10 Effective Skills to be Successful at Work

A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals.-Larry Bird

To be successful at work is to be able to perform effectively and productively. What are the skills and personal traits essential for you to build a sustainable career?

1.     Technical skills: You are hired because of what you can do with the specialized knowledge you possessed. A marketable skill is the prerequisite to get a job. What are the top technical skills in demand now?  Skills in mathematics and IT-related are highly sought after in the job market. However, technical skill is not enough to do a job well. You need other skills and personal traits to complement your technical know-how.

2.     Ability to work in a team: As a team member, you must get to know others well and listen to their ideas. In a team trust, respect, and support for one another is important to function.

3.     Confidence: It is the ability to stay cool when confronted with problems. You must be able to seek help or find ways to solve a problem. When you are working under pressure you are able to decide, organize, prioritize and do the most important tasks. Bear in mind that you are hired to solve problems.

4.     Leadership potential: You must be able to demonstrate that you can work effectively and productively to get things done within deadlines. It is your time management skill.

5.     Business acumen: According to Wikipedia, an individual who has the following five abilities could be described as  someone  having a strong sense of business acumen:

 See the “big picture” of your organization—how the key drivers of your business relate to each other, work together to produce profitable growth, and relate to the job you do each day

 Understand important company communications and data, including financial statements

 Use your knowledge to make good decisions

 Understand how your actions and decisions impact key company measures and the objectives of your company’s leadership

Effectively communicate your ideas to other employees, managers, executives, and the public

6.     Communicate: The ability to express yourself clearly is an important skill at work. The ability to influence and persuade others in a presentation or negotiation is another vital skill. Fluency in written reports is definitely an essential skill.

      Intelligence, knowledge, or experience are important and might get you a job, but strong communication skills are what will get you promoted.-Mireille Guiliano

7.     IT skills: The ability to use software programs such as Word, Excel PowerPoint, One Note and Outlook are essential to survive at work. Understand operating systems such as Windows 7 & 8 and possess basic HTML knowledge. Know how to upload documents to an email and store files in a cloud server. Take advantage of online applications to organize your work productively.    

8.     Analytical skills: Know where to get the right information and digest it well. Be able to analyze and interpret figures and make important decisions.

9.      Attitude: Your core values determine your attitude. Positive values such as honesty, integrity, and trust are some of the good examples. You need to be, among other things, punctual, dependable, and responsible at work.  A committed staff who is willing to do more and go the extra mile is highly valued.   

10    Lifelong learning: It is necessary to update your skills in this ever changing world. Learn new things and employ new ways of doing things and be more effective and productive. 

What other skills do you need to be successful at work?