Understanding the Basics

At a recent family gathering, somehow the subject of writing a letter came up. It was a mixed group, with several people in their 50s and older, a few young people under 20, and some of us right in-between. The young people stated that they don’t know how to address a letter or write a check. For me, as someone who remembers a time before the Internet, I find this terribly concerning. Have online bill pay and Twitter completely eliminated the need for these skill sets? Has the pendulum swung too far in the direction of technology? Will this swing limit qualified candidates because they lack basic skills such as proper salutations and basic accounting?

Although I get that these activities might seem a bit antiquated, I also get that there is foundational value in understanding the basics. The basics provide much of the “why” for learning. From a leadership perspective, it makes me wonder what basics we are forgetting to teach/train. For example, writing a letter is a stepping stone for creating effective emails, and balancing a checkbook is a first step in reading a profit and loss statement. Even talking on the phone seems to be a lost skill, which means we’re losing the power of words and tone—all sources for effective communication.

What skills are your team members lacking? What are the basics you can provide?