Soft Skills are personal attributes that enhance an individual’s interactions with others, his career enhancement and job performance. They are good manners and personality traits needed to get along with others and build positive relationships. Unlike hard skills, which include a person’s technical and functional skills and ability to perform certain functional tasks, soft skills are broadly applicable across all job titles and industries. It is often said that the hard skills will get you onto interview but you need soft skills to get and keep the job.
Some of the essential soft skills illustrated below which generally facilitate job performance and career progression:
1.Interpersonal Skills
Interpersonal skills are the tools people use to interact and communicate with individuals in an organizational environment. There are seven main areas of interpersonal communication and they are described below:
1.1 Verbal Communication : Verbal communication is how and what words are used to communicate with individuals. It is the ability to communicate through words with the correct tone and manners.
1.2 Non Verbal Communication: Another type of interpersonal skill is non verbal communication , which consists of facial expression, body language and hand gestures. It is also equally important while interacting with other individuals or group.
1.3 Listening Skills: Listening skills are the ability to hear attentively and process information correctly. It is thru’ actively listening, one become sensitive to other person’s problem, need, expectations etc .
1.4 Negotiation Skills: Negotiation is the next type of interpersonal skill that is important to effective business communication . This term means having the ability to discuss and reach an agreement in a professional manner with other party involved.
1.5 Problem Solving: The fifth type of interpersonal skill is problem solving. This is a very important skill for business people to have, as constant problems are a common outcome/result in business transaction within the organization and in the business environment.
1.6 Decision making: A manager has to be able to analyze situations and develop a professional solution within an organisational environment. Hence decision making is a key element of interpersonal skills.
1.7 Assertiveness: Means standing up for your personal views, rights, expressing thoughts, feelings & beliefs in direct, honest and appropriate ways. It is important to note also that , by being assertive we should always respect the thoughts, feelings & beliefs of other people. Assertiveness is the quality of being self assured and confident without being aggressive.
2.Time Management: It is an act or a process of planning and exercising conscious control over the amount of time spent on specific activities especially to increase effectiveness, efficiency, and productivity. It helps in setting priorities and goals. But, since we all get the same 24 hours, why is it that some people achieve so much more with their time than others. The answer lie in the good time management.
3.Positive Attitude: Positive attitude brings optimism and motivates toward success. With a positive attitude, your life becomes happier, meaningful & more successful. It always helps you to develop “Can Do Attitude”.
4.Business Communication Skills: Effective business communication skills are vital to successful co-worker and customer interactions. Both the speaker and the listener share responsibility of making the message clear but effective communication goes far beyond simple speech and hearing . Body language, tone of voice, word choice, message clarification, and communication style, all come into play and can make the difference between success and failure in interpersonal transaction and interactions.
5.Leadership & Team working: As organizational structures become less hierarchical with flatter management structures, so the need for employees to work across the business in different project team increases. This may also mean taking on a leadership role from time to time.
Successful team players are able to:
-interact effectively with others on a one-to-one & whole group basis.
– work with a range of people from different backgrounds & experiences and attitudes.
-acknowledge & respect different opinions & view points.
-understand individual responsibilities in order to complete assigned tasks.
-overcome obstacles & resolve any conflict.
– seek feedback ,discuss & accept ideas from others.
-Encourage contributions & listen to others.
– support each other & contribute to a positive atmosphere among the group.
Leadership is about:
-setting objectives
-being able to motivate & supervise others
-taking responsibility for the direction & actions of a team.
-creating a positive working environment.
-suggesting alternative ways of working if things don’t work out initially etc.
- Stress Management:Stress is about you feel when you have to handle more than you are used to. When you are stressed, your body responds as though you are in danger or under pressure. It makes hormones that speed up your heart ,make you breathe faster and give you a burst of energy. This is called the fight or flight stress response.
Some stress is normal and even useful. Stress can help if you need to work hard or react quickly. For example, it can help you win a race or finish an important job on time.
But if stress happens too often or lasts too long, it can have bad effects. It can be linked to headaches, an upset stomach, back pain, and trouble sleeping. It can weaken your immune system, making it harder to fight off diseases. If you already have a health problem, stress may make it worse. It can make you moody, tense, or depressed. Your relationships may suffer, and you may not do well at work.
What can you do about the stress ?
The good news is that you can learn ways to manage stress. To get stress under control :
-Find out what is causing stress in your life.
-Look for ways to reduce the amount of stress in your life.
-Learn healthy ways to relieve stress and reduce its harmful effects.
e.g. Listening to music, meditation/yoga exercise, going for a walk, meeting a close friend and sharing your issues and even consulting family doctor.
In conclusion, it is also necessary to have other traits or qualities to administer or develop the soft skills mentioned above such as high on EQ( emotional quotient), controlled temperament, self discipline, follow corporate ethics , social etiquettes & manners, receptive to others feedback and above all being respectful to others and good conduct. If one has all these traits, he/she can develop the soft skills mentioned above & effectively practice them for a successful career.
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