Handout 1 – Work Readiness Skills
This handout provides detailed definitions of the work readiness skills emphasized in
MekongSkills2Work.
Adaptability
Receptive to change and solves problems as they arise
Workplace behavior and attitudes
 Demonstrates behavior and attitudes that are
appropriate for the workplace
 Incorporates feedback effectively; deals positively
with praise, setbacks, and criticism
 Understands that workplaces have policies and
procedures that need to be followed
 Adapts to varied roles, jobs, responsibilities,
schedules, and context
Flexible Thinking and Behavior1
 Receptive to change and able to identify a new
course of action when things do not go as planned or
expected
 Anticipates and responds positively to changing
environments
 Balances diverse views and beliefs to reach workable
solutions
Taking on Challenges
 Takes on challenges on short notice
Diligence
Takes initiative, works hard to do his or her best work, pays attention to detail and quality, and is able to set and
achieve goals
Taking initiative at work, work ethic
 Takes initiative and responsibility for his/her own
work
 Knows how to work under and respect supervision
Hard work and perseverance
 Is willing to work hard and persists to accomplish a
task in the face of difficulty
 Demonstrates steady effort
 Seeks help when needed
Attention to detail
 Is conscientious and pays attention to details
 Is disciplined in terms of delivery
1
Partnership for 21st Century Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.p21.org/ and used with permission of P21.
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Collaboration
Works well with others to achieve individual and group goals in a variety of settings
Cooperating and work as a team member
 Works with others to achieve individual and group
goals
 Understands that team members need each other in
order to complete the group’s task (positive
interdependence)
 Gets along well with others, in a variety of settings
and for a range of purposes
Communicating in a collaborative team
 Explains, discusses, and teaches what he/she knows
to other team members
 Gets along well with others, in a variety of settings
and for a range of purposes
Leading teamwork/group cooperation
 Motivates and organizes others and able to lead a
team in accomplishing its goals
 Promotes social skills— leadership, decision-making,
trust-building, communication, and conflictmanagement
 Promotes other group members’ learning by helping,
sharing, and encouraging them
 Is responsible for, and accountable to teammates by,
completing some part of the task
Group reflection
 As a team, reflects on their own learning on their
work in order to improve overall performance
Time Management
Able to complete tasks in a timely manner and shows up for work on time
Long-term and short-term goals
 Creates realistic, time-bound goals
Planning and tracking progress
 Monitors progress toward attaining one’s goals
 Prioritizing goals
 Adjusts plans as they change
Task management
 Develops realistic work schedules
 Adjusts plans as they change
 Participates fully in a work task or project from
initiation to completion, using appropriate time
management skills
 Tracks to do lists
Workplace expectations
 Follows workplace rules and expectations
Balancing work and home life
 Manages family commitments so they do not
interfere with work, and vice versa
 Uses work time effectively and efficiently
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Problem Solving
Able to take steps to find realistic, effective, and logical solutions
Problem-solving steps
 Takes steps to find realistic, effective, and logical
solutions
 Follows problem solving steps:
1. Define the problem: keep emotions aside and
state the problem
2. Get more information about the problem: at
work – from supervisor, colleagues, written
materials
3. Generate many ideas on how to solve the
problem: there is often more than one
solution!
4. Choose a solution: should be acceptable to all
involved
5. Implement the solution
6. Evaluate the solution: Has the problem been
solved?
Leading problem solving
 Is able to guide sound problem-solving and decisionmaking processes
Communication
Communicates clearly and gets along well with others for a range of purposes
Listening skills and speaking strategies, speaking with
clarity
 Speaks and listens actively and appropriately oneon-one and in groups
 Speaks clearly and directly
 Listens actively to improve understanding
 Treats the ideas of others respectfully and develops
mutual trust
Recognizing nonverbal communication
 Recognizes nonverbal cues in themselves and others
Giving and receiving instructions and feedback
 Follows instructions and seeks clarification
 Asks questions
 Gives clear instructions to others
Giving presentations
 Gives presentations about with confidence and
clarity
 Engages the audience and pays attention to their
needs
 Communicates clearly, concisely, and naturally
 Makes eye contact, and uses non-verbal cues to
engage the audience
 Uses well-designed visual aids
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Communication
Communicates clearly and gets along well with others for a range of purposes
Digital Communication
 Selects the best mode of communication for a
particular audience and message
 Writes professional e-mails
 Follows good design principles
 Ensures that messages are clear and free of spelling
and grammatical errors
Customer service skills
 Provides good customer service
Handling conflict with customers
 Solves problems for difficult customers or clients
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