Life skills are a group of psychosocial competencies and interpersonal skills that help people make informed decisions, solve problems, think critically and creatively, communicate effectively, build healthy relationships, empathize with others and cope with and manage their lives in a healthy and responsible manner.

There are many life skills that children need to succeed. A few most essential life skills are:

1. Self-esteem and confidence

Self-esteem is a foundational life skill and is reflected in how we value ourselves and our worth, to our families, friends and the world around us. The way we see ourselves is more crucial than the way the world sees us!

2. Empathy and respect

Respect and empathy are the most humane skills. A child who demonstrates these life skills of being caring, kind and empathetic will always be respected and happier in life.

3. Resilience and positive thinking

Failure and disappointments are a part of life. As a parent, do not shield and overprotect your child. It is important for your child to learn how to ‘bounce’ back from these failures and not take them to their heart or let them define their life.

4. Collaboration and teamwork

To be successful in working with diversity will help them to learn the life skills of collaboration, effective teamwork and negotiation skills. As parents, we should start preparing our children for this globalization by exposing them to different kinds of art forms, music, literature, foods and talk to them about the rich diversity of people, beliefs and ideas in India as well as in different regions of the world.

5. Stress and anger management skills

The pressures that our children face today on the social and academic front are intense, and leave them feeling frustrated, irritable and sometimes drawn towards substance abuse and other high-risk behaviours. As parents, we need to talk about these pressures and how they manifest in a negative way on our children.

6. Cognitive skills and thinking skills Cognitive-based life skills of decision-making, problem-solving, goal-setting and time management bring more purpose and order into your child’s routine as well as into yours.