Life Skills are essential if you have to navigate through the complexities of life. Some life skills are just for basic survival while some you need to keep yourself sane. I have listed below ten life skills that, according to me, everyone needs to learn. Of course, this list is not exhaustive or based on any scientific research. But they are derived from common sense and my life experiences.
1. Cooking
If you want to survive in this world, you need to know how to cook yourself a meal. As simple as that. I am not saying you need to be a master chef. But, basic survival cooking is for everybody. For me, the ability to cook my meals represents two things – 1. not being dependent on anyone and 2. being in control of things. Plus, for me, cooking has always been therapeutic.
Unfortunately, in a lot of households, the role of cooking a meal falls on the shoulders of the lady of the house. Sure, your mother or wife may be an excellent cook. But that doesn’t mean we just assume that she is going to be cooking all our meals. I would initially answer rebelliously but later chuckle when people would say – “Hey I hear your wife is out of town. How are you managing your food?”. But now my answer is simple – “I cook for myself”.
And it isn’t just about gender roles or being a feminist or something. It is just pure common sense. Shouldn’t you be able to feed yourself when you are hungry? That’s just basic. And when you don’t need to not worry constantly about what’s for dinner tonight and who is cooking it, you feel liberated that very few men in our country currently feel.
So, I hope you cook up a storm. And never rely on another soul to feed you survival food.
2. Being Comfortable Alone
Most people will argue that this is not a skill you learn but something you are born with. If you are an introvert, you like spending time alone and if you are an extrovert, you dread staying alone. I disagree.
This is a life skill that you can and should learn. No matter if you are an introvert, extrovert, or ambivert. They are all just labels that should not define you.
Being comfortable alone is often the most difficult thing to do. Because people are just not comfortable sitting idle and getting deep in their thoughts, they would rather opt for the outside noise than the feeble voice inside. But trust me, once you start listening to your inner voice, there is no going back. For me, I have always had my parallel world that I live in when I am alone.
There is a popular song ‘Car Radio’ by ‘Twenty-One Pilots’. The premise of the song is that the car radio of the singer has broken down and now he just sits and drives in silence. And he is unable to bear the thoughts that come to his head. He has to deal with what he feels and there is no distraction to mask what is real. It is a mighty song that shows just how difficult it is to be comfortable alone. And that is also why you need to learn this skill so you never think that dealing with your feelings is a burden.
Being alone is not just sitting quietly and meditating or listening to your thoughts. It can be done in smaller things too. Like going to a restaurant alone, watching a movie alone, taking solo trips. You feel such empowerment when you realize you don’t need anyone to entertain you. And the relations you develop with others after discovering that, in my opinion, are much deeper. Because you don’t need that relationship but you want it.
3. Coding
This is a little controversial to be part of your essential life skills. There is also a debate between 2 sects of people about teaching coding to kids. One sect believes that children should be taught coding. The other believes we shouldn’t ruin their childhood and let them be. I agree with both of them. But I do believe that in the future world, coding will become a basic skill. Something everybody needs to do regardless of their field of work. Like PowerPoint or Excel. Also, coding in the future will be driven by LLMs so it would be just easier than it is today.
So it doesn’t matter if you learn to code as a child or adult, the important thing is you need to learn it. Leaving aside the apocalyptic future where the world is run entirely by computers (which it almost already does), coding is very therapeutic. Just like cooking, listening to music, or making art. While all the other activities involve the right brain, coding involves the left analytical one. But the effect is the same.
Coding is like creating something out of thin air. Just like art. But it is also a sense of control. Because the computer will act exactly the way you ask it to. Nothing more, nothing less. Coding is believing that when you follow the right steps – one after another, you will reach where you want to. And not just once but over and over again.
So, learn how to code. Doesn’t matter what language or what technology stack you choose. Doesn’t matter if the profession you choose involves coding or not. Once your brain starts to solve complex problems logically, once it starts creating algorithms for everything, it just gets addictive and there is no going back.
4. Understanding How Money Works
I am often baffled by the economic illiteracy of our world (including mine until a few years ago). Ever since I started getting deep in understanding how money works, my approach towards life has changed. For good. Now, I understand the place money has in our life and why is it important. I also understand that making money is just the first step to freedom.
I am a strong believer in aspiring for financial freedom. For me, financial freedom doesn’t mean that I have infinite money at my disposal. It means that I have the freedom to choose where I spend my time without having to worry about how are my bills going to be paid. I have explored the meaning of true financial freedom in another blog post. I have also shared several articles about my financial journey.
But the point is, if you have to truly live a life of freedom, you need to understand how money works. You need to understand how to make money and how to invest it. This is one of the most important life skills you need to learn.
5. Writing
Writing is a life skill that everybody should take time to learn. Communication forms one of the biggest aspects of our day-to-day lives. While there is a lot of focus on spoken communication, written communication is generally overlooked.
Writing gives structure to your thoughts that no other form of communication does. It enables you to communicate with people you will never meet. It is also the only form of communication that will outlive you.
For me, my writing has always been a part of my identity. It has opened doors that I didn’t know existed. It has also helped me thrive in a world designed for extroverts. On a personal front, it has also helped me ‘seal the deal’ with my then-girlfriend and now wife. So take up a writing course, practice it daily, share your thoughts with the world, and make your ideas immortal.
6. Basic Health Management
While the science of health management is pretty dense and sometimes overwhelming, it is important to understand at least the basics of it. Health is the biggest asset you can have. Everything else is secondary. Your body is the only one that will drive you through life. So taking care of that body should always be on your mind.
I am not saying to be an expert and start tracking every calorie you eat (although that wouldn’t hurt). But understanding what your body needs when is important/ And a good mix of healthy eating, active life, and good sleep should be designed to your needs. And you should be in control rather than leaving all of that to some app or your gym trainer.
7. Driving
This might seem trivial but, in my opinion, is one of the more important life skills. Sure, in the future there will be a time when all vehicles are autonomous and you won’t need to ‘drive’. But, until that time comes, everyone should know how to drive a car or ride a bike.
You need to learn to drive mainly for three reasons –
- Freedom of movement
- Emergencies
- For the fun of it
The first reason is the most important for me. I love long drives. I like the freedom of just the car out and start driving. No dependencies, no strings attached. You are probably noticing a pattern that a lot of my life skills give me a sense of freedom. Well, it is true. Freedom ranks the highest in what I want in life.
8. Solving a Rubik’s cube
I know what you are thinking – what a weird life skill to have. But, hear me out. Solving a Rubik’s cube is like magic. I have solved it thousands of times and still get a weird sense of satisfaction every time all the pieces fall into place.
But solving the cube isn’t just about that. The main reason you should learn to solve the cube is because it teaches you belief. The belief that no matter how chaotic things seem now, no matter how big the challenge, if you break it down into small pieces, and if you take one careful step at a time, you can solve anything.
Solving the cube is all about patience. It is about taking the right step and anticipating the next one. And if you take a wrong step, you start all over again. It is, after all, an algorithm. Sometimes, in life, we need to be reminded that decisions have to be taken by the mind and how you execute those decisions is all heart. But there needs to be a rhythm between the two. If you let one win over the other, things seem very difficult and far-fetched.
And most importantly, the reason to learn to solve the Rubik’s cube is to show off and look at impressed faces around. Here is my blog post about what learning to solve a Rubik’s cube taught me.
9. Empathy
It is debatable if empathy can be part of the life skills list or if it is a principle of life you live by. I will argue it is the former. UNESCO has also added it to their study of comprehensive life skills framework.
I think empathy and patience are two of my strengths that help me navigate the most difficult situations life keeps throwing at me. If you are unsure of how to develop the skill of empathy, in my experience, the three most important things that have helped me build empathy over time are –
- Reading – This has been the biggest contributor to my journey to be more empathetic. Read. As much as you can. It opens your mind to ideologies other than your own. For me, fiction has played a much bigger role in building empathy because you get introduced to so many different types of characters you would not otherwise meet in real life and you understand why they do what they do.
- Traveling – Travel to places that have different cultural practices, different languages, and different cuisines. It is the most humbling way to learn empathy.
- Meeting new people – Given my personality, I run away from small talk but dive into deep conversations. And when you have these deep conversations with strangers, it just opens up your mind to so much more than it thought was the boundary of the world before.
10. Perseverance
There are two different definitions of perseverance. One is that it is doing something despite difficulties. The second definition is the ability to apply sustained efforts toward long-term goals. Although they technically mean the same, I like the second definition better and do believe it is an important life skill to have.
Perseverance is the key to achieving long-term goals. Be it wealth creation through sustained investments or building health through small but sustained steps. Be it climbing the career ladder or building your startup. Perseverance or grit is what will take you to the finish line. And this life skill can only be learned through practice – every day of your life.
What are some of the life skills that you swear by? Do share in the comments below. If you want to read my other productivity blogs, you can check them out here.
