Let’s navigate the skills maze? Perceptions vs. Reality

Would you be willing to talk about building your skills today? Essential skills that help you unlock professional success. Critical skills to your growth. Great #communication skills. Strong delegation ability. And so on… Honestly, getting these buzzwords thrown at me puts me into an initial spurt.

I surely want to work on these skills next. But how do I do it? After all, what does effective communication even mean? 🤔

If I ask my team members, I’d hear varied answers. While one emphasized listening well to others, the other pointed to the need to speak clearly. And neither is wrong! Yet, how do I place these in order and clearly understand what I need to do? If you have ever been through this whirlwind, today’s newsletter is the much-needed clarity you deserve. Let’s unpack. 🧩

What’s a skill, after all? 🤔

A skill can be easily defined as an individual’s learned ability to perform effectively. Skills can be specific to the domain of your work or general with broad applications.

Every skill can be defined further in terms of sub-skills, the smaller units that make the whole. For instance, let’s talk about guidance ability. In essence, it includes the ability to direct and nurture others. This skill would also have my potential to be a good role model and give feedback that helps my team members grow. 👨👦🗣️

Thus, when working to improve my #GuidanceAbility, I need to focus on multiple areas. In some, I might fare well due to experience and natural tendencies, while others can be harder nuts to crack. 🌰💪

Let’s make it easier! 🛤️

Jumping on this train of understanding skill and working progressively along every aspect is a dream plan, right? But as dreams go, it’s unrealistic. Not every manager can know, weigh, and understand every aspect. The perception of a manager and their team about the skills can differ heavily, too. You might think you give bad feedback, but your team may find it helpful. Again, we are in challenging waters. 🌊

Risely resolves this problem by allowing in-depth skill assessments that involve your self-assessment and a review of your skills by your team. The best part is that your team members are anonymous and, thus, encouraged to be honest. By comparing those scores for various sub-skills, you can figure out precisely what interventions you need to build your core skills. Here’s what it looks like – 📊

A self-assessment enables you to introspect and understand yourself. Your team’s feedback allows you to look into the social perception of your skills. Are your skills creating an impact? Learning methods that focus on you in isolation, forget that you influence and get influenced by others, too! That’s what it helps you answer. By combining these two metrics, Risely provides insights to work on the exact skill areas holding you back. 🔍

Treading the managerial profession is hard, and we are here to help you with many more such tailored ideas. Join a tribe of managers committed to growth and excellence today by signing up for free. 🚀👥📈