What is the most desired skill in 2021?
From this article you will learn:
- what skills do you need in 2021 in order to successfully thrive
- what is ambiguity tolerance, who needs it and why is it important
- what are factors impacting ambiguity tolerance
- how ambiguity tolerance affects your wellbeing
With the level of your knowledge, it is understood that you are smart enough to grip any job that you face. But the thing that makes you unique from others is your psychological skills‑i.e; self-reliance, well being, people management, etc. Often these psychological skills help you to become successful in your next level. For both academic and nonacademic levels, not intelligence but soft skills have been proven to make anyone successful.
Among all the soft skills that you need, there is one skill that is seldom discussed and is controversially the most important skill that everyone needs. This skill is also the answer to the frequently asked question “What is the most desired skill in 2021?”.
The answer is Ambiguity Tolerance.
What is Ambiguity Tolerance?
Ambiguity Tolerance is the ability to accept uncertainties. In other words, it is also the ability that helps you to accomplish your goals when they are completely undefined, or thrive in an environment where the rules are unclear.
After all, it’s natural to desire direction and a sense of control in our careers and in life. It’s comforting to have specific instructions provided to you or to have a clear vision of the future to work towards. Usually, people become more confident and self-reliable when they know about what is anticipated of them. Despite all these things, it is more interesting to struggle for a goal about which you also don’t know what the actual goal is.
You must be wondering that in today’s world how could you successfully achieve your goal even when it’s not cleared that what the goal is. Here is a simple example through which you will understand that how could you take your first step towards the uncertain task and the importance of tolerance of ambiguity. After enjoying cosy Christmas and Year Years celebration during lockdown, cooking, eating and watching Netflix while sipping champagne, you have decided to visit a health clinic in Austrian Alps in order to detox your liver and loose some weight. You got yourself prepared, arranged leave, bought tickets, checked the required travel documents, called the german border police to ensure you can transit by car via Germany to Austria. Next day, after checkin in for your flight, you head to the airport, you wait for your flight for around 2 hours and at he boarding you find out that you can’t board the flight as german residency is required for people who travel to Germany from the UK. You have not been informed about it before and there is no way you can be admitted to that flight. How do you feel? How do you react?
A person with high ambiguity tolerance will talk calmly to the airline staff, double check if there was no mistake and what the options are. The station manager will explain the reason for not being able to admit you on the flight again, and make a note to update the system, so that you are eligible for your ticket refund. You will get get back home and think what you can do in this situation, such as refund your tickets, unpack your bags and make alternative plans for the upcoming week.
If you are a person with low ambiguity tolerance, you will get very emotional, as this situation is very upsetting, you don’t know what to do and can’t control your emotions. You might raise your voice, get angry and blame the airline for not advising you in advance, you make scene at the airport, don’t get on the flight anyway, get back home cursing and blaming everyone for your misfortune, thinking of yourself as a looser and possibly having difficulty getting your money back for the ticket.You will waste a major time of next week sulking, being tormented by your emotions and not doing anything productive.
Another example of high tolerance of ambiguity can be a person who is learning a foreign language and despite not having fluency and not being sure if he or she will be understood, the person doesn’t give up on trying to communicate in that language. Not being deterred by making mistakes, and not always being understood, yet trying and practicing their language skills will make such people learn the language faster and build better human connection.
In the workplace tolerance of uncertainty can include willingly taking on new tasks without much prior experience. Accountants for example have little tolerance for ambiguity as their education and experiences are based in clear rules. Global leaders have greater tolerance for ambiguity and are more likely to effectively manage the stress imposed by uncertain and ever-changing environments and to be more adaptive and receptive to change.
Some of the factors impacting tolerance of ambiguity are:
- nature and upbringing
- education
- early career experiences
- self confidence
- optimism
Who needs ambiguity tolerance?
Everyone who want to achieve their goals and function in a healthy and happy way.
It is needed in a workplace, it is needed when you relocate and start living in a new place, it is needed when you start new project or open a new business.
How does ambiguity tolerance impact your wellbeing ?
Well-being is an undergo of health, happiness, and prosperity. It also includes good mental health, life gratification, and an ability to tackle stress. Our mental well-being is all about our thoughts and emotions. It’s also about how to deal with the ups and downs of our daily life. It doesn’t mean the same as mental health. But they both can affect each other.
It has been presented that there is a relation between the levels of ambiguity tolerance and psychological well-being.
Several studies have reported that there is a link between a lower level of ambiguity tolerance and reduced psychological well-being.
This provides new possibilities to avoid the development of stress, mental exhaustion, and mental health disorders such as burnout or depression.
This connection also highlights the importance of self-care.
How to reduce stress and improve psychological well-being?
Sometimes such a situation occurs when you have only two choices. You take stress on your mind. The situation is not as strenuous as we think. In such a situation Ambiguity tolerance helps us to manage the situation and make the right decision. In such a situation, all you need is just to relax your mind and then make a decision that is appropriate for the situation.
You may also like: How successful people manage stress?
Constant stress can negatively affect both our mental and physical health. Mostly we get stress from our family, work, health, and challenging demands on our time. Strategies make you find ways to give relaxation to both your mind and body. You can join any gym or visit a spa or learn how to unwind while staying at home. It improves your psychological well-being and enables you to look after your health. But there is also some stress which is far away from your control. These can badly affect your mental health and result in mental disorders or anxiety. To tackle such stress you just needed to develop a skill of ambiguity tolerance. It’s the only skill that makes you deal with an uncertain situation.
You may also like: How to improve your wellbeing?
Summing up
In all the above discussion we have described “What is the most desired skill in 2021?”.
Tolerance of ambiguity is a skill that is one of the most appreciated skills of all. This skill not only helps us to deal with uncertain situations in our personal or professional life but also in our psychological well-being. It guides us to tackle uncertain circumstances with a fully relaxed mind and also to take such steps that will prove to be beneficial for us in the future. Many psychologists also present their outcomes regarding the tolerance of ambiguity. There is an association between ambiguity tolerance and psychological well-being. It raises the importance of self-care and self-reliance. Tolerance of ambiguity plays an important role in the right mindset at the time of uncertainty. So, people can take the decision that will prove themselves and help them to become successful by the achievement of their goals in the future.
Maintaining healthy lifestyle and good work-life balance doesn’t have to be hard. Let’s talk about your challenges around wellbeing.
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