42.5% of workers really display these characteristics.

Developing Competences in Professionalism and Work Ethics

You have chances to continue growing your professional abilities during the course of your daily routine, which includes your courses, activities, and job. These abilities may be improved by practicing even the simplest of skills, such as showing up on time and keeping a professional demeanor. They may also be created via activities that need greater time investment.

Among these chores might include completing your job in an effective and timely way after you have finished it. People who have a good work ethic are less inclined to put off completing the job at hand and are more likely to be the first ones to volunteer for additional responsibilities. Employers will be more likely to take you into consideration for promotions, new positions, or other beneficial results if you have a professional attitude and a strong work ethic.

Competence in both Oral and Written Communication

In this day and age of technology, sending a short text to your friends or family may not contain appropriate grammar. As a consequence, this might result in a loss in either your writing or vocal communication abilities. Your ability to communicate effectively may also suffer if you seldom engage in face-to-face interaction with other people. Even while having a strong understanding of digital technology is required for many different types of jobs, people shouldn't rely only on technology as their method of communication. The quality of talks had face-to-face in the workplace suffers as a result of this. These are also areas in which a large number of graduates have room for improvement. Communication skills are seen as crucial by 95.9 percent of employers, yet they feel that only 41.6 percent of candidates effectively exhibit their ability in this area.

Enhancing One's Capabilities in Verbal Communication

One aspect of the situation that may be improved easily is the amount of communication that is taking place. When a communication is reduced to its most basic elements, its likelihood of being correctly received increases. Maintain brevity without sacrificing clarity and focus in your communication.

Engaging your audience is another approach that may be used to improve your oral communication. You can better convey your thoughts and concepts as well as hear fresh ideas, questions, or a variety of feedback if you chat, but you can also improve communication by starting a discussion with other people.

Be a good listener as the last step. Becoming a good listener should be your first and major priority if you want to develop your abilities and communicate more effectively. When you provide responses and remarks that are more well-thought-out, it shows that you have sincerely listened to what other people have to say.

Enhancing One's Capabilities in Written Communication

In many fields of work, being able to communicate effectively orally is not nearly as crucial as being able to do it in writing. Organizing your ideas is a good place to start if you want to enhance your ability to communicate in writing. When you are through writing a piece, you should proofread it to see whether or not it sounds confused, as if you are rambling, or as though the concepts do not flow. If this is the case, you should attempt outlining your work first, to ensure that your ideas are organized in a way that makes sense, and only then should you start writing it down. Your work will come off as more professional as a result of this. It's also possible that the problem is something as basic as a lack of confidence in your work. If you are worried that what you are writing does not sound like quality work, you may use a software such as "readability tool" from Microsoft or "be a listener" to hear how your work sounds and determine whether or not it has mistakes in its structure, among other things.

You will not only become a better colleague but you will also have the potential to become a great leader if you work on developing your communication abilities.

Competences in Leadership

However, the majority of businesses believe that just 33 percent of their workers display leadership traits, despite the fact that 68.6 percent of employers are searching for graduates with strong leadership abilities. You may become an excellent leader in your business by integrating talents in areas such as critical thinking, collaboration, professionalism, and a strong work ethic, as well as communication.

Finding your own unique approach to leadership is the first step. After you have determined what your standards of excellence are and what your strengths are, you can then begin to build your leadership style on the foundation of those characteristics. After you have focused down on your particular leadership style, the next step is to start establishing a culture of practices and behaviors that reinforce themselves. When other people see that you are thrilled and passionate about the job that you are doing, it inspires them to feel the same way about the work that they are doing. The creation of this positive culture will result in an improvement in both production and workflow. If, on the other hand, employees seem unmotivated and uninterested in their job, this will have the opposite effect on the culture of the company.

Developing Capabilities for Leadership

The first step in securing your dream job is to do a thorough assessment of your abilities and identify both the areas in which you excel and those in which you could use some work. You will become more appealing to a wider pool of potential employers if you focus on developing and implementing abilities in areas such as critical thinking, collaboration, professionalism and work ethic, oral and written communication, and leadership.