10 Crucial Life Skills No One Will Teach Your Kids at School

I finally obtained my MSc in Marketing last July. I struggled a lot with managing my time, trying to fit all my work, school assignments, and personal life in a day. Guess what, I failed!

There is no way I could enjoy my life having a huge burden of all those duties on my shoulders. I started to question the necessity of a higher education and the value of knowledge I obtain.

I’ve realized that I am paying to get a diploma that will most likely be just a paper for me. Instead, I am gaining valuable life lessons at work, from people who inspire me, from books and life epic failures.

If these 10 essential skills are communicated to children of all ages, perhaps there will be more happiness and less poverty in this beautiful world.

1. The Power of Self-Confidence

We are taught what is right and what is wrong at school. If you raise your voice and disagree with the majority — you might get a warning from your teacher. It might scare young and immature individuals and discourage them from raising their voices again.

Self-reflection is an essential skill that kids should learn since childhood. We are all different, and this is normal. Yet, we should not hide it or be ashamed of it.

2 . Sales Skills

I have recently finished a short entrepreneurship course from a young girl who helps others believe in themselves and start selling what they are good at. I was amazed by the logical thinking and the drive coming from that 23 years old girl.

If we are taught how to discover people’s pains and offer solutions— no one would ever struggle from lack of means.

I am convinced, sales skills are essential for everyone. Even if you are not going to pursue a career in sales, you will have many life occasions, such as job interviews, where sales skills will come in handy.

3. How to Handle Personal Finances

I’ve studied for 11 years at a technical school and 6 years at the university. None of them covered what a modern human should know about personal finances.

Fresh graduates enter a mature life, where they have to find a job, form a family, and support their existence without a decent level of knowledge about finance. This is scary.

“Get up, go to work, pay bills; get up, go to work, pay bills. People’s lives are forever controlled by this cycle of fear and greed.

Offer them more money, and they continue the cycle by increasing their spending. This is what they call the Rat Race.”

— Robert Keyosaki

We all need to know how to handle, store, and increase our money savings.

If there is no one to share priceless tips with you (my case), your best friends are books. The list below is my top 4 books on personal finances and investments.

1. “The Rules of Wealth” — Warren Buffet
2. “Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! “ — Robert Kiyosaki
3. “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth” — Harv Eker
4. “The Road To Financial Freedom ” — Bodo Shefer

Even if finance as a topic does not appeal to you, it is highly recommended to get at least basic knowledge about micro-and macroeconomics, the banking system, how credits work, why inflations happen, what a financial cushion is, and why everyone needs it.

4. Practical Investments

Unfortunately, many people don’t even get to the topic of investments due to being always busy. Moreover, why would anyone think about investments if there is no enough means to cover basic needs.

This is our sad reality, where pupils at schools are not taught to handle money and enrich their capital.

“It’s not how much money you make. It’s how much money you keep.” — Robert Kiyosaki.

Let’s face the truth, how much you know about investment opportunities and their ROI?

I've started learning and practicing investments. However, those are just baby steps. I don't possess enough knowledge to level-up my investment strategy yet. I am quite sure I am not alone.

Investment becomes an important skill nowadays. Those who manage to save and scale earnings always look for new opportunities.

5. How to Take Care Of Your Body

I am passionate about healthy eating and lifestyle. However, it was not always like this. I used to eat junk food, sweets, meat and not consume enough vegetables and fruit.

Once a close relative of mine suffered from cardiovascular diseases, there was no way to help him out.

This family drama has completely changed the way how I treated my body. Now, I am conscious about what I eat and how it will affect my body.

I’ve read a marvelous book called “The Better Man Project” by Bill Phillips. It is one of the best books I’ve ever read about well-being and a healthy lifestyle. The book explains which daily habits lead to diseases as cancer, heart attack, diabetes mellitus, etc., in the long run.

The author gives insights into how sport influences our lives' lengths and which products we should consume daily to get rid of sick, elderly life.

I don’t want to sound overenthusiastic, but the book has tons of actionable to-dos and tips on how small changes might lead to a great impact in the future.

6. First Aid

I sometimes experience anxiety that I'll have to give first aid.

To be honest, I know almost nothing about first aid. I did not have any training, while the school anatomy classes covered completely different topics.

Perhaps, I should blame myself that I did not dedicate time to learn the essentials of first aid, but I am sure I am not alone. There are people like me who have studied for more than 15 years in total and have no clue what to do if someone gets sick.

If you read these lines and decide to look up at least one article about first aid, my thoughts are totally worths writing and sharing.

Pass this vital knowledge to your parents, kids, and friends. It will help them effectively manage occasions when every second of human life counts.

7. How to Respect and Help Others

Have you studied tolerance and respect at school? I did not. I’ve studied in 2 different countries. However, neither school classes nor universities taught me cultural diversity, respect, tolerance to other religions, skin color, race, and nationalities.

It seems disrespect becomes a huge threat to humanity these days. Some people think they are superior to others and can use their physical power to get what they need.

I am convinced love and respect could be developed from childhood. Kids worldwide grow in multicultural communities, where their parents, teachers, and professors should stress the importance of mutual respect and love regardless of nationality, race, color of skin.

8. Writing Skills

With the fast technological development, writing skills have already become essential. We consume tons of digital content a day, and someone has to create it.

In fact, there is a huge demand for professional writers in technical niches, such as UX, programming, engineering, etc.

If you want to master a new skill, it is the right time to do it! Those who develop writing skills can potentially build a successful career around it.

Here is how Cal Newport, an author of 6 bestsellers about self-improvement, refers to writing in his book:

“An important point about deep work that is often overlooked is that it’s a skill that must be trained.

Many aspiring writers overlook this reality and find their first forays into the written word frustrating and unproductive.

My advice is always to start with training your cognitive fitness before diving into your first big writing project.”

— Cal Newport.

Writing is not something that can be developed easily. It requires time and persistence, but the results will surely pay off.

9. Public Speaking Skills

Public speaking is not about reading a paper in front of the class. No, not at all!

I’ve managed to develop effective communication skills at work and at conferences, where the audience is already interested in what I was saying and were eager to listen.

The way how you present might be even more important than what you present. The power of self-confidence, the ability to manage fear and anxiety, tone of voice, pace, gestures, facial expressions, eye contact — compose the core of a successful public performance.

It is not something you can learn from books, but it is a skill that should be developed during your lifespan.

Even if you don’t give regular presentations, public speaking is a useful skill to persuade your boss to follow your business strategy or give a speech at a friend’s wedding. Why not?

10. How to Find a Suitable Side Hustle

Look around. Our lives in 2021 have nothing in common with how our grandparents used to live 50 years ago.

Technologies have conquered the world and require new skills to succeed in personal and career development.

Nowadays, almost every website gives you a chance to make extra cash through affiliate programs, writing, or advertisement.

The most important is to know that these opportunities exist!

Lack of knowledge is the biggest barrier that prevents individuals from making money online.

We are taught that making money is hard, requires a lot of work and time, and being wealthy is not for everyone. This is the wrong mindset that needs to be changed to start living a happier life.

Discover how you can serve people's pains and start offering your services online, learn about the power of affiliate marketing, start mastering new skills, open your blog and share your thoughts with others.

There are no standard educational programs that would teach you to do it. Books are your guidelines, and networking is your way to get inspired by others.

There are endless opportunities online, and you are the only one in charge of your success.