In most jobs, technical skills alone are not enough to be truly effective. Increasing importance is being placed on soft skills – personal attributes that enable you to interact well with other people. Here is a list of eight soft skills that are becoming a must-have in order to succeed in your work life:
1.Adaptability:
This is a soft skill sought by every employer and it means being able to change in order to become successful. People who adapt well rarely feel the pressure to quit. Every challenge is exciting, and remaining dedicated to their job means pushing through even when things get hard. An adaptable person will be able to source new resources and techniques that less-adaptable colleagues haven’t considered. An adaptable person will show resourcefulness by demonstrating: the ability to notice patterns, creativity, innovation, problem-solving, budgeting, initiative.
2.Communication skills:
The most successful organizations understand that if they are to be successful in today’s business world, good communication at all levels is essential. This set of skills is needed to speak appropriately with a wide variety of people whilst maintaining good eye contact, demonstrate a varied vocabulary and tailor your language to your audience, listen effectively, present your ideas appropriately, write clearly and concisely, and work well in a group. In contrast, poor communication skills lead to frequent misunderstanding and frustration.
3.Creative Thinking
Creative thinking is the ability to look at things differently and find new ways of solving problems. This set of skills is definitely not just for ‘creative types’ like artists and musicians. Creative thinking, therefore, is the ability to think differently: to see a problem or issue from a new angle or perspective. This often allows you to find a new solution, or even to see that the problem does not necessarily need a solution. They involve a much more relaxed, open, playful approach. This can require some risk-taking.
4.Negotiating Skills
Negotiation skills are qualities that allow two or more parties to reach a compromise. These are often soft skills and include abilities such as communication, persuasion, planning, strategizing and cooperating. Understanding these skills is the first step to becoming a stronger negotiator. The ability to influence others is an important skill for negotiation. It can help you define why your proposed solution is beneficial to all parties and encourage others to support your point-of-view.
5.Strategic Skills
Strategy skills are becoming more and more important in the new economy. Employers want their employees to know how to contribute to the organizational strategies and think strategically about their own jobs and responsibilities. In this way, strategic thinkers are visionary leaders. They see the potential for how the world should exist and take steps to get there.
6.Teamwork
Candidates with strong teamwork skills are sought out by employers for many reasons—they demonstrate leadership, collaboration, and good communication, among other things. Employees often need to collaborate or work with others to complete tasks and projects – having teamwork skills and experience will make it a much better experience. Those who have this set of skills like communication and a positive attitude can help a team be more productive.
7.Positive Attitude
Today’s workplaces are filled with competition, stress, demands and with so many negative emotions floating around, it is no wonder that a positive approach will brind a different perspective. Negative emotions tend to alter the way we react to situations. The same circumstances can lead to two very different responses for negative and positive personalities. There is no doubt, employee attitudes affect productivity, quality, morale; collegiality, cooperation, and cohesion; employee development; and retention as well as turnover. Good employee attitudes drive positive results. Bad employee attitudes put a drag on results.
8.Work ethic
Employers struggle to find employees who make work a high priority. Such people come to work on time, complete tasks in a timely manner, stay focused, and stay organized. Good work ethic is a reflection on your work style and your consistent ability to perform. It can open you up to myriad opportunities and will play a key role in the successes you experience throughout your career.
