Great post, Debbie! One thing I would add to your list is listening skills. They're a vital part of several of the areas you mentioned, but I think they're important enough to be singled out.

Whether we're talking about listening in its most basic form (i.e., hearing and truly understanding what's said to you in a conversation) or listening in a broader sense (e.g., being tuned in to what's happening in the news and in the social media realm), being an excellent listener is an essential part of being an effective communications professional.

Unfortunately, it's far too common to find "communications professionals" who are more focused on broadcasting their message than on listening to what's going on around them. Being a great listener helps shape your strategies and contextualize your messages, making them significantly more interesting and effective.