The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report indicates that 50 per cent of all employees will need reskilling by 2025, as adoption of technology increases. According to the report, critical thinking and problem-solving top the list of skills employers believe will grow in prominence in the next five years. In addition, report also says that newly emerging this year are skills in self-management such as active learning, resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility. Self-management skills are simply your ability to regulate and control your actions, feelings, and thoughts, with these skills; one can follow through on the work they are supposed to be doing. Likewise, being able to manage yourself can help one be more successful in their goal-setting efforts. According to experts, reliability, time management, trustworthiness, adaptability and consciousness are some of the examples of self management skills. Net photo. According to experts, reliability, time management, trustworthiness, adaptability and consciousness are some of the examples of self-management skills. For reliability, Dr Opiyo Andala, the dean, School of Education at Mount Kenya University says in the work place, it’s easier for your boss and even colleagues to always count on you because when you are reliable, it’s guaranteed that your promises will be met on time. He notes that in scenarios where there is pressure, if someone can manage their stress, they tend to remain calm and collected thus solving the issue in a right way rather than losing their focus and end up messing around. For time management, Andala says that these self-management skills can help one prioritize their tasks and get things done on time, which is essential as far as organising your work is concerned. Another good thing that comes with self-management skills is that one can always adapt to any environment and situation. For instance, he says when things suddenly change, be it at work or home, one can easily control their discomfort and roll with it, and most importantly, find a way of embracing new situations with positive minds. The importance of self-management skills Prince Aime Murara, the deputy secretary-general, Education for Nations and Humanitarian Africa (ENHA)-Girubuntu believes that when one has strong self-management skills, automatically they tend to be more successful not only at work but in all areas. For instance, he says at work, these skills help you stay productive and find ways to embrace your independence, which is key to success. Still at work, Murara says self-management skills, are an important part of showing that you’re a reliable employee compared to those without such skills. He explains that when you lack self-management skills, such employees are always unpredictable, which can make an employer not to trust in them. “Take an example where an employee is impatient, they can end up doing something nasty to the client either by word of mouth or through actions, which can end up negatively affecting the relationship between the company and the clients,” he says. However, Murara says with self-regulation, in such situations, one can calm intense emotions and thoughts, which can lead to smarter actions. Alicia Uwamariya, a mentor and motivational speaker believes that when one has self-management skill, they start by believing in themselves, which is important as far as achieving your goals is concerned. In her opinion, when you believe in yourself, team, work and ideas, definitely others around you will see it and work on how to improve themselves at the same time and emulate your steps. Uwamariya goes on to add that self-management skills help one become a problem solver. Here, she explains that for instance, as a leader or manager, one needs to be simply fearless in the face of any difficult situation, they should be in a position to patch up the dispute and see who is correct and wrong in a fair way. This, she says, can only happen when one possesses a self-management skill. On the other hand, Uwamariya notes that as an employer, your joy will be seeing good problem solving skills in their employees because it also helps to show that such individuals have a range of other competencies such as logic, creativity, resilience among others. “This is a vital skill for your professional and personal life. An individual who has the ability to systematically think through the facts, diagnose the situation, and find an accurate and workable solution, will definitely help an organisation or business thrive and prosper,” she adds.
