4IR Courses & The Badgr.io Student Backpack:

Thinking is a natural process and we cannot avoid it but we can definitely change our way of thinking. It is our brain which processes our thoughts when we look at any situation, object, data, person etc. We have a set of preinstalled assumptions, reasons, logics biases which construct our thoughts and we can definitely change or control them to build an effective thinking skill which is called Critical Thinking. The decisions that you make affect your quality of life and if you want to ensure that you live your best, most successful and happy life, you’re going to want to make conscious choices. That can be done with a simple thing known as critical thinking. This module is going to teach you how to think, how to become independent, how to be a self-directed thinker and critical thinker. As Martin Luther King Jr rightly puts it as ―The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. This is the goal of this module.

According to The World Economic Forum, Deloitte, and McKinsey, creativity is in the top 3 most sought-after skills needed to survive the 4th Industrial Revolution since it is a cognitive skill that simply cannot be automated. Creativity is the greatest gift of human intelligence. The more complex the world becomes, the more creative we need to be to meet its challenges yet many people wonder if they have any creative abilities at all. This Module is about why creativity matters so much. The primary aim of this module is to help students re-imagine the role of creative expressions as foundational to human civilization rather than as supplementary to other areas of material progress. It seeks to enable students to reflect on their practice and role in enhancing possibilities for creative expression. They will be involved in sharing and critiquing knowledge and experiences in creative ways, via online learning environments.

“Self-conquest is far better than the conquest of others. Not even a god, an angel, Mara or Brahma can turn into defeat the victory of a person who is self-subdued and ever restrained in conduct.” Dhammapada, VIII, 104-105 (·3rd century BCE). There is growing evidence that developing skills in interacting with and relating to others will be a key requirement for successful leadership. Human relational skills go beyond knowledge of business models and professional experience to include personal traits. As with professional skills, relational skills differ from person to person. The skills you possess make you uniquely qualified for work-related tasks and responsibilities. These skills focus on building healthy relationships based on awareness, accountability, and shared learning. This module will provide ample opportunities and self-learning to essentially make you ‘conscious ‘about yourself and more specifically, of your communication style among others. The focus is inward rather than outward.“Relational skills are the most important abilities in leadership.” – John C. Maxwell,

The future is collective as we do not have a “Planet B”. In this perspective, a serve-first mindset and the service orientation skill are crucial to transform and develop a more inclusive environment. Service-oriented people focus on anticipating, recognizing and meeting peoples’ needs no matter if they are clients or not. They make themselves available for others and care about them. Therefore, it is easy to conclude that they are more likely to feel empathy and compassion for individuals around them. Serve-first or collaborative mindset is about making situations a win-win for all participants. A leader with this attitude goes beyond of simply distributing tasks to their employees, and instead they think: “How can I help them to succeed?”. People with this emotional skill can adapt or change situations so that they can provide an opportunity to support others in their workplace.