Five skills that require no talent, yet, without them, no talent will survive

By Gregory Ronczewski, Director of Product Design at Ibbaka. See his skill profile.

When a new project comes along, I often wonder if I will be able to make it work. To deliver what they are asking for. ‘They’ are the client or the team, and in most cases, I am asked to do the work because of my skills. Some call it talent, and some do not call it anything. It is just an ability to do particular work well enough that it generates more requests. Such capacity is often built on knowledge and experience. It would help if you had both. Otherwise, things may get off balance. Practice makes perfect is an adage that does not require thinking or explaining. Put the magical ten thousand hours into anything, and you will master it. Will you?

It is all interwoven, mixed and weirdly connected. And the result is mindblowing. Look around and see the incredible achievements of those who decided not to hide their knowledge, skill and talent. And even if you hide and think you do not possess any of those, guess what - you are wrong. Everyone has talent, but there are a few skills that do not require any talent at all. Yet, they are very compelling. They can make a huge difference when used in work or non-work-related situations.

#1 Listening

I think listening is the most important skill, regardless of the profession. Without listening, there is no exchange of information. Here is the definition from the Ibbaka Talio platform: "Skill in listening to another party and picking up non-verbal cues, and then paraphrasing what was heard for confirmation of understanding." This skill belongs to the Foundational category, with Communication listed as a "related skill." 

#2 Asking Questions

Our platform's definition of ‘asking questions’ is "The simplest and most effective way of learning. By asking, an individual can better understand the information they did not understand before." Questions connect things together. As I said, it is all connected. Without Listening, there is nothing to ask about. Listening and Asking Questions require active participation in whatever is happening at the moment—in other words, paying attention, which may deplete your energy resources. However, it's worth doing. After all, not paying attention is not an option in any situation.

There are many articles related to Providing Feedback, but Receiving Feedback is probably more important. It picks up from Listening, and I think the best way to describe it is the skill of Open-Mindedness or Openness.

#3 Openness or Open-mindedness

From Wikipedia: "Open-mindedness is receptiveness to new ideas. Open-mindedness relates to how people approach the views and knowledge of others. Open-minded individuals are more inclined to listen to and seriously consider alternative viewpoints." Again, it is related to my number one, Listening. People who are "open to experience literally see the world differently," is the subtitle from an article on Scientific American. It doesn't require any talent to be willing to listen with an open mind to whatever the client or the team is proposing. It leads to skill number four on my list - Curiosity.

#4 Curiosity

Children drive their parents crazy by constantly asking Why? Without asking, they will be unable to make sense of what we have here. The trick is never leaving such a mindset, especially when our hair turns white. 

Curiosity is defined by Ibbaka Talio as "A desire to know. Inquisitive interest in others' concerns - an interest leading to inquiry. Eagerly wishing to know or learn about something through exploration, investigation, and learning." Although I place Curiosity in fourth place, it is the driver of everything else. Without Curiosity, we would have nothing, or very little, from the pile of inventions, ideas, and understanding of how things work. Still, Curiosity is always supported by Listening and Questioning.

#5 Respect

This one is closely related to Collaboration and Communication. Consider Listening with Curiosity and Open-mindedness and no fear of Asking Questions and Receiving Feedback. When the above is conducted in an atmosphere of Respect—the courteous regard for others—ideas originated in such discussion will flourish and most likely fall on rich soil and grow into new products and services.

Neither Listening, Asking Questions, Openness, Curiosity or Respect require any talent. Those are simple life skills that anyone should be able to muster. Extroverts or Introverts - talkative, sociable, action-oriented, enthusiastic, friendly, outgoing - or quiet, reserved, and thoughtful individuals will all benefit from cultivating and applying these five skills. It will be self-evident, especially in the context of interdisciplinary teams when, the domain knowledge of individuals is beyond the reach of others and yet, the contribution from each team member provides value precisely for the reason of being presented from another perspective. We don't always have to agree or share the same point of view, but let's not forget that those are just ideas, concepts, and beliefs. It doesn't cost anything to listen, consider, evaluate, and who knows, something beautiful may spring to life.