Meta Skills

The world is changing at a faster and faster pace, and that means that the way that we work and live are constantly changing and evolving as well. These changes are being pushed by advances in technology such as Artificial Intelligence and digitalisation, climate change, and increasing globalisation.

What are Meta skills and why are they important?

Put simply, this means that more and more jobs can be done by computers and machines, by people anywhere in the world, or need to be adapted as we all change the way we work and live in response to climate change. This can sound scary, but it can let you create new opportunities – and this is where meta skills become really important.

Meta skills are broad skills that are uniquely human – meaning that they are things that AI or computers can’t do! If advances in technology mean that lots of jobs can be done by AI, then meta skills are what makes human workers essential and irreplaceable.
Developing your meta skills will help prepare you for a new job and make it easier for you to adapt to any changes that come your way. They mean that not only can you react well to change – you can also begin to be proactive as well and use the changes to create new opportunities or jobs for yourself and others!
Skills Development Scotland have grouped key meta skills under 3 broad themes:

Self Management	Social Intelligence	Innovation
Focussing	Communicating	Curiosity
Integrity	Feeling	Creativity
Adapting	Collaborating	Sense making
Initiative	Leading	Critical thinking

How can I develop my meta skills?

You will already have started building a lot of these meta skills – whether you realise it or not! The COVID-19 pandemic has been a great example of our ability to adapt and change when we need to, and you will have demonstrated lots of different skills during this time, and at other times in your life. You will have developed a lot of skills in your life, but we all have gaps as well and it can be useful to know what these are so we can try and get better at things.

Self Management

Self Management covers how good you are at coping with lots of information and different priorities, deciding what is important and what is less relevant – and being able to multitask! It looks at how well you know yourself and how you work fits in with what is important to you. Here are some ways you could improve your skills:

Adapt to new ways of working or learning – such as working from home or learning online
Learn to use new technology that can help you – and teach others to use it as well!
Try to understand what kind of person you are, and what is important to you. If you know what your priorities are, it can be easier to make decisions. Free personality test, type descriptions, relationship and career advice | 16Personalities
Set yourself personal and professional goals (think about challenges you might have trying to achieve them, such as limiting your time on social media.)
Take on more responsibility – volunteer with a charity or a club. Take the lead with a project at work, or at a club/ team you go to. Look after family members who need help. Make sure you finish tasks that you are given and do what you say you will do.

Social Intelligence

If you’re working as part of a team, really join in –listen to group members, acknowledge good ideas and try to motivate your group. If they are struggling, don’t be scared to take the lead!
Try different ways of speaking to people – everyone might engage differently, so build your confidence in communicating with people in person, over the phone, using email or social media, or video chatting (cameras on).
Don’t panic if you have to do a presentation, either in person or online. These can be very stressful for some people, but as with many things practicing will make it easier and help you to feel more confident.
Try things like buddying or mentoring at work (or at school) – this will help you to meet people you might not have met otherwise, and improve your listening and communication skills

Innovation

Innovation is how you use logic to solve problems, learn to think creatively and analyse and use information. Here are some ways you could improve your skills:

If you are creative and like to create different things– is there something you could do with this ability? You could sell things that you make online, at markets, or through the people you know
Don’t be scared to think of ideas that seem a bit crazy – it’s easier to start with lots of ideas and narrow them down than to struggle to come up with anything at all – use your imagination!
Identify an opportunity in the market. For example, lots of companies producing alcoholic drinks switched to making hand sanitiser when there was a shortage at the start of the pandemic.
If you are a still at school, consider taking subjects that teach you how to analyse and use information creatively– things like maths, science, geography and creative arts.

Every experience you have helps you to develop and use your skills. Knowing what skills you have is a key part of applying for jobs, apprenticeships, and courses as they make up a large part of your CV, cover letter, and personal statements. It can be difficult to know what you are good at, and sometimes even harder to explain or give examples of how you have used your skills, so it is worth spending time working on this. My World of Work has a Skills Explorer Skills Explorer tool which can help you to see the different kinds of skills that you could have, and help you start to identify them.

For adults, who have had several jobs, there is also the Skills Discovery Tool available on My World of Work. This tool can help you to identify your skills from previous employment.