There are three essential skills I wish I had learnt at school – effective communication, evaluation and action planning.

Yes.  I wish I had learnt these skills a lot sooner.

Without effective communication it can be difficult achieving the results you want out of life. I highly recommend teaching these skills to children.
 
My parents were immigrants from Italy. They migrated to Melbourne, Australia in January 1967.  It wasn’t easy not being able to speak English but they managed.
 
My mother was a housewife and my dad suffered from a severe head injury which left him with depression.  He was no longer fit for work.   This reduced the household income.  At that time, my parents didn’t see the benefits in learning English as they didn’t ‘need it’.
 
The world has changed since the 1960s.  We no longer want to be reactive to what life throws at us.  We want to be proactive; confident in our ability to communicate and get our message across.

I have learnt the true value of being an effective communicator and evaluator and then taking the next action steps to make my goals and dreams a reality.  I truly believe these are essential life skills that should be taught in our schools and within our communities.
 
Words have power. I see so many people taken advantage of because they don’t know the power of effective communication.  To actually think through the results of their words.  To actually guide the conversation rather than reacting to it and ‘losing out’.
 
There would be much better outcomes through the power of effective communication, evaluation and action planning.  Young people and everyone could make better decisions.  Tears and tragedy could be averted with some foresight.

Sina Marasco DTM
Eastern Division Director