Author: Dr Karina de Bruin, Managing Director, JvR Academy, a division of the JvR Africa Group
It is a well-known fact to anyone in South Africa that the country is suffering from an extremely high unemployment rate. Compared to adults, the unemployment rate among the youth, irrespective of educational level, is significantly higher. Close to 30% of young persons (15-24 years) appear not to be in employment, education or training. When the age margins for the youth population are expanded to early thirties, the unemployment rate reaches levels of almost 56%. Many youngsters do not find a job because of the mismatch between their education or training and labour market needs and requirements. Adding to this bleak picture, more and more reports and articles predicting how technology is going to replace jobs, or rather replacing the people holding those jobs, are being published by credible sources. These figures are not particularly encouraging for those who are experiencing unemployment. They also don’t paint a positive picture for learners who are preparing for their final school exams prior to entering higher education institutions or the work place. There is hope Fortunately, the published forecasts do not only predict gloom. Sometimes reading between the lines, there is a lot of hope for the future of human work. A recent article in the Harvard Business Review highlights several human characteristics that would be extremely relevant in the future world of work. These include imagination, creativity, and strategy. Along the same lines, a recent Deloitte report mentions that the capacity for creativity and problem-solving will set one employee apart from another in future work settings. Work activities that involve these abilities are not that easy to automate and therefore the involvement of people (rather than robots) is almost guaranteed. Furthermore, a basic internet search of non-technical workplace skills and analyses of job advertisements have confirmed the importance of these and many other skills. These include among others teamwork, communication, self-management, planning and organising, initiative, critical thinking, and adaptability. These skills are often commonly referred to as 21st century skills or employability skills. Employability skills are those skills that are necessary for finding, keeping, and being successful in a job. In times of high unemployment and work environments marked by technological take over, employers have a larger pool of applicants to choose from and will favour those with well-rounded employability skills. Although these skills can be developed, some of these come naturally to many individuals, in which instance they can be regarded as strengths. And seeing that they are extremely relevant in the workplace, we can even call them workplace strengths. Strengths can be defined as underlying qualities that give us energy, help us grow and lead to high levels of performance. For example, if someone has a strength in terms of strategic mindedness, it is likely that he or she will be energised by focusing on the future and taking a strategic perspective on issues and challenges that he or she is confronted with. Such a person may play a valuable role in any organisation – especially in the current volatile world of work, where organisations often need to be flexible to adjust their strategy to cope effectively with the challenges. Identifying strengths To differentiate yourself from the thousands of applicants out there in the same position as you, you need to understand what it is that makes you stand out. One way of doing this is to identify and reflect on “defining moments” in all the areas of your life – this could include school, part-time jobs, volunteer work, and previous full-time employment. Identify times when you felt energised and performed at your best – remember that we are getting energised by our strengths! Ask yourself questions such as: “what did I learn about myself and my strengths from these situations? What type of work really energises me?” Discussions with friends and colleagues, who shared these environments with you provide a good platform for identifying these underlying strengths. This strengths-based approach turns individual development upside down. Instead of focusing on weaknesses that need to be overcome, it focuses on natural talents and on finding ways to complement them with further use and development. However, this approach should not provide any excuse for not being aware of and developing other important qualities and skills. For example, if teamwork does not come naturally to you, it might be good to challenge yourself to go beyond what you regard as your natural talents. It is therefore of the greatest importance to identify opportunities where your newly acquired skills, as well as your natural employability talents can be developed to enhance your chances of getting the job you really want. ENDS MEDIA CONTACT: Idéle Prinsloo, 082 573 9219, idele@thatpoint.co.za, www.atthatpoint.co.za ABOUT JvR Africa Group: JvR Africa Group of companies consists of JvR Psychometrics, JvR Consulting Psychologists, JvR Academy, and JvR Safety. With its head office situated in Johannesburg; the group conducts business nationally and across Sub-Saharan Africa. They work with test developers, consultants and academic institutions all over the world, support a range of development opportunities and host events around People Development in Africa, a cause they feel is extremely important for the future of our continent. For more information on JvR Africa Group please visit: Website: https://jvrafricagroup.co.za/ LinkedIn: JvR Africa Group Facebook: The JvR Africa Group - People Development in Africa Twitter: JvR Africa Group YouTube: The JvR Africa Group
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Author: Dr Jopie de Beer, CEO of JvR Africa Group People in leadership positions often behave badly, which may be the reason why up to 75% of employees internationally report that their manager/leader is the worst part of their job. In fact, all over the world trust in leadership is also reported as being at an all-time low. Bad leaders often create circumstances where everyone around them "drink from the poison cup" to experience turmoil, risk, fragmentation and despair. In circumstances like these it becomes exceptionally important to use ways of strengthening our own- and other's resilience and to jealously guard our personal experience of wellbeing or happiness. This is why it is important to put forward that leadership is much more than "being in charge", those occupying such positions have the responsibility to create an environment where people want to live, work and play, where they feel that they contribute and where they are treated with respect. In addition, it is crucial that relationships in the workplace be managed in such a way that the necessary discipline including trust, respect, loyalty and hope co- exists. From within Each person’s experience of wellbeing (happiness) is impacted on by our hard wiring and mental habits. Happiness or the lack there-of comes from within ourselves and the way we think can drive us to despair and helplessness or to positive problem solving. With regard to our resilience our personal thinking habits may make life intolerable or filled with opportunities. We know those with a lighter mood find interpersonal relationships easier and tend to be generally more resilient. Without underestimating the harsh realities people live in and how it could impact on their sense of wellbeing and happiness. We should all consider using our well-known South African sense of humor as often as possible. Let's laugh at ourselves and those we live with. Such laughter has very valuable physiological and emotional benefit but it also has an invaluable social benefit when we are able to laugh together. The belief of being helpless and/or the victim of circumstances and blaming others have no value in building your resilience or sense of well-being- particularly if used as an excuse for poor behaviour or non-action. By re-framing experiences to highlight opportunities rather than catastrophes will already make life easier for all. Try to see events as a "blip on the graph" that will pass and if a situation is not of your doing stop blaming yourself for it. Celebrate the fact that there are many more good than bad people in our country and how much we enjoy living and shopping together. Don’t just survive, thrive There are, of course, many types of happiness or wellbeing. It is much more complex than it seems. For some, happiness may come from everyday possessions and experiences, but even more sustainable happiness comes from finding satisfaction in what you do every day and making sure that there is meaning and purpose of your life. Well-being /happiness may at first seem to be related to survival but also has much to do with being able to thrive. In a country where the unemployment levels are higher than ever before, where poverty and poor education are regularly reported in the media, where political murders are taking place and crime seems to be out of control, it is not difficult to understand that it affects the mood and resilience of the citizens. Maslow's theory illustrates that it is very difficult for people to have a sense of wellbeing if their basic needs for survival, safety, security and belonging are not met. These are prerequisites for being proud and self-actualised. Although there are circumstance or realities ordinary citizens cannot do much about, we are however empowered to work on our own beliefs and habits in seeking well-being and happiness even in chaotic contexts. Bad leaders have a limited shelf-life and should they do not survive - let’s make sure we do! ENDS MEDIA CONTACT: Idéle Prinsloo, 082 573 9219, idele@thatpoint.co.za, www.atthatpoint.co.za ABOUT JvR Africa Group: JvR Africa Group of companies consists of JvR Psychometrics, JvR Consulting Psychologists, JvR Academy, and JvR Safety. With its head office situated in Johannesburg; the group conducts business nationally and across Sub-Saharan Africa. They work with test developers, consultants and research institutions all over the world. They support a range of development opportunities and hosts a biannual conference on People Development in Africa, a cause they feel is extremely important to the future of our continent. For more information on JvR Africa Group please visit: Website: https://jvrafricagroup.co.za/ LinkedIn: JvR Africa Group Facebook: The JvR Africa Group - People Development in Africa Twitter: JvR Africa Group YouTube: The JvR Africa Group |
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