Critical Skills

Welcome to the Critical Skills Blog, home to over a thousand human-generated articles—never AI—on topics that matter to continuous education. To find articles of interest, use the “Search” tab. Please feel free to comment, and please subscribe. All content on this site is free.

  • Determine Your Profit Maker Skill Profiles! It Pays Off Big Time!

    You have certain “Profit Makers” in your organization, and it pays off in more ways than one to know their skill profiles. The best way to describe this is by an example: Not too long ago we conducted a study for a large food company that had approximately 90 individuals… More⇢

  • Does a College Major REALLY Matter??

    I’m really going to go out on a limb here and say . . . YES . . . and . . . NO. It is true that a college education will lead to greater earnings over the lifetime of a career. It is particularly true if that education includes… More⇢

  • Standardized Tests Do Not Measure “Critical Skills!”

    Standardized tests have become a way of life. It is not because they are effective in measuring what students can do or what they know – – as the late Ted Sizer (Founder of the Coalition of Essential Schools) put it, “Standardized tests are perhaps useful only to predict how… More⇢

  • Managing Your Own Career

    Gone are the days when you can join an organization and look forward to the next 20-30 years of steady growth, promotions, and happiness. The career world just isn’t that way anymore. Like it or not, you’re a “skill-builder” now – and that skill-building consists of two basic elements: Critical… More⇢

  • Advice for Headhunters!

    First of all, as a former Executive Search Professional, I don’t mind having been called a “headhunter” – and I hope that you aren’t offended by my using the term. I appreciate that the headhunting profession can be difficult. Basically it consists of “process work” – i.e., it involves essentially… More⇢

  • Wake Up, America!!

    It’s been 30 years, and WE’RE STILL WAITING!! In 1983, President Reagan’s National Commission on Excellence in Education published a report entitled “A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform.” Among other things, the report contributed to the ever-growing (and still present) sense that American schools are failing, and… More⇢

  • “Critical Skills” vs “Core Competencies”

    There IS a significant difference between the “Critical Skills” and “Core Competencies.” BusinessDirectory.com defines “Core Competencies” as follows: “A unique ability that a company acquires from its founders or develops and that cannot be easily imitated. Core competencies are what give a company one or more competitive advantages, in creating… More⇢

  • You Need the Critical Skills to Get Ahead and Stay There!

    In fact, everyone does! “Why?” you ask. Well, without them you might have some problems. You have limited ability to communicate your ideas. You have difficulty making things happen. You are not an effective contributor as a member of a team. You are unaware of the appropriate technology available to… More⇢

  • Teaching the SCANS Competencies

    In 1992, the US Department of Labor published the Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) report entitled “Learning for Living: A Blueprint for High Performance.” This report articulate the three SCANS “Foundation Skills” and the five SCANS “Competencies” that defined the know-how that students and workers need for workplace… More⇢

Meet Your Host – Charles Cranston Jett

Charles Cranston Jett is an author, civic educator, and Professional Certified Coach based in Chicago. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy (Class of 1964) and Harvard Business School, he served during the Cold War aboard the nuclear submarine USS Ray (SSN 653), where his tactical innovations helped inspire Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan character. He developed the Field Studies methodology to teach “Critical Skills” and was endorsed by the Department of Labor in 1994. He is the author of six books, including Super Nuke!, hosts three podcasts, and writes across his Critical Skills Blog and Civic Sage platforms on history, leadership, and the health of the American republic. He and his wife, Dr. Nancy Church, co-host the Chicago Salons at Water Tower Residences.