The ‘must-haves’ in your skills line-up The last few years have seen the term “soft skills” feature prominently in a wide range of reports, articles and studies that focus on the workplace and the future of work. And for good reason – these skills are quickly becoming the most essential ingredients to long-term career success.
Soft skills According to Wikipaedia, soft skills are “a combination of people skills, social skills, communication skills, character traits, attitudes, career attributes, social intelligence and emotional intelligence quotients … that enable people to navigate their environment, work well with others, perform well, and achieve their goals with complementing hard skills”. When hiring, most employers will be looking for much more from you than the hard skills you’ve acquired and learnt through a qualification or training. They will also be looking for a set of soft skills they think will make you the most suitable match for both the job and the company.
Must-haves Depending on where you look, the list of musthave soft skills for today’s study and work places can be exceptionally long and highly specific. However, most lists feature the following soft skills (or some variation): ¡¡Adaptability and flexibility, ¡¡Ability to communicate effectively, ¡¡Ability to co-operate and coordinate with others, ¡¡Good listening skills, ¡¡Confidence,
¡¡Critical thinking, ¡¡Creativity, ¡¡Emotional intelligence, ¡¡Problem-solving skills, ¡¡Strong work ethic, ¡¡Positive attitude, ¡¡Time management abilities / skills, ¡¡Ability to accept and learn from criticism, ¡¡Working well under pressure.
Critical for students and workplace entrants While some companies may have viewed soft skills as “nice-to-haves” in the past, rapid and dramatic changes in the jobs arena are making them absolutely critical. As the Fourth Industrial Revolution kicks into gear and the world of work continues to be impacted by the global Covid-19 pandemic, jobs are changing, some are being done away with and entirely new ones are being created. New skills sets will be needed – not only to do the jobs of the future (hard skills) but also, and perhaps more importantly, to be successful in the current changing and evolving jobs market. In this fast-approaching working environment of almost constant flux, skills like adaptability, flexibility, creativity and problem-solving are going to be critical. And young people considering furthering their studies at university or college, should also be developing their soft skills in preparation for entering the workplace. These soft skills will also stand students in good stead as they progress through and complete their studies.
