People
Skills is Essential to College Survival
There is no one hundred percent,
guaranteed-to-work survival guide to college but there are several skill to
help a new college student make it through college unscratched. One key skill
is people skills. What do people skills include? People skills include
effective communication, efficient collaboration with other human beings and
acceptance of fellow school mates. Not only are people skills essential to
college, but they are essential in everyday life.
Communication
Communication is not just a way of talking someone’s ears off. It is the
process of sending and receiving messages. It involves active listening and
respectful body motion when interacting with others. Making frequent eye
contact with the person talking, listening to what is being said, clarifying
what is being said by asking questions, repeating details here and there, and
eliminating as many distractions as possible are a huge part of communication.
Another form of communication is non-verbal communication. Non-verbal
communication is also known as body language. Posture, tone of voice, and
facial expressions are significant to body language. The student must always be
sure that his or her verbal language and body language are on the same page,
otherwise confusion will soon arise. Communication is the basis of people
skills.
Collaboration
At some point in life, the student will collaborate with another person
whether it is a business deal, a project, or an activity that includes more
than one person. In college, there will be times that the student is required
to work with a partner or in a group. Working with others to achieve a common
goal, and implementing more than one individual’s ideas is collaboration. To collaborate efficiently, the student will
have to communicate heavily with his or her partner(s). The student must ask
questions if something is not completely understood, learn to compromise, speak
his or her mind, split the work fairly, and always hold his or her end of the
deal. Efficient collaboration will not only help the student reach his or her
goals faster, but it will also encourage people to want to work with the
student in order to achieve other unified goals inside and outside of college.
Acceptance
Eliminating prejudice carves a path towards accepting others as they
are. Once the student eliminates prejudice, he or she opens the door to what
others have to say and offer. In college, the student will meet humans of
difference sexual orientations, or opposing political views, nonreligious and
other religious beliefs, various backgrounds, lifestyles, ethnicities, and some
with disabilities. The word “People” in “People Skills” refers to interaction
among these unique beings. When the student is assigned to a partner or group,
he or she will eventually have to communicate and collaborate with someone who
may be his or her exact opposite. Once the student gets past the Russian
accent, or the fact that his or her partner has a unibrow, he or she will have
succeeded in a key element of strengthening his or her people skills. Success
is achieved when the student comes to realize that not everyone is like him or
her; not everyone can meet his or her criteria whether that criteria is hygiene
or finances; and, there are reasons behind a person’s actions, lifestyle, and
clothing. Acceptance is not a part of “Asian Skills” or “Polysexual skills”.
Acceptance is a part of “People Skills”. “People Skills” include everyone!
Resources
A student will use people skills in college, outside of college, in his
or her career, in public at the grocery store, and even with his or her family.
Key elements of people skills are communication skills, collaboration skills
and acceptance skills. These skills are vital because without them, unnecessary
academic stress will build, confusion will drive a student up the wall, and
unpleasant tension will destroy a peaceful atmosphere. If a student needs
advice on communicating, collaborating, or with acceptance then the student
should check out online student forums, a speech professor, or even a
counselor. People skills are a skill that could always use improvement and will
definitely aid the student’s college survival.
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