In this episode, Sharran Srivatsaa—CEO of Kingston Lane—shares his thoughts on the three high-income skills that can help you make a big impact on the world. He also emphasized that one special ingredient which can help you make effective use of these skills.What is this special ingredient, you ask?

To tell you the truth, it isn’t anything too surprising. One thing’s for sure, though. You will agree that it’s something important to have–whether in a professional or non-professional environment.

First of all, ask yourself this question: What skills make an effective business leader? What would you need to lead your company to success? Not just your business, but also the people of your company. How can you lead your people in the right direction? What can you do to give your company an edge? Who do you need to help you reach your goals?

So many questions, so little time.

So without further ado, here are the three high-income skills you need to have—communication, presentation, and networking.

Communication is key.

• You will hear this a lot, especially when it comes to maintaining a healthy romantic relationship. But remember, you are technically in a professional relationship with your co-workers, and communication is just as important in the working environment.
• Communicate everything you need your co-workers to know. There’s no room for being vague in a business. Everything needs to be clear so everyone knows what they’re getting into. Remember, clarity is key.
• Healthy communication can help develop a healthy working relationship with your co-workers. It will lead to an increase in productivity and efficiency in your company.

How you present your ideas can make or break a presentation.

• There’s more to presenting your ideas to people. It isn’t just reading a checklist and giving everyone a brief rundown of everything you want to share.
• First, check yourself. How confident are you when it comes to your ideas? No matter how good your ideas are, no one will feel confident in them if you, in the first place, aren’t.
  
• Do as much research as you need to when it comes to defending your ideas. Not everyone will be on-board just because you believe your ideas are the best.
• There will always be people who will be against your ideas. So be prepared to prove to them why your ideas can help lead the company to bigger and brighter opportunities.
• Always remember: If someone’s against your ideas, it doesn’t mean your ideas are outright bad. You’re different people, and you think differently. You just need to help them understand where these ideas are coming from, and how you only have the company’s best interests in mind

Your network can be a real lifesaver.

• “We can come up with so many of the whats all the time, and the whats are always never-ending. You can go through the 90 steps of what, or you can have the one stop of who and just compress decades of experience.” – Sharran Srivatsaa
• As Sharran explained through an example: If you would need to build a website, you will realize that a lot of things actually go into making one. A lot of technical understanding and a large amount of knowledge and expertise would be needed in this field. Now, would you go out of your way to learn a whole new set of skills? Or will you choose to find someone who already has all the experience necessary to create the website you need?
• Building a network of people who have the skills you need can help you bypass so many learning curves and save so much time.
• We are a social race. Everything we have achieved in this world was made possible because we all learned to work together. There’s always someone out there who has what you need, and vice versa.

Those are the three high-income skills. Now, do you have an idea of what that one special ingredient to bring out the full potential of these skills is?

The answer—empathy.

That’s right, the ability to see the world through someone else’s eyes. The ability to be in someone else’s shoes. The ability to understand people, and what makes them tick.  Now, how does empathy help you be more effective with the three skills?

Communication is a two-way street.

• To have effective communication, you must know how to listen. Listen to what your co-workers have to say. This can help you understand them more, further building a healthy working relationship with them.

Knowing your audience can help you create an effective presentation.

• What kind of people will you be presenting to? Do they prefer extensive explanations and details? Do they prefer a more straight-to-the-point approach? Do they like more visual aides or less?
• Focus on methods that can keep your listeners engaged and interested in what you have to say.

Your network is one big communications grid.

• It isn’t like a spider’s web with you in the center of it all. It’s a social structure of people who can help each other.
• Keep in mind, you are also a connection for someone. This means that you should also share your knowledge and skill set to the people in your network.

While they have what you need, you also have something they need. They’re in your network, and at the same time, you are in theirs. Empathy is important to have in both your workplace and your daily life. It can help you connect with people on a deeper level, and help you to create stronger bonds with them.

Communication, presentation, and networking all require you to interact with people. So it’s only normal that empathizing with people can help you effectively reach out to them.

Now we want to hear from you. Which skill do you prefer to focus on and why? Please let us know in the comment section below.