Soft skills are the new hard skills. Employers require more than technical knowledge when recruiting for a role. In addition, they employ people with a wide range of well-developed soft skills. These skills are indispensable for the successful operation of any business or organization hence giving an upper hand to job seekers who possess them. The following article will be presenting the 10 most valuable soft skills in the workplace.
1. Leadership
Leadership skills can help you in all aspects of your career, from applying for jobs to seeking career advancement. It encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals or entire organizations. Leadership is influence; you don’t need a formal position to be a leader. You can influence from anywhere within an organization. Good leadership is servant leadership. Learn more about what it means to be a servant leader
2. Communication
It is imperative to communicate effectively with superiors, colleagues, and other staff no matter what industry you work in. Practice how to effectively convey and receive messages in person as well as via phone, email, and social media. A very important part of communication is listening, specifically active listening. If everyone talks then no one will listen. Learn more about active listening and communication.
3. Teamwork
Team spirit is necessary for maximizing productivity in every organization. Teamwork skills involve creating and maintaining cooperative relationships, but they also help manage disagreements and conflicts. Team work skills include being able to contribute to work, coordinate tasks, give feedback as well as respecting others’ opinions. For more about teamwork, check out this great resource.
4. Time Management
Successful time management entails being able to plan work effectively and meeting up deadlines. Employees with strong time-management skills can work more independently and help colleagues remain focused when facing multiple assignments. An essential part of time management involves knowing how to prioritize well. Here are 10 time management skills that will improve your productivity.
5. Problem-solving
Problem-solving is the ability to handle difficult or unexpected situations in the workplace and complex business challenges. To improve your problem-solving skills, it’s important to acquire more technical knowledge in your specialty and observe how others solve problems. Being able to resolve conflicts will also come in handy. There will always be disagreements among colleagues. To learn more about how to resolve conflicts, watch this great video on the subject.
6. Public Speaking
It refers to any form of speaking to an audience, including pre-recorded speeches delivered over great distances by means of technology. Today, the art of public speaking has been transformed by newly available technologies such as videoconferencing, multimedia presentations, and other nontraditional forms, but the essentials remain the same. Like any other skill, you need to practice public speaking by always speaking up when necessary. Ask and answer questions in class. Share your opinions during discussions or meetings. The more you speak, the more comfortable you get with it.
7. Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is the analysis of available facts, evidence, observations, and arguments to form a judgement. Core critical thinking skills include observation, interpretation, analysis, inference, evaluation, explanation, and metacognition. Critical thinking is essential to minimize biased judgements. Being objective is really important in the workplace. Here are 7 common human biases that you need to avoid.
8. Strong Work Ethics
Work ethic is a set of standards of behavior and beliefs regarding what is and isn't acceptable to do at work. A strong work ethic translates to outstanding productivity. Employers want to hire people who will work to the best of their abilities. Integrity is a real luxury.
9. Digital literacy
The American Library Association (ALA) defines digital literacy as "the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring both cognitive and technical skills. Digital literacy requires photo-visual literacy and Reproduction literacy which is the use of digital technology to create a new piece of work. Being digital is an absolute must in our digital world. It’s a given that you need to have basic computing skills to survive at any job. The higher your skill level, the better.
10. Initiative and Creativity
Thinking outside the box and coming up with new ideas and designs is important. You can do this efficiently by taking on more responsibilities, tackling challenges and solving problems, or Training others. Part of leadership involves taking the right initiatives. You shouldn’t always be told what to do. Employers prefer people who can take initiatives as they will spend less time following the person up.
Like any other skills, soft skills require regular practice and learning. The idea is to reflect on oneself and evaluate to see if you possess the right skills and, if no, what you can do to acquire those missing skills. Be honest and rate yourself for each of these skills on a scale of 1 – 10. Then start practicing the ones you scored least in.
We hope you have learnt something new. Thank you for reading and until next time, BESTech remains your best bet