1. Define life skills and describe components and goals of life skills.

What are Life Skills

The World Health Organization has defined life skills as, "the abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that
enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life".

UNICEF defines life skills as “a behaviour change or behaviour development approach designed to address a
balance of three areas: knowledge, attitude and skills”. The UNICEF definition is based on research evidence
that suggests that shifts in risk behaviour are unlikely if knowledge, attitudinal and skills based competency are
not addressed.

Components of Life Skills

a) Critical thinking skills/Decision-making skills – include decisionmaking/problem solving skills and

information gathering skills. The individual must also be skilled at evaluating the future consequences of their
present actions and the actions of others.

b) Interpersonal/Communication skills – include verbal and non-verbal communication, active listening, and
the ability to express feelings and give feed back. Also in this category, are negotiation/refusal skills and
assertiveness skills that directly affect ones’ ability to manage conflict. Empathy, which is the ability to listen
and understand others’ needs, is also a key interpersonal skill.

c) Coping and self-management skills refers to skills to increase the internal locus of control, so that the
individual believes that they can make a difference in the world and affect change. Self esteem, self-awareness,
self-evaluation skills and the ability to set goals are also part of the more general category of self-management
skills.

GOAIS OF LIFE SKILL

Life skills training equips people with the social and interpersonal skills that enable them to cope with the
demands of everyday life. The objectives of this training are to build self-confidence, encourage critical
thinking, foster independence and help people to communicate more effectively.
Confidence

A primary objective of life skills training that focus on personal development is to promote confidence and
well-being in young people and adults. It helps participants become more assertive, communicate effectively
with others by developing good listening skills and learn to handle stress and deal with disappointments and
setbacks.

Independence

Life skills enable people to be more independent. For example, someone who brushes up on math at an adult
numeracy class doesn't have to depend on other people to help her manage household accounts or run a
business.

Communication

Life skills training helps people to communicate with the outside world and to enjoy a better relationship with
family and friends.

Healthy Living

People are less likely to be exploited by others if they are physically and emotionally self-reliant.

2.Define the following intrapersonal and interpersonal skills and illustrate them with real life examples.

 Self-concept - Creative thinking

 Self-awareness - Problem solving
 Self-esteem - Decision making
 Self-confidence - Reflective communication
 Critical thinking - Coping with stress & Resilience
 anger management - Emotional intelligence

 Self-Concept
Self-concept is how we perceive our behaviors, abilities, and unique characteristics.1
 For example, beliefs such as "I am a good friend" or "I am a kind person" are part of an overall self-
concept.
 Our self-perception is important because it affects our motivations, attitudes, and behaviors. It also impacts how
we feel about the person we think we are, including whether we are competent or if we have self-worth.

 self-awareness

Self-awareness is the ability to focus on yourself and how your actions, thoughts, or emotions do or don't
align with your internal standards. If you're highly self-aware, you can objectively evaluate yourself,
manage your emotions, align your behavior with your values , and understand correctly how others
perceive you.

examples of self-awareness in everyday life:

1. You can identify your emotions and what you’re feeling

2. You can recognize your primary defensive coping mechanisms
3. You can define your own beliefs without being influenced by others
4. You can prioritize what gives you joy
5. You can identify your strengths and shortcomings
6. You can know what you need in your relationships
7. You can recognize when and how to trust yourself.

 Self-Esteem

self-esteem is used to describe a person's overall subjective sense of personal worth or value. In other words,
self-esteem may be defined as how much you appreciate and like yourself regardless of the circumstances.
For example, you likely have high self-esteem if you:

 Act assertively without experiencing any guilt, and feel at ease communicating with others.
 Avoid dwelling on the past and focus on the present moment.
 Believe you are equal to everyone else, no better and no worse.
 Reject the attempts of others to manipulate you.

 self-confidence in communication
 Self-confidence is an attitude about your skills and abilities. It means you accept and trust yourself and have
a sense of control in your life. You know your strengths and weakness well, and have a positive view of
yourself. You set realistic expectations and goals, communicate assertively, and can handle criticism.
An example of self-confidence is a guitarist knowing they're able to play a particular song really well. The
state of being self-confident.

 Critical Thinking

Critical thinking refers to the ability to analyze information objectively and make a reasoned judgment. It
involves the evaluation of sources, such as data, facts, observable phenomena, and research findings.

Examples of Critical Thinking

 A triage nurse analyzes the cases at hand and decides the order by which the patients should be treated.
 A plumber evaluates the materials that would best suit a particular job.
 An attorney reviews evidence and devises a strategy to win a case or to decide whether to settle out of
court.
 A manager analyzes customer feedback forms and uses this information to develop a customer service
training session for employees.

 Anger management 

is  anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully. Anger is frequently a
result of frustration, or of feeling blocked or thwarted from something the subject feels is important. Anger can
also be a defensive response to underlying fear or feelings of vulnerability or powerlessness. Anger
management programs consider anger to be a motivation caused by an identifiable reason which can be
logically analyzed and addressed.

Example of anger management

 Think before you speak. In the heat of the moment, it's easy to say something you'll later regret. ...
 Once you're calm, express your anger. ...
 Get some exercise. ...
 Take a timeout. ...
 Identify possible solutions. ...
 Stick with 'I' statements. ...

 creative thinking life skills

Creative thinking is the ability to look at things differently, and find new ways of solving problems.
Creative thinking skills are definitely not just for 'creative types' like artists and musicians. Everyone can
benefit from creative thinking from time to time.
 
Examples of Creative Thinking Skills
 
 Problem Solving
 Creative Writing
 Open-Mindedness

 problem solving
Problem-solving is a process of solving any kind of problem. This process is acted upon in some steps. These
steps start from identifying the problem and determining the cause of the problem. After the problem and its
cause are identified, the next step is to select alternatives for the solution and implement the solutions.

Example of problem-solving skills

 Active listening
 Communication
 Dependability
 Decision making
 Team-building

 Reflective thinking

 taking the bigger picture and understanding all of its consequences. It doesn't mean that you're just going to
simply write down your future plans or what you've done in the past. It means truly trying to understand why
you did what you did, and why that's important.

Example Have you ever missed the bus and then thought next time I'll leave the house 5 minutes
earlier'? This is an example of you being reflective: you thought about an experience and decided to learn from
it and do something different the next time. As a student, and in the workplace, you will be asked to be
reflective.
  Coping with stress

Stay focused on the positive and avoid negative energy. Avoid drugs and alcohol. Rest your mind: Sleep, do
yoga, meditate and perform relaxation exercises that can help restore energy. Get help from a psychologist
when you're overwhelmed.

Examples of life stresses are:

 The death of a loved one.

 Divorce.
 Loss of a job.
 Increase in financial obligations.
 Getting married.
 Moving to a new home.

 Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand and manage your own emotions, and those of the people
around you. People with a high degree of emotional intelligence know what they're feeling, what their emotions
mean, and how these emotions can affect other people.

Some great examples of emotional intelligence in the workplace

 Listening to colleagues in meetings. ...

 Offering upset staff members understanding. ...
 Encourage an open office atmosphere where staff can express themselves without fear of criticism.

3.Briefly explain the following academic skills and demonstrate them with examples from your life
experience.
 Time management - Time management is the process of organizing and planning how to divide your
time between different activities. Get it right, and you'll end up working smarter, not harder, to get more
done in less time – even when time is tight and pressures are high.

Example - you start feeling more in control, with the confidence to choose how best to use your time.
And by feeling happier, more relaxed, and better able to think, you're in a great place to help others
reach their targets, too.

 Note taking methods - are connecting key ideas and messages, as well as clarifying ideas about the
material, helps to sharpen listening skills. Taking notes in a lecture + processing/annotating/rewriting
these notes.
For example –

- Note-taking method #1: The Outline method. The Outline method is one of the best and most popular
note-taking methods for college students. ...
- Note-taking method #2: The Cornell Method. ...
- Note-taking method #3: The Boxing Method. ...
- Note-taking method #4: The Charting Method. ...
- Note-taking method #5: The Mapping Method.

 STUDY SKILLS / STYLES - are an array of skills which tackle the process of organizing and taking in
new information, retaining information, or dealing with assessments. They are discrete techniques that
can be learned, usually in a short time, and applied to all or most fields of study.
 For example

- Read more than once.

- Highlight and take notes.
- Make margin notes.
- Don't put off reading assignments until the last minute!
- Review after reading.
- Keep from dozing off: don't read right before going to bed, and don't read in bed.

 Test Anxiety - is actually a type of performance anxiety — a feeling someone might have in a situation
where performance really counts or when the pressure's on to do well. Example - focusing on the bad
things that could happen also fuels test anxiety. For example, someone worrying about doing poorly
 might have thoughts like, "What if I forget everything I know?" or "What if the test is too hard?" Too
many thoughts like these leave no mental space for thinking about the test questions.
 Overcoming test anxiety - To help you stay calm and confident right before and during the test,
perform relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, relaxing your muscles one at a time, or closing
your eyes and imagining a positive outcome.
Example
- Use a little stress to your advantage
- Ask for help
- Watch what you're thinking
- Accept mistakes

 Test Taking skill – are cognitive skills that allow students to undertake any test-taking situation in an
appropriate manner, and to know what to do before, during, and after the test.
Example –
- Be prepared. ...
- Always arrive early and take a moment to relax. ...etc.
 Career development skill - is the process of self-knowledge, exploration, and decision-making that
shapes your career. It requires successfully navigating your occupational options to choose and train for
jobs that suit your personality, skills. Skills are skills that are used to develop the process of self-
knowledge, exploration, and decision-making that shapes your career. Example –
- COMMUNICATIO SKILLS (LISTENING, SPEAKING AND WRITING) ...
- ANALYTICAL AND RESEARCH SKILLS. ...
- FLEXIBILITY/ADAPTABILITY. ...
- INTERPERSONAL ABILITIES. ...
- ABILITY TO MAKE DECISIONS AND SOLVE PROBLEMS. ...

A goal can include improving the organizational development within a university by increasing
employee trust and motivation, the sharing of school goals, creating a culture of support and
encouraging employee growth.

4.Explain the following social skills briefly and show them with your own examples Cultural diversity &
diversity management Handling Peer pressure.

 Cultural diversity & diversity management pressure

  Cultural Diversity- is the existence of a variety of cultural groups within a society. Cultural groups
can share many different characteristics.
 Diversity management - refers to organizational actions that aim to promote greater inclusion of
employees from different backgrounds into an organization's structure. Depending on a company's
goals and the industry through specific policies and programs.

For example

 Cultural diversity includes:

 Race.
 Ethnicity.
 Sexual orientation.
 Religion.
 Language…etc.

 Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) - is a concept that addresses improving access to
livelihood assets and services for ALL, including the women, poor, and excluded. It supports more
inclusive policies and mindsets and increases the voice and influence of all including of the women,
poor and excluded.

For example
 it may imply that women and men should be paid the same for doing the same work or that they
should be treated with different medicines and methods in order to make healthcare equal.

 Conflict and conflict resolution - Conflict resolution refers to the process geared toward reaching an
agreement in a dispute, debate, or any other form of conflict between two or more parties.

For example
 Someone may prefer an agreement that satisfies his or her interests over one that favors the
adversary's interests (an incentive to compete), while also preferring any agreement over no
agreement (an incentive to cooperate).
 Inter personal communication skill behavior - Interpersonal skills are the behaviors and tactics a
person uses to interact with others effectively. In the business world, the term refers to an employee's
 ability to work well with others. Interpersonal skills range from communication and listening to attitude
and deportment.

For example
 Cultivate a positive outlook. ...
 Control your emotions. ...
 Acknowledge others' expertise. ...
 Show a real interest in your colleagues. ...
 Find one good trait in every co-worker. ...etc.

 Reacting to social influence - Social influence is the process by which an individual's attitudes, beliefs
or behavior are modified by the presence or action of others. Four areas of social influence are
conformity, compliance and obedience, and minority influence.

For example –

 A person may feel pressured to smoke because the rest of their friends are. Normative Social
influence tends to lead to compliance because the person smokes just for show but deep down
they wish not to smoke. This means any change of behavior is temporary.

 Handling peer pressure - Peer pressure is the process in which individuals within the same group
influence others in the group to engage in a behavior or activity that they may not otherwise engage in.
A peer can be any individual who belongs to the same social groups or circles as you and has some type
of influence over you.

For example
 There are a variety of ways in which people can feel pressured to engage in behaviors they may
not want to. Every one of all ages, races and genders are susceptive to feeling some type of peer
pressure at some point in their life. It may not always result in grand consequences, but it is felt
by all who experience it.
 Peer Pressure in Adolescent Men

 Peer Pressure & Sexual Activity…etc.

 Assertiveness is the quality of being self-assured and confident without being aggressive. In the field of
psychology and psychotherapy, it is a skill that can be learned and a mode of communication.
For example
 Direct eye contact
 Assertive posture/stance
 Tone of voice
 Facial expression
 Timing

 Teamwork - The process of working collaboratively with a group of people in order to achieve a goal.
Teamwork is often a crucial part of a business, as it is often necessary for colleagues to work well
together, trying their best in any circumstance. Teamwork means that people will try to cooperate, using
their individual skills and providing constructive feedback, despite any personal conflict between
individuals.”

Example
 Communication
 Responsibility
 Honesty
 Active listening

★ Overcoming risky behaviors - is defeating those behaviors that potentially expose people to harm, or
significant risk of harm which will prevent them reaching their potential.