CORPORATE

SKILLS-WEEK1
By : Sanam Wasif
 Introduction
◦ Week 1 Agenda:

• Course Introduction and group formation on skills

• Draw your future map using Ted Talk points

• How to identify your dream job

• Difference between Talent, Passion, and Career

• SMART Goal Setting

 Introduction
Essential Readings :

Chapters 8, 9 and 10 : Purdie, J. (2012). Life coaching for dummies. Chichester, West Sussex,
England: John Wiley & Sons

Further Readings :

 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey

 Dyer, J., Gregersen, H., and Christensen, C.M. (2011). The Innovator’s DNA: Mastering the
Five Skills of Disruptive Innovators. ISBN: 978-1422134818
 Introduction
◦ Corporate skills training focuses on areas of expertise needed by employees to deal with real
life challenges at work place.

◦ For students they equip them with clear expectations of corporate world.

◦ The aim of this course is to map your abilities to current market expectations and excel in any
corporate work environment worldwide
Ted Talk – Draw your future

YouTube video link of Ted Talk by Patti Dobrowolski

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zESeeaFDVSw
 Vision and Goals

◦ Vision is a clear image how you see your future.

◦ Goals are set as a specific target that move you towards your vision.

◦ Goals can be set, for :

1. Skills (corporate in your case)
2. Knowledge (degree program in your case)
3. Also physical and mental training.

◦ Goals help you to stay focused and on track.

 Setting Smart Goals
What is a Smarten Up Goal:

◦ Goals are part of every aspect of business/life that provide a sense of direction, motivation , a
clear focus, and clarify importance.

◦ By setting goals, you are providing yourself with a target to aim for.

◦ A SMARTEN UP goal is used to help guide goal setting.

◦ SMARTEN UP is an acronym that stands for :

 Setting Smart Goals
SMARTEN UP goals are:
◦ Specific: Well defined, clear, and unambiguous
◦ Measurable: With specific criteria that measure your progress toward the accomplishment of
the goal
◦ Achievable: Attainable and not impossible to achieve
◦ Realistic: Within reach, realistic, and relevant to your life purpose
◦ Timely: With a clearly defined timeline, including a starting and ending date
◦ Enthusiastic: has to be appealing
◦ Natural : must work with your natural instincts
◦ Understood : clearly understood by your significant others
◦ Prepared : be prepared for setbacks and negative comments
 Setting Smat Goals
Specific : Goals that are specific have a significantly greater chance of being accomplished. To
make a goal specific, the five “W” questions must be considered:

◦ Who: Who is involved in this goal?

◦ What: What do I want to accomplish?
◦ Where: Where is this goal to be achieved?
◦ When: When do I want to achieve this goal?
◦ Why: Why do I want to achieve this goal?

◦ For example, a general goal would be “I want to get in shape.” A more specific goal would be “I
want to obtain a gym membership at my local community center and work out four days a week
to be healthier.”
 Setting Smart Goals
◦ Measurable : A SMART goal must have criteria for measuring progress. If there are no
criteria, you will not be able to determine your progress. To make a goal measurable, ask:

◦ How many/much?
◦ How do I know if I have reached my goal?
◦ What is my indicator of progress?
◦
◦ For example, building on the specific goal above: I want to obtain a gym membership at my
local community center and work out four days a week to be healthier. Every week, I will aim
to lose one pound of body fat.
 Setting Smart Goals
◦ Achievable : A SMART goal must be achievable and attainable.

◦ The achievability of the goal should be stretched to make you feel challenged, but defined well
enough that you can actually achieve it.

◦ Ask yourself:

◦ Do I have the resources and capabilities to achieve the goal? If not, what am I missing?
◦ Have others done it successfully before?
 Setting Smart Goals
◦ Realistic: A SMART goal must be realistic in that the goal can be realistically achieved given
the available resources and time.

◦ A SMART goal is likely realistic if you believe that it can be accomplished.

◦ Ask yourself:

◦ Is the goal realistic and within reach?

◦ Is the goal reachable, given the time and resources?
◦ Are you able to commit to achieving the goal?
 Setting Smart Goals
◦ Timely:
◦ A SMART goal must be time-bound in that it has a start and finish date.

◦ If the goal is not time-constrained, there will be no sense of urgency and, therefore, less motivation to
achieve the goal. Ask yourself:

◦ Does my goal have a deadline?

◦ By when do you want to achieve your goal?

◦ For example, building on the goal above: On August 1, I will obtain a gym membership at my local
community center. In order to be healthier, I will work out four days a week. Every week, I will aim to
lose one pound of body fat. By the end of August, I will have realized my goal if I lose four pounds of
fat over the course of the month.
 Essential corporate Skills to acquire :

1. Financial management:
a) to effectively manage your finances is critical.
b) to forecast your cash flow and sales, as well as, monitor profit and loss accounts.
c) to protect your financial investment.

2. Marketing, sales and customer service:

d) to promote your products or services effectively
e) having a marketing strategy in place will help you to generate sales.
 Essential corporate Skills to acquire :

3. Communication and negotiation :

a) with your suppliers, potential investors, customers and employees
b) effective written and verbal communication skills will help you to build good working
relationships.
c) Every communication should reflect the image you are trying to project.

4. Leadership :
a) to motivate your staff in order to get the best out of them
b) improve productivity.
c) Allocate time to mentor and coach your employees.
 Essential corporate Skills to acquire

5. Project management and planning:

a) such as setting up a website
b) arranging the fit-out of your premises
c) developing a range of policies and procedures
d) Knowing how to effectively manage your resources, including time, money and staff will
help you to achieve your goals.

6. Delegation and time management.

e) Managing your time effectively may mean delegating responsibility to someone else in the
business or outsourcing.
f) Identifying who you can delegate tasks to, allows you to concentrate on those tasks that
generate revenue.
 Essential corporate Skills to acquire

7. Problem solving.

◦ However much you plan, you will encounter problems in your job. This means you need to
be able to make good decisions, sometimes under pressure.

8. Networking.

◦ Building good relationships through networking will help you to grow in your job and give
you the support you’ll need.
Talent , Passion and Career
 Passion, Talent and Career
◦ Passion and talent are both necessary, but neither is sufficient in itself.

◦ Suppose you pursue a career based on passion alone, but you don’t have the talent (necessary
skills) to do a good job

◦ You are going to find yourself exhausted, frustrated and eventually out of a job.
 Talent , Passion and Career
◦ On the other hand, if you pick a career based on talent

◦ You are good at your job, but don’t really have a passion for what you do

◦ You will find yourself bored, frustrated and eventually fired from the job if you haven’t quit
on your own.

◦ Another crucial element is demand: the world should need or want what you have to offer.