A lot of people out there lack life skills that are very useful.
I’m not talking trash either, there are some things I probably should have learned along the way that I just never did.
But, there’s still time!
So maybe these responses from folks on AskReddit will give you some inspiration to learn some new skills.
Let’s take a look!
1. Learn to swim.
“My Dad was a naval officer and made a point of seeing all his kids learned to swim at an early age.
I literally cannot remember ever being unable to swim.
It took me a while as a child to grasp that a lot of people don’t know how to swim.”
2. This is very important.
“How to listen.
A lot of people currently tend to lack the ability to actually listen.
It’s not about shouting points at each other, it’s about shutting up and actually listening to what the other person is saying.”
3. You gotta do it.
“Self reflection.
You can NOT grow as a person without it.”
4. The essentials.
“Basic gardening, food preservation, and cooking.
And the basics of sewing.”
5. Fix it up!
“Fixing your own stuff.
Including electronics like broken screens and other stuff like your car.”
6. This is good!
“When I was in high school and failed to get a summer job, my dad made me cook every meal (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) for the family, every day, for the whole summer, as “punishment”. It ended up being inadvertently the most valuable “lesson” he ever taught me.
On top of that, I wasn’t allowed to ever repeat a dish. Worked my way through a whole cookbook, and then some.
Being able to cook a wide variety of really good meals is a constant source of simple joy in my life… not to mention, it’s a massive advantage in the dating scene.”
7. Get the facts.
“How to extrapolate useful information from biased media sources.
A simple way I do it is first break it down into the facts. Then look at another biased source on the other side and do the same. Whatever is comparable is probably true, and anything else MAY be true but with less emphasis than the media gives it.
Also, remember that media as a whole (right left etc) caters to your reactions. There’s a reason that you will always see more negative, fearful, anger inducing news than happy news. More people will watch news about some bad incident or tradgedy than they will about something equally good.
And because bad news means more viewers, naturally it’s in the media’s best interest to get the most eyeballs on their stuff.”
8. Very important!
“When I was in high school track, my coach went into cardiac arrest after doing 200m sprints with us.
Me and some other students got some other teachers and they performed CPR on him until the ambulance arrived.
They saved his life. LEARN. C.P.R.!”
9. It’s true…
“How to write an email.
Seriously, too many people go out into the wide world with no idea how to write a professional-level email.
Writing one the same way you text won’t cut it when you are looking for a job.”
10. We all need to do this.
“How to unplug and enjoy silence and solitude.”
11. Car care.
“Basic car care.
Everyone should be able to change their own oil and rotate their tires, at a minimum.
Both are super simple and require only a few tools but can save you a lot of money.”
12. Learn it. Live it.
“Basic finance.
I’m in my 30s and shocked by how many people my age don’t understand how credit works.”
13. Become a good studier.
“How to study correctly. It seems like a small thing but the majority of my school life I didn’t have to study at all and I did well anyway.
But later on it gets so much harder just to retain information.
Learning to study good and well is a skill everyone should learn.”
14. Saves time and money.
“How to fix basic problems that come up. Unclog a drain, replace a plug, sew on a button, etc.
Minor problem fixing saves time and money.”
15. Protect yourself.
“How to break out of someone’s grip.
I’ve taught my wife, my daughter, many of my female friends, and back in the day when I was a daycare teacher, all of my students.
We had someone try to kidnap one of our older kids once, and that was it, that very day I taught all of the kids and drilled it with them over the next couple of weeks. Even had a Grandmother come in to pick up her Granddaughter and ask for me specifically so that she could thank me for showing her granddaughter how to do that.
Thing to remember, do not try to pull against their fingers, you can hold your body weight by your fingers (think of hanging from the monkey bars by your fingers).
Instead pull towards their thumb. The thumb is weak in comparison to the fingers. Also scream “Fire!!”, Not help. People react faster to “Fire!!” Then they do for “Help!!” I hope this helps. Many basic self-defense classes will go over this and more.
Remember, you don’t need to be an MMA fighter to get yourself out of a bad situation.”
What do you think?
What’s a useful skill that everyone should learn how to do?
Please share your thoughts with us in the comments.
