skill development report finding yourself

Some of soft skills are: time management skill, communication skill, positive thinking skill, .... In order to achieve success, beside knowledge, full equipment of soft skills such as ti

I ABSTRACT

The society nowadays is changing very fast which leads to many

differences from the old one In the past, a person with excellent professionalknowledge would go really far in their career and gain a lot of success However, in modern world, only professional knowledge seems not enough for people who wants to gain huge successes The reasons for this situation isthe ingress and escalation in the corporate world Employees with both good basement of hard and soft skills will be more preferred Therefore, soft skillsare very important for all students that need to develop their potential in different programs in university Some of soft skills are: time management skill, communication skill, positive thinking skill,

After finishing the course of Skill Development in FTU, we would like

to make a report to present the whole process working of our group, fromthe initial ideas to a finished product – a short film gone by

II INTRODUCTION

1 Summary of the clip

The story features a freshman who experienced a completely new setting

in Hanoi capital city At first, he was very disorganized, not knowing how to set up plans, how to interact with others effectively and also he kept leading apessimistic lifestyle

Then the situation gradually turned to the opposite when he got engaged

in a soft skill group work The main character’s shortcomings were rectified after he experienced a seemingly vicious circle of waking up every morning, trying to improve himself by not repeating previous mistakes, but was still undesirably dead or became unconscious due to lack of some vital skills To

be more specific, his failure stemmed from inadequate time management skillwhich led to his poor planning ability and incompletion of given tasks, his ineffective communication methods which prevented him from delivering hisideas concisely and convincingly, etc Then came the most miserable scene, his views were rejected by all team members and he sunk into a tremendouslypessimistic state, deciding to commit suicide after that Luckily in the next morning, an unexpected positive thought came to his mind and enormously motivated him to try his best, learning from past faults and he achieved

favorable results in the end He realized that the way to accomplishment was always challenging with thousands of obstacles awaiting him In order to achieve success, beside knowledge, full equipment of soft skills such as time management or teamwork skills is of utter importance, especially in this era

of integration and modernization Therefore, always bear in mind that soft skills get little respect but they will make or break your career” (Peggy Klaus,author)

2 Educational significance

The idea of this video stems from a lack of soft skills in many young people today Many first-year students don't know how to manage time and arrange personal works They are easy to fall into an unorganized life withoutthe control of their parents, which also significantly affects the efficiency of work as well as the sense of responsibility Until they work in a collective, they cannot get along and are criticized by the other members Therefore, in this video, we would like to emphasize the great importance of building up the soft skills to become a confident person

3 Research objectives

 Express our message through the story in the video

 Encourage students to appreciate their ability to manage their busy life,gaining the most crucial skills to enjoy a better and happier life andlearning many useful lessons

4 Research methods

The mid-term assignment of making a short video to present the skills achieved from the courses is one of the most effective educational methods because the members need to work together to find the ideas of the video then discuss and develop the ideas, and manage to accomplish team goals

5 Scope of the study

During the process to make this video, our group need to apply all of the soft skills which we have achieved in the course, including:

 Positive thinking skills

 Work organization and time management skills

 Teamwork skills

 Communication and Presentation skills

6 Structure of the report

The content of the report is allocated in five main parts:

III LITERATURE REVIEWS

1 Soft skill and each of the skills

studied 1.1 Soft skills

Soft skills have been defined in different context and included differentperspectives, as per various authors at various times John Stephan, and Randy Brown (2012) defined soft skills as people management skills

Parente, John Stephan, and Randy Brown (2012) defined soft skills as people management skills Fogle (2011) while defining soft skills included “teaming skills” in its preview in addition to communication and social skills In

addition to this Hargis (2011) classified “work ethic, critical thinking, and problem solving” skills as part and parcel of soft skills

In general, soft skills are the personal attributes, personality traits,

inherent social cues, and communication abilities needed for success on the job Soft skills characterize how a person interacts in his or her

relationships with others, or how he or she approaches life and work

In the 21st century, soft skills are a major differentiator, a sine qua non for employability and success in life According to a research conducted by Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation and Stanford Research Center 85% of job success comes from having well-developed people skills and soft skills, and only 15% of job success comes from technical skills and knowledge (hard skills)

After a course of "Skill Development" in Foreign Trade University, wehave learned the four most important soft skills, which are Positive Thinkingskill, Communication skill, Time Management skill and Teamwork skill

1.2 Communication skill

Communication (from Latin commūnicāre, meaning "to share") is the act

of conveying intended meanings from one entity or group to another through the use of mutually understood signs and semiotic rules

The first key word in this definition is "process" A process is a dynamicactivity that is hard to describe because it changes (Pearson & Nelson, 2000).When we interact, there are many factors that influence the process of

communication

The second key word is "understanding": “To understand is to perceive,

to interpret, and to relate our perception and interpretation to what wealready know” (McLean, 2003)

Next comes the word "sharing" Sharing means doing something

together with one or more people In communication, sharing occurs whenyou convey thoughts, feelings, ideas, or insights to others

Finally, "meaning" is what we share through communication By looking

at the context the word is used in and by asking questions, we can discover the shared meaning of the word and understand the message

There are two basic types of communication: verbal and non-verbalcommunication

 Verbal communication: Some definitions of verbal communications are

as follows:

According to Bovee and others, verbal communication is the expression

of information through language which is composed of words and grammar.According to Penrose and others, verbal communication consists ofsharing thoughts thought the meaning of words

Therefore, when messages or information is exchanged or communicated through words this is called verbal communication Verbal communication takes place through face-to-face conversations, group discussions, counseling,

interview, radio, television, calls, memos, letters, reports, notes, email, etc

When verbally communicate with others, clarification is the key Often,

a person does not articulate himself clearly, his words and actions are

misunderstood, and verbal communication helps to clarify and provides information Robert M Krauss in the article, “The Psychology of Verbal Communication”, published in the International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences in 2001, explains, “A species’ survival depends critically upon its ability to communicate effectively, and the quality of its social life is determined in large measure by how and what it can

communicate.”

Moreover, to conduct effective verbal communication, principles such

as the ABC, the 5C and the 7C should be applied

The 5C includes: Clear, Concise, Complete, Correct, and Courteous; and the 7C is the same as the 5C with Consistency and Cautious in extra

 verbal communication: There are various ways to define verbal communication:

Non-According to Lesikar and Pettit, Nonverbal communication means all communication that occurs without words (body movements, space, time, touch, voice patterns, color, layout, design of surroundings.)

According to Himstreet and Baty, Non-verbal communication includesany communication occurring without the use of words

The Business Dictionary defines non-verbal communication as the

transmission of message by some medium other than speech or writing

Body language and other non-verbal cues occupy 93% of our

communication while speech takes only 7% Non-verbal communication takes place through gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, physical

proximity, touching etc Visuals are also an excellent way to represent any information People use architectures, and different colors and textures for home and office surfaces to represent their interests and preferences The sound of the speaker’s voice, including pitch, tone and volume are also forms

of how non-verbal communication can support verbal communication is that

a bright smile when saying congratulations reinforces the sincerity of one’s words but a stein face might not

1.3 Time management skill

Time management is the process of planning and exercising conscious control of time spent on specific activities, especially to increase

effectiveness, efficiency, and productivity It involves a juggling act of

various demands upon a person relating to work, social life, family, hobbies,personal interests and commitments with the finiteness of time Using time

effectively gives the person “choice” on spending/ managing activities at theirown time and expediency.

Time management may be aided by a range of skills, tools, and

techniques used to manage time when accomplishing specific tasks, projects, and goals complying with a due date Time management is usually a necessity

in any project development as it determines the project completion time and scope

Some scholars such as Macan (1994) stated that time management

training programs lead to three types of time management behaviors:

•

•

•

setting goals and priorities

mechanics of time management

preference for organization

There are 5 stages of team development: forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning, in which members are independent at first, then they become interdependent and finally they return to independence state

Among numerous elements of building an effective such as Individual responsibility and accountability, Management and organization, Knowledge

of roles…, “psychological safety” was the number one component of a

successful team, suggested by Project Aristotle, led by a manager from

Google’s People Analytics division, Abeer Dubey It means that every team member feels comfortable sharing their ideas and opinions – and that

everyone gets a chance to talk for about the same amount of time in group meetings This is not to say that there is a time limit or select time for each person to talk, but that organically, each person genuinely wants to hear fromothers in the group

1.5 Positive thinking skill

Positive thinking is a mental attitude in which you expect good and favorable results and not getting discouraged when plans do not proceed as expected In other words, positive thinking is the process of creating thoughtsthat create and transform energy into reality According to Oxford Dictionary,

it is “The practice or result of concentrating one’s mind affirmatively on the good and constructive aspects of a matter so as to eliminate negative or destructive attitudes and emotions.”

It is also important to note that positive thinking is not about taking a

"Pollyanna" approach to life In fact, researchers have found that in some instances, optimism might not serve you well For example, people who are

excessively optimistic might overestimate their own abilities and take onmore than they can handle, ultimately leading to more stress and anxiety.

Instead of ignoring reality in favor of the silver lining, psychologists suggest that positive thinking centers on such things as a belief in your

abilities, a positive approach to challenges, and trying to make the most of thebad situations Bad things will happen Sometimes you will be disappointed

or hurt by the actions of others This does not mean that the world is out to get you or that all people will let you down Instead, positive thinkers will look at the situation realistically, search for ways that they can improve the situation, and try to learn from their experiences

2 The importance of Soft skills

2.1 The importance of Soft skills in general

Soft skills refer to a cluster of personal qualities, habits, attitudes thathave the potential to make someone a good student and compatible with therequirements of academia Put simply, they are the ways in which you talk, you move around, listen and present yourself Students who possess such skills are more adept and academic savvy They are able to gain a further understanding of tasks and successfully engage with them, enabling them togain more control over their learning

In addition, soft skills enable students with a strong conceptual and practical framework to build, develop and manage teams Soft skills also amount to good skills in communication; presenting information in a clear and concise manner; team-building ability; leadership; time management; group discussions; and interviews and interpersonal skills They play an important role in the development of the students’ overall personality, therebyenhancing their career prospects It also helps students in career visioning andplanning, effective resume writing and dealing with placement consultants and head hunters

2.2 The importance of Communication skill

Communication is the heart of every organization Everything you do inthe workplace results from communication Therefore, good reading, writing,speaking and listening skills are essential if tasks are going to be completed and goals achieved

Every day whether we want to or not we must communicate with others.But a lot of people are extremely subjective when communicating, in

particularly, they do not focus on sympathy and even have a lot of bad habits affecting their relationships

So, communication is a great skill for us to pay attention to and practice

to constantly improve our skills as well as bring more sympathy and

impression to those whom we have the opportunity to contact One of the first benefits when I communicate well is that I am always very confident when talking and sharing with everyone A lot of people are not equipped with communication methods, so they are often afraid and nervous,

especially when they contact with those who meet for the first time This explain why so many people lose a lot of precious opportunities to have a good communicator, a business partner or a support consultant

Besides, good communication will make you have a better professional imagine in others eyes Since then the words that the speaker himself has always weighed on people and seldom fall into the case of others by being satisfied with him Moreover, if we know how to grasp the psychology of those who are in contact, we will actively adjust flexibly to match the

exchange stories and always make the other person feel trustworthy no matterhow complicated the problems are Their topics are always made deeply good impression on the listeners

Not only that, when the ability to communicate is trained at higher

levels, you can completely improve the ability to convince and create an

intense attraction to business partners, thereby bringing the results

Best results for your career

2.3 The importance of Time management

You'll have more productive hours Efficient time management allows for extra productive hours during the week For example, if you gain an extra hour of focused output during the day through better organization and discipline, that adds up to 250 hours over the course of a year - or nearly a month and a half of extra working time

You'll be able to prioritize your tasks If you have good time

management skills, instead of being stressed about what needs to be done or what you should be working on, you'll know exactly what comes next and how you are planning to tackle it If you encounter problems that hold you

up, you will also have a much clearer idea of what to do - for example to delegate or to move on to another task - which will improve your efficiency.You’ll learn to delegate more efficiently Rather than forcing yourself into a role you don't care for, you should try to delegate your tasks instead Bydelegating to someone who has the required skill set, you'll get the task done, reduce your stress levels, and stay a happy employee, thus increasing your productivity

You’ll have more time for yourself Using time wisely lets you find moretime for the things that are most important to you This can be work-based - where you tackle a new project or tidy up a backlog of minor jobs that have been on your mind for a while

Time management is an important skill to acquire, as its use translates into every part of your work It will allow you to make better decisions and accomplish more with less effort While it's not physically possible to createmore hours in a day, by managing what you do have, you'll soon start to seethe benefits both in your life and your career

2.4 The importance of Teamwork skill