Things to be Taught in Every School I. Introduction: Importance of students’ ability to deal with the real world. A. Speaker

Things to be Taught in Every School
    Good afternoon, today’s lecture is going to talk about five important things that have to be taught in every school. I can’t speak for schools outside, the United States, but for those who went to school in America, I think you’ll agree that the American education system is in sore need of an upgrade. The world is changing at such a rapid pace and it’s my strong opinion that there should be more classes dedicated to helping students prepare and cope with the real world once they graduate. When you go on to college, you do a bit of the same things, but you also learn to think analytically, critically, and to broaden your mind so to speak, but even people who graduate from college will learn lessons from the real world the hard way as well.
    Below are five things that I firmly believe should be taught in every school in America so that students don’t get railroaded when they enter the real world.
    The first thing is personal finance. Every week or so, there always seems to be a new article in CNN, USA Today, or Yahoo about young adults struggling with debt, whether it be from credit cards or loans in general. High interest rates, hidden fees, not consolidating debt these terms and concepts are mostly unknown to young adults and because of that ignorance, they tend to make big errors in judgment. Credit score is another big thing. A lot of young adults don’t bother to check up on it to make sure there are no errors with it. Your credit score is your report card in the real world and it comes into play when you’re buying a car, renting your first apartment, and even when you’re getting a job. Protect that at all costs. Learn what drives your credit score down. Learn what drives your credit score up. Check up on it every now and then to ensure nothing is wrong with it. Another important subset regarding personal finance are those "intangible" things, such as learning to differentiate between need and want, delaying the gratification, and having an inner sense of value. These concepts can’t be taught in the classroom but only taught through oneself via self discipline.
    The second is to communicate effectively. I know that sounds simple, but I’m sure you’ve met people in the workplace who don’t take the time to prepare when they speak with you and as a result, waste your time talking in circles when all you want to say to them is: "Can you take some time to think through what you want to say and come back to me later with that?" Communicating effectively is one of the most underrated, yet most powerful skills you can develop. The biggest part in communicating effectively is preparing what you want to say beforehand. Keep it simple. What’s my point? Why? Prepare a good example. Communicating effectively is one of the most underrated and most valuable skills a person can have. And let me tell you on a personal level, there’s nothing more refreshing than dealing with people who take the time to prepare what they have to say and back it up with clear examples. It’s a very rare skill nowadays.
    Now, let’s come to social skills. In general, social skills are closely related to communicating effectively. After you graduate, you’re not going to be dealing with your high school or college friends anymore. You’ll be dealing with many people from different backgrounds, countries, and more importantly different age groups, so it would be wise to learn how to socialize outside your own group. Cut the slang. Learn to respect customs from other countries. Learn when to speak and when not to. Build rapport. Learn the art of networking—that’s key. Networking is a big skill that’s not taught enough in schools. Learn to approach people—that’s another big skill. Most people don’t have the guts to take the first initiative and introduce themselves. Be the big man. Take the first step.
    The thing of sales ranks the fourth. Obviously I’m not advocating people becoming a salesman after school, but learning the art of selling is what I’m advocating. If you think about it, we all sell everyday. We sell ideas to our boss. We sell to our friends when we pitch ideas on what to do this weekend. We sell ourselves in job interviews. You could say that sales is a great combination of social skills and communicating effectively, but with some other components you should pick up that will be useful. Selling is one of the few skills that can be utilized in any job or career. It’s one of the most important cross marketable skills you will ever develop.
    The last one is time management. Speaking of other skills that can be utilized in any job and career is time management. The majority of students never really learn to value their time and manage it while in school. This lack of time management often carries over into adulthood, which becomes a major liability. Learn to make a "to do list". Learn to prioritize. David Allen’s GTD system is your best friend here along with Dan Kennedy’s No B.S Time Management. Again if you’re unfamiliar with these people, Google is your best friend, but I’m sure the majority of readers will know what I’m talking about.
    To sum up, these five things including personal finance, effective communication, social skills, sales and time management play a crucial role in school education.