Introduction& Context: Technical and Job-Related Skills Are Must, But They Are Not Sufficient

INTRODUCTION& CONTEXT
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Technical and job-related skills are must, but they are not sufficient
when it comes to finding a job or progressing up the ladder. With the traditional
style of leadership becoming out of fashion. Professional managers expect their
employees to have something extra which we call today, soft skills.
What are soft skills?

Soft skills are essential people skills the non-technical, intangible,
personality-specific skills that determine ones strengths as a leader, listener,
negotiator, and conflict mediator. Hard skills, on the other hand, are more
along the lines of what might appear on ones resume- your education,
experience and level of expertise.
Soft skills is a term which refers to personality traits, social graces,
facility with language, personal habits, friendliness, and optimism that mark
people to varying degrees.
Importance of soft skills
Soft skills play a significant role in ones success in life particularly in
ones profession. They help one to excel in the workplace and their importance
cannot be denied in this age of information and knowledge. Soft skills in the
highly competitive corporate world will help you stand out in a crowd of regular
job seekers with ordinary skills and talent.
The ever-changing impact of technology and the style of management

pay so much attention to soft skills. Soft skills are as important as traditional
hard skills to an employer regardless of industry or job type. Soft skills
complement hard skills. It is important to be technically sound, but one should
also have the ability to convey the idea to the masses in the simplest possible
manner. Planning is necessary but execution is also equally important. And it
takes soft skills to execute any idea because it involves dealing with people
directly.
Soft skills cannot be taught. However it can be developed through
proper training.
Exhibiting your soft skills
The demonstration of your key skills should be an ongoing process
throughout your working career. Demonstrate your strength by finding an
example of when you used a certain skill. Think about what, when, why and
how of every situation and this should help to communicate your selling points
and enhance your credibility.
Try to show your employers new and alternative
approaches that distinguish you and your interpersonal skills from the rest of
the candidates presentation can demonstrate verbal communication
skills, while reports can be used as an evidence of your writing capabilities.
Identifying your soft skills
Think about which soft skills you use in your day-to-day life. These
personal traits make you unique. Ask friends, family or colleagues to write
down your good and not-so-good traits and have a look at consistencies in their
responses. This will help identify your strengths and allow you to work towards
improving your weaknesses. Job postings and vacancy specifications will also
give you an idea of what personal qualities are desirable.
Improving your soft skills
Having identified certain skills that you need to improve and develop to
match your job, you should then develop a plan, identifying your goal and the
steps needed to achieve it. Keep the steps small and manageable and put them
in a timeframe, defining how you will know when you have reached your goal
to measure your success.
Ask others for help. Soft skills by nature involve working with others, so ask
for help in developing them. Share your plan with co-workers, ask for their
assistance and request feedback as you develop.
2. Top 60 soft skills

The Smyth Country Industry, a governing body conducted a survey
recently called Workforce Profile. They found the following soft skills by
employers. They are applicable to any field of work and are the most important
when selecting employees for jobs.
1. Maths
2. Safety
3. Courtesy
4. Honesty
5. Grammar
6. Reliability
7. Flexibility
8. Team skills
9. Eye contact
10.
Cooperation
11.
Adaptability
12.
Follow rules
13.
Self-directed
14.
Good attitude
15.
Writing skills
16.
Driving license
17.
Dependability
18.
Advanced maths
19.
Self-supervising
20.
Good references
21.
Being drug free
22.
Good attendance
23.
Personal energy
24.
Work experience
25.
Ability to measure
26.
Personal integrity
27.
Good work history
Positive work ethics

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INTRODUCTION& CONTEXT

What are soft skills?

The ever-changing impact of technology and the style of management

2. Top 60 soft skills

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