With all the adventures and stories I’ve had this far in my life, both professionally and personally, I’ve come to find that there are three skills not taught in school, that have always made life easier for me. These skills have helped me stand out in positive ways and I think everyone should take the time to better themselves in these three little areas:
- Storytelling – Everyone LOVES a great story teller. It’s a wonderful way to capture the attention of an audience, whether you’re a talking to an entire auditorium, or just to your friend. The secret to telling eventful stories fall under your expressions.
- Being able to connote the right feeling at the right time with a simple tone adjustment of your voice is often overlooked. Speak softer when you’re just building up the story then speak louder when you’re talking about the climactic finale of your story. “The princess walked into the dimly lit room then BOOM! OUT OF NOWHERE COMES THIS CRAZY MONKEY!”
- Don’t be afraid to exaggerate for the sake of good story telling. Saying that was “THE BEST BURGER IN THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE” gets the point across much easier than simply saying it was a good burger. Even though it would be difficult to prove that that burger is in fact better than the ones they serve on Saturn…
- Pause… while speaking… people take for granted the power of silence. Take your time… try it out… you’ll notice that you’re much more engaging to listen to if you pause when you speak. It makes what you’re saying more momentous. But don’t overdo it and be sure to still be within a time frame where people will listen to you.
- Writing – Who would’ve known that writing would be an important factor for both my professional and personal life? It’s such a big part of me now and I have no clue how I would survive without being able to express myself this way. Some tips for writing…
- If you think what you’re writing is boring, your readers will think so too. Make sure you like what you’re writing so that your readers will like it too.
- Get to the point! We’re in a world of Twitters and Twitterers. Keep it short and move on. I have a million other things to read…
- The more you write, the better you will be at writing. The more you read, the better you will be at writing. Read lots of books. Word on the street is that you get smarter when reading too…
- Smiling – Really! Never underestimate the power or being nice. Everyone, everywhere, at any time, is going through a battle within their lives that you may or may not know of. The power of being positive and uplifting is one that is compounded and spreads much further than you can ever imagine.
- When you ask someone, “How are you?” Mean it, and actually listen for their response.
- Don’t be shy, go up to someone and say hi. Chances are that they wanted to do the same thing, but were too shy to do so.
- Did I mention that you should smile…? =)
What are some unexpected skills that you’ve noticed coming in handy…?