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Top 10 Soft Skills for Success

By National Soft Skills Association 19 Comments

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It has been 100 years since the 85% soft skills, 15 % hard skills concept has been identified for job success. However, the importance of soft skills training is not being heard. Here’s what Stephanie Miller (MS Environmental Science & Research Trainee at US EPA) states about her experience with graduate students and soft skills: Many graduate students are so focused on developing expertise in their field that they may neglect to realize how important it is to actively work on skills like communication, time management, or conflict resolution. These skills are critical in the workplace, and being able to demonstrate them can really help a student stand out in today’s competitive job market.

Obviously, this claim that graduate students often put soft skills on the back burner does not only apply to graduate students, as it can be extended to most students in educational and training programs today. However, no interviewers will ask students if they have a soft skill. Instead, they’ll ask for proof of the skill based on concrete examples. What they are looking for are well-rounded and skilled employees ready to contribute to an organization–not particularly the ones with the most experience.

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The Graduate School at the University of Cincinnati has compiled a list of soft skills that employers seek. Here are the top ten soft skills that, when cultivated, will set you apart from the rest:

Dependability – Being dependable means that you do what you say you will, when you say you will. You can be trusted to complete any task, and you will do it well.

Motivation – You should be able to motivate yourself to get tasks done, and take the initiative to find new ways to improve upon not only yourself and your work, but also your organization.

Communication – This is one of those skills you hear about all the time, and that’s for a reason. Communication is the key to any human interaction, especially in the workplace.

Commitment – Employers want to know that you’re not only committed to the company and your job, but to turning out the best work you can, every time.

Creativity – Can you think about problems in a new and interesting way? Show your employer how.

Problem Solving – If you’re confronted with a problem, employers want to know that you will do everything you can to fix it. Your creative skills will come in handy here.

Flexibility – Sometimes, your job is going to be a little like a roller coaster. Can you adjust to the chaos?

Teamwork – You’re not done with group work after graduate school. Working in a team is an essential part of almost every job.

Leadership – You may not be a natural born leader, but can you step up and guide either a group of people or a process if necessary?

Time Management – Life gets busy, both in and out of the workplace. You need to be able to balance your workload and prioritize what gets done.

The “hard skills” learned in class are only a part of what’s necessary to be a successful employee. Business leaders are becoming more and more concerned with what they call the “skills gap” in today’s graduates. They’re concerned that today’s generation doesn’t have all of the necessary “soft skills” to succeed in today’s workplace. It’s time to ask yourself: Are you doing everything you can right now to develop the skills that will sell you as the best choice for a job? If not, it’s time to get started.

Reference: https://grad.uc.edu/student-life/news/soft-skills.html

Filed Under: Research & Publications

About the Author

National Soft Skills Association™ (NSSA) is a national clearing house on past and present research and to identify the best practices within the soft skills field.

Comments

  1. Shiv Choudhary says

    March 17, 2017 at 12:22 pm

    Very informative.

    Reply
  2. Bob says

    September 19, 2017 at 2:11 pm

    Very interesting

    Reply
  3. Jurha says

    March 19, 2018 at 10:54 am

    helpfull

    Reply
  4. kiran sahu says

    August 29, 2018 at 11:22 pm

    Hi..
    I was really confused on how to search a job amongst so many job in coroporate world your Tips help me to choose my best job
    Thanks a lot.!

    Reply
  5. kiran sahu says

    September 24, 2018 at 11:50 pm

    Hey..
    I am thankfull to you for writing these article and making me improve my skills so I would be able to standout in my interview..
    Thanks a lot for such a great article..!!!

    Reply
  6. Proggio says

    November 29, 2018 at 7:47 pm

    Communication is very important. One study says that 90% of a managers work is communicating. That is why it’s very important to develop this skill if you want to survive in any industry. Thanks.

    Reply
  7. Shani Wilson-Grant says

    May 19, 2020 at 8:23 pm

    Great list! Creativity is the hardest one for me. It seems that this is one that either you have it or you don’t.

    Reply
  8. simon says

    May 31, 2020 at 8:41 am

    beautiful article

    Reply
  9. simon says

    May 31, 2020 at 8:51 am

    excellente article Merci pour le partage.

    Reply
  10. john david says

    September 22, 2020 at 6:41 pm

    great read…

    Reply
  11. Zachary Williams says

    September 29, 2020 at 1:59 pm

    This is very good information and also very helpful

    Reply
  12. Jeremy Hall says

    October 2, 2020 at 8:27 am

    Good read.

    Reply
  13. Adrian Ramos says

    October 3, 2020 at 1:58 pm

    Excellent Read, useful information

    Reply
  14. Rashad L Bennett says

    November 3, 2020 at 8:13 pm

    Very informative…

    Reply
  15. Justin D. Harris says

    February 28, 2021 at 7:52 am

    This post provided very good information. I like your blog post and site. thank you for making this awesome site.

    Reply
  16. David Gilman says

    June 19, 2021 at 11:37 am

    To understanding, yourself is, to be honest, and be who you want to be with no boundaries.
    You will be developed in your soft skills. The information is correctly given to help your choices. Thank you

    Reply
  17. Cristian Guzman says

    October 10, 2021 at 10:37 pm

    very intriguing

    Reply
  18. Jose Sanchez says

    February 20, 2022 at 10:46 pm

    very informative.

    Reply
  19. Claudia Faucher says

    July 19, 2022 at 12:43 am

    Great information to keep in mind. While a resume may get your foot in the door, soft skills will allow you to succeed. Building people relationships is key. Thank you

    Reply

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