The Top 10 Power Skills you Need

Definition of Soft Skills

Soft skills are personal attributes that allow us to effectively relate to others. Applying these skills helps us build stronger work relationships, work more productively, and maximize our career prospects. Often we place the focus of our career development efforts on hard skills – technology skills, knowledge, and other skills that specifically relate to our ability to get work-related tasks done. This means we neglect to develop our soft skills. However, soft skills are directly transferrable to any job, organization, or industry. As a result, they are an investment worth making.

Soft skills include:

• Communication

• Listening

• Showing Empathy

• Networking

• Self-confidence

• Giving and receiving feedback

Empathy is one component of what is known as Emotional Intelligence, or EI. Emotional Intelligence is the ability to recognize and manage our feelings so that they are expressed appropriately. Exercising emotional intelligence helps to create harmonious, productive relationships. There are four key components to Emotional Intelligence:

• Self-awareness: The ability to recognize our own feelings and motivations

• Self-management: The ability to appropriate express (or not express) feelings

• Social awareness: Our ability to recognize the feelings and needs of others, and the norms of a given situation

• Relationship management: Our ability to relate effectively to others

Professionalism involves what may seem to be small acts, such:

• Always reporting to work on time and returning promptly from breaks

• Dressing appropriately

• Being clean and neat

• Speaking clearly and politely to colleagues, customers, and clients

• Striving to meet high standards for one’s own work

Humans communicate in many different ways:

• Nonverbal communication: Communication without words, such as eye contact or posture

• Verbal communication: Communication with words, both written and spoken

• Body language: Communication through gestures, personal space, and touching

• Artistic communication: Communication through images and other creative media

• Musical communication: Communication through music, whether with lyrics or without

Improving your nonverbal communication starts with awareness. Pay attention to how you use your body when you are talking or listening to someone. An open stance, frequent (but not continuous eye contact), nods, and a relaxed posture help to communicate that you are open and approachable, and that you are communicating honestly. A closed stance, folding your arms across your chest, staring at the floor, or refusing to make eye contact all indicate that you are not listening, or that you are not communicating openly. Shifting from foot to foot, pacing, or otherwise moving continuously indicate impatience. We do many things without thinking about them, especially when we are otherwise busy. Take time to notice both your own nonverbal communication and others’, and especially your reaction to others.

Active listening is a form of listening where you listen to the speaker and reflect back what you understand the speaker to have said. You may also give the speaker nonverbal feedback through nods of agreement or other techniques which indicate you are listening and understanding. Active listening involves staying focused on the present, both by giving the speaker your full attention and by keeping the discussion to the issue at hand. Reflect back to the speaker what you understand him or her to have said by carefully rephrasing the message, such as, “So, I hear you saying that….” Check for understanding and use “I” statements rather than “you” statements.

How do openness and honesty enhance communication?

When you build or join a team, take the time at the outset to ask each member what he or she brings to the team. What skills, abilities, and relationships does each team member have that can enhance the project? What does each person feel he or she does well? How can the team use all these talents and capabilities to achieve the best outcome?

The best way to learn the whole process is to talk to team members who are working parts of a project different from your own. Take the time to ask questions and to listen actively to the answers. This not only demonstrates that you care about the outcome of the project, but that you are interested and invested in each of your teammates’ work and success. Learning the whole process helps to build collaborative relationships among team members, which helps to enhance communication and overall productivity.

When we can find the flow state, time seems to pass quickly without our noticing. We are also more likely to create accurate, high quality work with fewer errors. Because we are focused totally on what we are doing, a flow state may be a key aspect of mastering a new set of skills – stretching your skill set and cultivating flow can be a great tool for professional development.

We all have the same number of hours in the day, so why is it that some people seem to get so much more done? The ability to effectively manage your time is key to productivity. You may not be able to create more time in your day, but applying time management skills can help you make the most of the time you do have!

Setting priorities helps ensure that you take care of the things that are most pressing or which deliver the most value. Prioritizing is especially key when working with others. If people who must work together have differing senses of what the priorities are, this can lead to miscommunication, conflict, and reduced productivity.

You can solve Distractions by:

• Establishing “open door” hours

• Closing your door or otherwise indicating “Please Do Not Disturb”

• Using noise canceling headphones

• Setting a regular time to check voicemail and email

• Letting calls go to voicemail

• De-cluttering your workspace

• Building in breaks

Cliff was one of the busiest people in the office. He always had at least three things going on. To make the most of his time, he did two or more things at once – edited a document on screen while he was on a conference call, filed papers while he talked to one of his direct reports. He just could never get ahead – it seemed the harder he worked, the more behind he fell. He didn’t understand why his office mate, Shawna, always seemed to be so on top of things. She only ever worked on one thing at a time. She let her calls roll to voicemail, and only checked her email four times a day. Cliff didn’t understand how she could possibly get everything done that she did. She also seemed so much less harried than he did – she even had time to take a little break a couple times a day to walk around and get a cup of tea. He asked her what her secret was. “I only do one thing at a time,” she said. “This way my full attention is on one thing, and then I can move on to another later.” She told him to try it for one week. He scoffed, but agreed since he was so stressed. To his amazement, Cliff found that tasks took less time than he thought they would, and he was able to work much more efficiently when he focused on one thing at a time.

Being clear about what you’re working for is a key part of building a positive attitude and strong work ethic. If you are not sure what you are working for, it can be difficult or even impossible to fully invest in a project or in developing your skills. Take time to clarify what your personal goals are, both in terms of specific projects and in terms of your overall career. Set specific goals and then create plans to achieve them. Tie these goals to your day to day tasks and responsibilities so that you can keep them in sight. When working with a team, it is also vital that you outline clear group goals. Know what each member of the group is working for, and what the group is collectively working for. Find ways to consistently tie individual tasks or steps to the overarching group goals and to individual members’ personal goals.

we may hold the false belief that there can only be one “winner” in any given situation. As a result, we may believe that we can pursue our own goals or help others pursue theirs, but never do both. Seeing the ways in which everyone is interconnected, and the way in which everyone’s success benefits the entire group is an important attitude shift. When we can find a way to care for others and ourselves, we develop a more positive, productive workplace.

People who are deemed trustworthy by colleagues share some characteristics:

• They are skilled at their jobs

• They are passionate about their work , with a strong work ethic

• They communicate honestly and value transparency

• They have others’ best interests at heart

• They care about people and demonstrate this

• They are self-aware

Yuki always said she was only in her job for the paycheck. She really wanted to pay off her student loans and credit card debt, and she worked as many hours as she could to earn the money she needed. She was good at her job and completed her tasks accurately and on time, but seemed to derive little pleasure from it. She worked hard all week and counted the days until Friday. She often seemed unhappy or bored with the work. Her manager asked her what she felt she was working for – what were her goals? Yuki explained that she was working for a paycheck. Her manager then asked what she would be working for when the debt was gone. Yuki couldn’t answer. Her manager suggested she think more broadly about what she was working for, and how she could find other rewards in her work. They brainstormed a list of Yuki’s professional and personal goals and then discussed how Yuki could view her work in the context of these goals. Yuki began to feel more engaged in her work.

there are always rough days! – but if you can find a way to love the work you do the majority of the time, you are on the path to greater professional and personal happiness.

If we are convinced that the good old days were best, we are unlikely to give a new way of doing things a fair try.

When we adapt to a new process, we are not just learning a new way of doing a specific task – we are demonstrating our ability to adapt to changing circumstances, learn new skills, and work with others.

When you adapt your management style to meet the specific needs of the people you manage, this demonstrates that you care for others – that rather than expecting them to conform to your preferred way of doing things, you want to invest in them and help them grow. Take the time to ask the people you manage what they need from you, what their goals are, and how you can be a better manager, supervisor, and colleague. Then take steps to make the changes that you feel will be most helpful.

Martin had been a manager for more than 30 years. He had developed a tough but fair style that he applied impartially to all his direct reports. He thought it was best to treat everyone the same – that way things were fair and everyone knew what to expect. When he started at his new organization, he noticed that many of his new direct reports seemed to need a lot of handholding. This was frustrating for Martin. He didn’t understand why they couldn’t just do the work as assigned. Mistakes were common, too.

One day when talking with a manager in another division, Martin expressed his frustration. “Sometimes our younger employees need a little more guidance,” she said. “They are newly out of college and aren’t sure what to do. They are used to having a lot of face time with their supervisors. Maybe you could try that and see if it works.” Martin didn’t want to have to change, but he also didn’t want things to continue as they were. He tried spending one on one time with his new direct reports each time he assigned them new work, so that they could discuss goals and expectations. He noticed that work improved.

Some ways to demonstrate adaptability on the job are:

• Be open to alternative solutions when your first suggestion does not go over well or succeed

• Be willing to take on new roles, even when they are a stretch for your skills

• Be willing to help others generate alternative solutions or plans

• Be willing to accept the unexpected

• Keep your calm, even when things are moving fast or are stressful

• Demonstrate confidence in your ability to complete the job even when you’ve had to adapt or flex