What is an employability skill?

They are set of skills, knowledge and personal attributes that make an individual more employable.

Why is it important?
Employers are demanding skills from graduates which are outside their subject area of study in the university.
This means that graduate job recruiters now place less importance on one's actual degree and focus more generic skills.
This is the reality of what is needed in the job market.

Are you a fresh graduate looking for what can be expected in the job market?
Or do you need to improve the skill in the career you have already?

Here are 5 important employability skill that an employee must-have or develop:

1. Communication skill: It usually involves ones ability to take in, process and transmit information accurately to or from other people without misunderstanding. It usually involves listening and asking the right questions for proper understanding.

So if you find difficulty in a job you're given, don't be shy to ask questions.

One pitfall is ASSUMPTION.Do not assume that because you have always known a thing to be done in a particular way that's how it will be done elsewhere. Make sure you follow the procedures stated by your organization.

2. Teamwork: While being a student you may have been assigned to groups to work on a project and usually what happens is that one or two-persons end up doing all the work.

Well, you'd be surprised how important it is to work in groups(teams) in the real world.

The truth is...
Your ability to work with others in groups and teams, both formal and informal, sharpens your negotiation or influencing skill, decision making and problem-solving skill and you're also going to be able to handle conflicts when it arises within the group. These are vital skills needed in most jobs.

So if you're still a student and you're reading this think twice before you feel reluctant to participate in your group work�

3. Learning skill: This is your willingness to be open to new ideas and experiences, and always looking to improve your skills and knowledge.

Maybe you're given a task you haven't done before,
DON'T relax and say you don't know it
DO the WORK!
Research and learn!
This way you become better at your work and improve the efficiency of the organisation.

4. Personal skill: This usually has to do with one's ability to be organised, reliable and dependable-This means doing what you say that you will do. It also means being able to look around and see what needs doing—and then do it! In doing this,
Time management is also involved.

Giving yourself deadlines and sticking to it!
Delivering at the proper time without being chased to deliver.
It makes you more trustworthy and it reduces the chances of you being laid off at work.

5. Emotional intelligence: An ability to recognise, understand and manage your own and others’ emotions, and use them positively to achieve the desired outcomes.
It often involves doing jobs or tasks we may not want to do but we know are necessary.

Keep this in mind that there are a variety of skills and you may not be able to learn all at once but you can start somewhere pick one, work on it and in no time you would have mastered more skill than you imagine!