Building Problem solving skills as a Young Professional This presentation aims to help young people better understand the ways we can build our problems solving skills, why having good problem solving skills is important and how we all can build and develop our skills throughout our lives.

Problems, problems, problems We all have those days where everything seems to be a challenge - the bus is late making you late, you left something at home that you really need, your phone breaks, your friend is upset with you or things just don't go according to plan. What you need on days like this are the best problem solving skills; you need to be calm under pressure, creative, positive, and persuasive to get through, but you can. It doesn't matter who you are or how well prepared you are some days things just go wrong. For young people these problems can seem insurmountable or worse still can have a real impact on their confidence and mental well being. Helping young people to be resilient and be able to solve their own problems are skills that can set them up for life.

How do people approach problems? Cool and calm headed, thinking clearly and practically Go from 0 - 60 on the stress richter scale, shouting and swearing will probably help right? Panic! Ask for help Creatively - Where there is a positive mindset there is most likely to be a solution Bury their head in the sand - maybe ignoring it will be the best way Use an example of when you have applied one of these techniques to a problem, we have probably all tried each of these approaches at sometime or other. Sharing how even adults hit panic mode sometimes can help young people understand that we don't all get this right every time, but we can be more aware and work on it.

How should you appraoch a problem? Can you guess? It's a combination of staying calm, thinking the situation through, getting creative and when necessary asking for help. Trying to solve your own problems is good practise but never be afraid to ask for some advice or help. Sometimes problems need more than one person to solve them. Remember too, if at first you dont succeed its OK to try again and again. Just learn from the things that didn’t work. Top tips for bad days: But don't let the problem get to you, there is always a solution and you can handle it. Believe in yourself. Take a breath, walk away and do something different, preferably something fun and distracting. We know great inventors like Edison and Ford tried hundreds of times to make their ideas work, it is absolutely OK to keep trying to solve a problem and trying different solutions. But it's a skill to keep trying new things and not just repeating the same mistake again.

Problem Solving - top tips & benefits Plan! Problems will arise, but preparing in advance and having a plan for the things that might go wrong will save you time and stress Evaluate situations and information and break them down into manageable chunks See problems in a new light, as possible solutions not impossible challenges Benefits Grow in confidence and no that no matter what comes your way - you’ve got this! Build your decision-making skills as you make decisions based on information and logic not pure gut feeling Learn and grow over time with each problem you’ve overcome Remember: Celebrate it when you solve a problem, give yourself a pat on the back!

Practice like a Young Professional There are so many ways for you to practice: Get involved with extra projects, try volunteering to show how you are solving a bigger problem! Challenge yourself! Take on a new hobby or take part in group work activities Play games! Yes that’s right board games, video games and mind puzzles will test your problem solving skills. Identify some opportunities for the young people you are working with to develop their skills in your setting or a setting they are familiar with (volunteering, youth clubs, sports, National Citizen Service etc). Make sure that you and the colleagues you work with recognise it when the young people you work with use good problem solving skills. Recognising and praising good skill use will help them to know they are doing something well and boost their confidence. Ensure that the young people you are working with register as a Young Professional Member and have the time to complete the weekly challenges and explore some of the articles on the site to help boost their skills.

Next Steps: Sign up to be a Young Professional at Youth Employment UK Read more about problem solving skills and how you can develop them on the Young Professional Members pages. Undertake the Youth Employment UK weekly skills challenge. Ensure that the young people you are working with register as a Young Professional Member and have the time to complete the weekly challenges and explore some of the articles on the site to help boost their skills. http://www.youthemployment.org.uk/young-professional-training/