Working World

In the Working World, we know that hard skills, or “skills to pay the bills,” as the kids say, are important. But what about soft skills? Unless you’re a genius in your field or people put up with whatever you dish out, soft skills are important to your career.

Start with the basics: attendance, timeliness and work ethic. A number of people don’t find these important, but bosses do. Then there are the courtesy skills: “thank you,” “please,” “excuse me;” they are simple expressions of friendliness and teamwork. No group can function without them, and yet they’re often neglected.

Communication abilities also rank high on the soft skills ladder. In fact, according to a survey at ComputerWorld.com, writing and public speaking are two of the most important soft skills managers look for when hiring new employees. You don’t need to be a master of prose, but you do need to be able to get your point across.

What about your self-presentation? Not necessarily appearance (though that counts), but how you come across to others? Do you get the credit that’s due you? If you’re an important part of the effort, whatever it may be, be sure that people know you are indispensible. Have a “face.”

Understand the ins and outs of your workplace. Know how the company operates and what its key issues are. Know when to take risks. 

Textbooks can’t teach these habits, yet they’re critical to success. With careful observation, you can learn.­




Is there something you would like to know
how to do but can’t afford the time or money to take classes? Consider Netflix, your public library or your computer.
     Every day I am impressed with how much how information is floating around just for the taking. The other day while browsing on Netflix, I accidentally hit on “special interests” and found out you can rent foreign language discs, or discs that teach you how to use your iPhone? You name it, they have it.
     Another source of information is the iTunes store. Much of what it offers is free and from some of the great universities in the world. My favorite source is C-Span. You can download whole lecture series appealing to almost every taste. People talk books, politics, the economy, everything under the sun. If you missed Aristotle, just check out the store.
     And don’t forget the library. They have shelf after shelf of civil service prep books, LSAT prep books, and almost every series public television has produced. Again, it is all free for the borrowing. Looking for an exercise tape for your workout? Take your pick. My local library must have 20 different ones. You can also order them from any other library in the system. Most libraries offer audio books that you can check out to listen to in the car or download them from your home for your MP3.­

1 COMMENTS

• Catherine Rhodes

  Never underestimate the importance of people skills. They may be "soft" but they're powerful.

  Jul 13, 2009