Word: Employability Skills
Definition: The generic skills, learned through education and life experience, you can use in any workplace.

These include:

basic academic skills like reading writing, math, listening and speaking skills personal management skills
teamwork skills

Why do I need these skills?

Changes in the economy have altered the way people do work. Many jobs are not full-time, nine-to-five anymore. There are new ways of working, such as contract work and freelance work, that require workers to work for an employer for a specific amount of time, then work for another employer for another period of time.

Because workers are changing employers so often, they need to have basic skills that help them adapt to new workplaces, get along with new co-workers and understand the technology and materials of a new employer.

You've been developing employability skills throughout your life in school, at home and in your community and I bet you didn't know it! Almost all of life's situations teach us skills and lessons we use in work situations.

For example:

Stop pressing the snooze button or you'll be late! If you manage to get to school, work and other commitments on time, you have time management skills. Being a good time manager is important for you to be able to juggle all the events in your life.

Eat your vegetables! If you think taking care of your mind, body and soul through proper eating and exercise is important, you have a high self-esteem and positive self-image, which helps you make the best life decisions for your needs.

Why can't we all just get along? If you understand and respect the cultures and opinions of those around you, you have adaptability skills, which help you get along with everyone.

Be a team player! If you like working in groups and learning from other group members, you have teamwork skills. These skills help you work with others to complete projects.

Shut the light off, it's past your bedtime! If you love magazines and books so much that you read under your sheets with a flashlight instead of getting your beauty sleep, you have reading skills. These skills help you learn information from written materials.

Please stop talking and pay attention! If you love talking with people and learning from them, you have speaking skills. This is an important communication skill that helps you ask questions to understand the world around you and help others understand you.

Don't fear technology! If you enjoy spending time surfing the 'net or working with different software you have computer skills. Being able to operate a computer will help you learn the technology used in many workplaces.

Be an artist, be a career creator!

These employability skills are important to have, and the more skills you develop, the more employers will want to hire you.

Workers today are artists creating their futures. Like artists taking paintbrushes and creating new works of art, you take your skills and create work opportunities with the tools, or skills, you have.