Like this article? PLEASE +1 it! Evan Signature
Evan Carmichael Top Header
Share for a Cause









The Importance of Soft Skills in Business

Written by: Stuart Schneiderman

Article Overview: What are soft skills? Why do they matter? How can you develop yours and improve your work?

Free Download - How to Ace that Job Interview By Stuart Schneiderman
Name: Email:

The Importance of Soft Skills in Business

Beyond your qualifications for a job, beyond your technical expertise and quantitative wizardry… lies the murky realm of soft skills.



How many times have you heard of someone of exemplary brilliance not being hired or promoted because he or she was difficult to get along with, not a team player, too rude for words, or an embarrassment to the group. A person who is hostile and not conciliatory. Who browbeats colleagues. Who fails to speak up and defend his or her ideas. Who refuses to negotiate. Who is cold, detached, and indifferent to other people.


People who lack soft skills are going to be left behind. The only question is: how far behind?


Everyone accepts that we all need to develop our soft skills. Yet, I suspect that one reason it is so difficult to persuade people of the importance of soft skills is that they are called “soft” skills.


Developing your soft skills is hard work. It requires strength of character, courage, and perseverance… do any of those qualities apply to someone who is “soft?”


Normally, business ethos seeks out people who are tough competitors, who are sufficiently confident to work through difficulties, who are courageous enough to take a stand, and who are good teammates.


All of which might apply to a football player or a first lieutenant. But the organizations where these people work do not run around telling everyone that he or she should be developing his or her soft skills.


This is not a trivial point. What are called soft skills often involve rhetoric, the way you word a thought to make it persuasive. This may concern how you can move an audience-- say a jury-- or it may involve persuading your boss or your staff to undertake a new project.


It is one thing to stand up in a meeting and say: We must do things my way. Quite another to say: I recommend the following course of action. With your forbearance I would like to explain why.


Soft skills require hard work. It is easy and lazy to say whatever comes to mind, regardless of the occasion. And it is easy and lazy to express your feelings willy-nilly, regardless of the situation.


It takes discipline to learn these skills, and discipline is the enemy of free self-expression. How do you develop this social skill?


Instead of saying whatever pops into your mind, think first. If you have something important to say, think of who you are, whom you are speaking to, and what you are trying to accomplish. Hopefully, you are trying to accomplish more than getting something off your chest.


In a business context who you are is your title, your place in an organization, your responsibilities. You can speak like you are in charge if you are in charge; otherwise you are going to sound arrogant. You speak differently to your seniors and your juniors; you show more deference and respect to someone who signs your paycheck than to someone who delivers the mail. This does not mean that you should disrespect the delivery person; it does mean that you need not be deferential. Lastly, you speak differently if you want your idea to be adapted than you would if you merely care to shoot your mouth off. The first involves more complex persuasive techniques; the second involves spouting off and drawing more attention to yourself than to your idea.












Related Articles
  How Do Your Soft Skills Measure Up?
  Business Leaders and Soft Skills Training?
  Soft Skills Training
  Soft Skills for Business Success
  Formalized Employee Training

Home > Business-Coach > Stuart Schneiderman > The Importance of Soft Skills in Business
Article Tags: audience, boss, brilliance, business ethos, colleagues, courage, embarrassment, first lieutenant, football player, hellip, job, left behind, perseverance, rhetoric, strength of character, team player, teammates, technical expertise, trivial point

About the Author: Stuart Schneiderman
RSS for Stuart's articles - Visit Stuart's website

I began my career as a psychotherapist. Having spent too much time trying to figure out why people get it wrong, I changed course and started helping them to get it right. As a business coach I show people how to lead and manage, how to negotiate and organize. And I especially work on developing good behavior and good character, in oneself and in others.

Click here to visit Stuart's website Dashed Line

More from Stuart Schneiderman
The Importance of Ethical Business Practices
What Is the Right Way to Fire an Employee
How Can a Business Leader SelfMotivate
The Importance of Soft Skills in Business
Choosing the Right Coach


Related Forum Posts
My entry My entry - 1. The Best Business Books Ever: The 100 Most Influential Business Books You'll Never Have Time to Read - this is a fascinating book about the history of Business theory, and I'd recommend it to anybody. 2. The Big Book of Small Business: You Don't Have to Run Your Business by the Seat of Your Pants, by Tom Gegax. Ditto. 3. PADI: The Business of Diving Book Okay, so this book won't be of use to anyone who doesn't want to start a scuba store, but I did, and this book was of course invaluable to me in reaching that goal.
Business Coaching Internship Review Business Coaching Internship Review - I joined in during the first phase of the internship and at this point we are committed to doing research and development of RSC Business Group operating in Toronto. RSC Business Group already has products and services in Coaching Small businesses in Los Angeles but we didn't want to assume that the same products were wanted and needed in the Toronto market. Our goal at this point is to commit to interviewing 1000 business owners to capture this data. Through the teleconference internship I've been involved in we've been focusing on Communication Skills and on active listening which are practiced when we conduct our interviews and Coach our clients when they come on board. This is a lot harder than it sounds! Part of the internship is also creating the Toronto RSC Business Group's departments, job descriptions, Marketing and Communication plans etc that a business owner would create for their own company. This trains us in the way we would coach a company as well. The internship is phased in two parts and there is compensation plan involved as well for the clients you personally bring in. These clients are coached directly by Robert Chun as you begin but you are given a chance to learn his techniques. I haven't gone through this experience yet though. It's hard to explain Robert Chun's method of Coaching as it happens at a psychological level in his ability to listen and question the person being coached into the next steps they need to take. The Teleconferences are 2 hours long but it's very interactive. If you have a desire to explore this area of Business I'd recommend contacting Vwodek listed above and get invited to a Coaching Conference call. You can decided then if it's for you. Note: it is a commitment but the skills you walk away with whether you plan on working with RSC Business Group or not is invaluable.
Re: Five Personality Traits of Successful Business Owners Re: Five Personality Traits of Successful Business Owners - 1. Focus 2. Ability to Adapt 3. Hard Work 4. Good planning 5. People Skills
Exclusive: Interview with Results Exclusive: Interview with Results - Hi Forum Members, I'm helping start up a Business Coaching and Consulting company here in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (a Subsidiary of RSC Business in Los Angeles). As a Research and Development Intern I am required to practice my listening and interview skills by surveying Small and Medium Businesses on thier Business. This Survey is designed by RSC Business to also assist the Business being interviewed more insight into their own business. I am looking to interview about 30 businesses across North America over the span of 3 months. At the end of these interviews I will be publishing a report of the results and they will be made available for free to the Interviewees. The Report data will include responses from a minimum of 100 interviews. I would like to extend this opportunity to members of the Forum. If you would like to have this short 20-30 minute interview conducted on your Business and you reside in North America please send me an email or PM. Please contact me at andy[at]jvprosperity[dot]com to arrange our interview and to get free access to the results when they are published.
Re: Books for Business Owners Re: Books for Business Owners - Hi DougSchadle, Thanks for sharing your favorite business book with us! A good book I'm reading now is "Maximum Achievement: Strategies and Skills That Will Unlock Your Hidden Powers to Succeed" by Brian Tracy as it was a birthday gift from a friend. Tracy's book is helpful in identifying what's important in your life and then setting an action plan to achieve it.


Recommended Article for You close

  How Do Your Soft Skills Measure Up?

Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.



Featured Article


Bottom Footer
Share for a Cause












Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!
Name:
Email:
Popular Articles

The five pillars of internet marketing strategy

Selling with Humor (and a Sorry Butt)

The OLD Way of Advertising, May Not be so OLD
Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.