What does it take to succeed? A positive attitude? Well, sure, but that’s hardly enough. The Law of Attraction? The Secret? These ideas might act as spurs to action, but without the action itself, they don’t do much.

Success, however it’s defined, takes action, and taking good and appropriate action takes skills. Some of these skills (not enough, though) are taught in school (not well enough, either), others are taught on the job, and still others we learn from general life experience.

Below is a list of general skills that will help anyone get ahead in practically any field, from running a company to running a gardening club. Of course, there are skills specific to each field as well – but my concern here is with the skills that translate across disciplines, the ones that can be learned by anyone in any position.

1. Public Speaking

The ability to speak clearly, persuasively, and forcefully in front of an audience – whether an audience of 1 or of thousands – is one of the most important skills anyone can develop. People who are effective speakers come across as more comfortable with themselves, more confident, and more attractive to be around. Being able to speak effectively means you can sell anything – products, of course, but also ideas, ideologies, worldviews. And yourself – which means more opportunities for career advancement, bigger clients, or business funding.

2. Writing

Writing well offers many of the same advantages that speaking well offers: good writers are better at selling products, ideas, and themselves than poor writers. Learning to write well involves not just mastery of grammar but the development of the ability to organize one’s thoughts into a coherent form and target it to an audience in the most effective way possible. Given the huge amount of text generated by almost every transaction – from court briefs and legislation running into the thousands of pages to those foot-long receipts you get when you buy gum these days – a person who is a master of the written word can expect doors to open in just about every field.

3. Self-Management

If success depends of effective action, effective action depends on the ability to focus your attention where it is needed most, when it is needed most. Strong organizational skills, effective productivity habits, and a strong sense of discipline are needed to keep yourself on track.

4. Networking

Networking is not only for finding jobs or clients. In an economy dominated by ideas and innovation, networking creates the channel through which ideas flow and in which new ideas are created. A large network, carefully cultivated, ties one into not just a body of people but a body of relationships, and those relationships are more than just the sum of their parts. The interactions those relationships make possible give rise to innovation and creativity – and provide the support to nurture new ideas until they can be realized.

5. Critical Thinking

We are exposed to hundreds, if not thousands, of times more information on a daily basis than our great-grandparents were. Being able to evaluate that information, sort the potentially valuable from the trivial, analyze its relevance and meaning, and relate it to other information is crucial – and woefully under-taught. Good critical thinking skills immediately distinguish you from the mass of people these days.

6. Decision-Making

The bridge that leads from analysis to action is effective decision-making – knowing what to do based on the information available. While not being critical can be dangerous, so too can over-analyzing, or waiting for more information before making a decision. Being able to take in the scene and respond quickly and effectively is what separates the doers from the wannabes.

7. Math

You don’t have to be able to integrate polynomials to be successful. However, the ability to quickly work with figures in your head, to make rough but fairly accurate estimates, and to understand things like compound interest and basic statistics gives you a big lead on most people. All of these skills will help you to analyze data more effectively – and more quickly – and to make better decisions based on it.

8. Research

Nobody can be expected to know everything, or even a tiny fraction of everything. Even within your field, chances are there’s far more that you don’t know than you do know. You don’t have to know everything – but you should be able to quickly and painlessly find out what you need to know. That means learning to use the Internet effectively, learning to use a library, learning to read productively, and learning how to leverage your network of contacts – and what kinds of research are going to work best in any given situation.

9. Relaxation

Stress will not only kill you, it leads to poor decision-making, poor thinking, and poor socialization. So be failing to relax, you knock out at least three of the skills in this list – and really more. Plus, working yourself to death in order to keep up, and not having any time to enjoy the fruits of your work, isn’t really “success”. It’s obsession. Being able to face even the most pressing crises with your wits about you and in the most productive way is possibly the most important thing on this list.

10. Basic Accounting

It is a simple fact in our society that money is necessary. Even the simple pleasures in life, like hugging your child, ultimately need money – or you’re not going to survive to hug for very long. Knowing how to track and record your expenses and income is important just to survive, let alone to thrive. But more than that, the principles of accounting apply more widely to things like tracking the time you spend on a project or determining whether the value of an action outweighs the costs in money, time, and effort. It’s a shame that basic accounting isn’t a required part of the core K-12 curriculum.

What Else?

Surely there are more important skills I’m not thinking of (which is probably why I’m not telling Bill Gates what to do!) – what are they? What have I missed? What lessons have you learned that were key to your successes – and what have you ignored to your peril?

Technorati Tags: 10 skills, almost anything, basic accounting, critical thinking, decision, featured, learning, lifestyle, making, math, Networking, public speaking, relaxation, Research, self-managament, skill, speaking, succeed, success, thinking, writing

Hey everyone!

I’m in NYC, working from a girfriend’s office and generally just acting like I own this town. Last night we ate at this cute spot called The Grey Dog’s Cafe where I washed down a chicken and avocado salad with a pint of sangria and then splurged on Pinkberry ($-wise, I mean; a medium with mangoes and strawberries costs more than a martini. OK, half a martini.) Tomorrow I’ll be appearing on on the Today Show (link to come), spouting off about everything you need to exercise safely outside in the summer…not including obvious gimmes like sunblock and bug spray.

Here’s the scoop:

Drink up!
HydraCoach hydration monitor calculates, monitors and provides instant feedback on fluid consumption. You just punch in your weight and activity for the day and it spits out a personal hydration goal. Then, it coaches you to drink more (or less, for you overachievers out there) as the day goes on! It’s like a mini Jillian Michaels, in water bottle form. i need this considering the majority of water I drink during the day comes from inadvertently swallowing some while brushing my teeth or showering.

Sigg water bottles are reusable so you’re not leaving a mini-carbon footprint every day, plus they have a water-based, non-toxic coating baked into the interior – nothing leaching into your H20. (Perhaps you’ve heard of BPA, or bisphenol-A, a lovely toxin that seeps out of plastic bottles and mimics estrogen in the body? Yucksters.)

Don’t be a victim
AirDrive earphones let you jam to G. Stefani but also allow you to hear ambient noise, like traffic or someone approaching you from behind.

Tip: According to the Department of Justice, nearly one quarter of violent crimes occur during leisure activities away from home…like running.

Fight back
The New Balance/Via pedometer has - get this - a panic button. That is so Jodie Foster! Keep track of your steps and know that should, God forbid anything happen, you can pull up a lever and sound a 120 decibel screeching alarm (for comparison, a power saw is 110 decibels…your baby crying for two hours straight is about 200 decibels.). Plus, you can keep track of your calories! (sarcasm, ok?)

Tip: There are now some studies suggesting that walking 10,000 steps a day is the best. Try starting with 2500/day as a goal.

Keep track of your heart rate
NuMetrex sportsbras and tanks incorporate a heart rate monitor into the clothing itself. I haven’t been so psyched about a techie clothing product since Hypercolor shirts. Not only can you ensure you’re in your target heart rate zone without taking your pulse, but you can avoid overdoing it - crucial in heat and humidity.

Tip: According to the American Heart Association, your maximum heart rate is about 220 minus your age. You want to staying within 50 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate–this range is called your target heart rate. For a 30-year-old woman, 95-162 beats per minute is your target heart rate.

Stay cool
Champion’s O2Cool line is made with two moisture-wicking layers and is eco-chic (made with fibers) Besides wicking sweat away, mesh panels and mesh-vented bras add cool ventilation

Insider tip: This stuff is on sale now!

Be seen at night
For you super hardcore nighttime exercisers out there, illumiNITE clothing gives ya head-to-toe reflectivity. A special material acts like a bazillion little mirrors working together to reflect light back to its originating source, meaning drivers see your entire silhouette.

If you wanna be seen but don’t want to light up like a Christmas tree, make sure your gear has reflective stripes or logos. Try Lucy, maker of all things gorgeous and beautiful. I especially like their Interval Skirt, which has a cute reflective design on the front left hip and back right hem. Plus, their website touts the skirt’s contoured waistband as being “anti-muffintop” which makes me giggle.

Tip: The largest number of pedestrian accidents and fatalities occur during the morning and evening hours as the sun is rising or falling. People are almost twice as likely to get in a car accident the Monday after Daylight Savings Time, as we’re not used to changes in sunlight.

Hope you can catch the show tomorrow - I’ll be on sometime in the 9 o’clock hour. When I smile, it means I’m think of you!

PS For even more ways to stay safe when pumping it outside this summer, check out these links from iVillage
Beating the heat
Lightning safety
Carnival ride safety
Be sun smart
Be safe at the beach
Wear a helmet!
7 Steps to summer safety

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From picnics on the beach to backyard barbecues, summertime always includes eating outdoors. What these alfresco events usually don’t include are refrigerators, stoves or warming shelves. It’s important to know that your dishes can be served at any temperature and won’t spoil in the sun or change in flavor or texture if they’ve been in transport for too long.

Here are some recipes for side dishes that can accompany a great variety of warm-weather main courses. They’ll become staples for just about any outdoor occasion that comes your way this summer.

Technorati Tags: Food Portable Picnic Side Dishes

by Melissa F. Pheterson Anxious about baring your bod in warm weather? Don’t sweat it. Shedding pounds for summer doesn’t have to entail major sacrifices. In fact, these weight-loss trends are pretty sweet. Grab an apple to whittle your waistline, let your cell phone bail you out of diet disaster, and postpone your diet ’til tomorrow. We mean it!

Technorati Tags: diet, for summer, Melissa F. Pheterson, slim, summer