What are some examples of soft skills - written and oral communication, integrity, creativity, problem solving, self-motivation, teamwork, time management, leadership.
The definition of “Hard Skills” – specific knowledge and abilities required for a specific job.
When going in for a job interview nowadays, most employers are trying just as hard to find out if the applicant has the soft skills needed for the job, as well as the hard skills.
As we have been more involved in Career Planning the last couple of years at ICAN we have heard from many employers that most applicants lack those soft skills.
While you are going through high school or college, trying to develop your soft skills is just as important as those hard skills. Here are some ways you can improve on a few of the Soft Skills:
Communication skills- Work on making eye contact with people when you speak with them. Practicing written (texting doesn’t count) and oral communication. For written communication make sure to proofread before you hit send on anything. Oral communication is actually having a talking conversation with someone. Some situations will involve more formal speaking, others more conversational. You want to be able to speak both ways, but also know when you should use one over the other.
Teamwork- Being able to work with others is going to be important in almost every job. One way to develop teamwork skills is to split the project work evenly. Every member of the team is going to feel more engaged if they feel important and have a real stake in how a project turns out. Be a good listener, try to get input from everyone, and stay positive.
Leadership- Some of the same ways that you can improve teamwork skills can improve leadership too. Some of the top skills needed for an effective leader are communication, motivation, positivity, trustworthiness, commitment, and flexibility to name a few. Look for opportunities while in school that would put you in leadership positions. These will be some of the best experiences you can have.
Time Management- One of the big ones would be to show up on time for EVERYTHING. Practices, classes, work, appointments, whatever it might be. Get into a habit of showing up on time. This has big a huge concern with employers in their employees lately. Time management is also about prioritizing and getting work done by a deadline. That means you need to plan ahead. For a longer term project come up with target dates for steps or tasks along the way that will make sure you complete the project on time.
There is so much more than can be written on Soft Skills. I would encourage everyone to do a Google search and read articles that talk about improving not only these four soft skills but others too. I wish I could say I was an expert all the time on these soft skills, but that would be a lie. It is something that all of us, not just high school and college students need to work on every day. But students can start now. The earlier you start the more ingrained they will be when you need them the most- starting your career.
Erick - ICAN Ankeny Center
