Business Skills You Can Learn From Gaming

When most people think of video games, it isn’t business skills that first come to mind. Instead, gaming is seen as a way to relax and a form of entertainment. Of course, this is true, yet it can also teach valuable skills that are transferable to the workplace. Whether you want to improve your problem-solving or refine your leadership ability, playing games can help you achieve your career objectives.

With that in mind, we’ve compiled this list of the business skills you can learn from gaming.

Social Skills

Whether you’re playing video games online, or cards with a group of friends, there’s often a social aspect to gaming. Most online gamers interact, compete against, and collaborate with other players from around the world. Connecting with others in this way allows you to refine skills such as teamwork and collaboration that can serve you in the workplace.

If you’re playing a coop campaign such as in a Tom Clancy game, you’ll have to plan every assault down to the finest details to succeed. You’ll get to know people you’ve never met in the real world, work together to achieve goals, and form bonds that sometimes result in lifelong friendships. These networking skills will go a long way if you decide to embark on starting your own business.

Improved Memory

Having a good memory is a critical skill both in business and the world of gaming. Whether you’re exploring the sprawling open world of Uncharted, or trying to remember poker hand rankings, many games require focus and concentration that may help to improve your memory.

Studies have linked gaming to better working short-term memory. Retaining knowledge and facts is an important aspect of business, as is the ability to filter out extraneous information and focus on the task at hand. Playing video games may help in these areas.

Problem-Solving

A glance at the highest-grossing mobile titles ever reveals that each one requires the use of creativity and problem-solving skills. Coming up with workable solutions for getting around an obstacle often calls for outside of the box thinking, and when you play games you often fail before you succeed.

The ability to think quickly and come up with creative solutions while under pressure is not only a hallmark of RPGs, puzzles, and strategic games. It is also crucial in the workplace. Since most titles demand quick decisions, there’s little time to consider what you should do. The same happens in business environments, where a customer, investor,or new market factor demands on the fly answers and solutions. If you don’t have them, you could lose out to a competitor who does.

Communication

The ability to get your point across clearly is one of the most important business skills you can have, and playing multiplayer video games may help you get better at it. After all, when you’re playing a title like Overwatch, you have to talk with members of your virtual team frequently. You probably haven’t met any of your teammates in person, but you have to communicate efficiently if you hope to succeed.

These communication skills transfer to the workplace. If you can’t meet face-to-face with your colleagues, you’ll understand how to connect with them from afar. With remote work becoming the norm, skills acquired while playing games can help businesses and employees meet their goals.

Accuracy

One false move and you could lose a match or have to restart the game from the last checkpoint. Games are fast-paced, just like today’s business environments. If you want to succeed at work, doing your job quickly and precisely will get you positive marks.

Some studies have concluded that people who play action games reach accurate judgments 25% faster than those playing slower-paced strategy games. So, keep that in mind when deciding which title to buy next.