Top soft skills that help you overcome corporate hurdles

Everybody talks about improving Soft Skills to achieve growth in organizations. But what are soft skills? Soft skills are personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people. Well, in simpler words, soft skills are all those skills that help you step up the ladder in your organization. You know how some people know exactly what to say at the right time, when to take a stand and when to step down, and how to get the good out of every situation. All these skills come under the umbrella of Soft Skills. You get recruited for your job through your academic qualifications and industry experience but what aids you once you are inside the organization are soft skills.  

Soft skills include a lot of important day-to-day functions that are often not taught or considered very important but if practiced appropriately, they can pave the distance between an average and an extraordinary life. There are a lot of soft skills that one must know. In this article, we’ll discuss the top soft skills that can give a kickstart to a smooth and progressive journey in your corporate life. So, without much ado, let’s quickly get started. 

Teamwork: There’s a famous proverb which says, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” So, folks, if you want to make your stay long and fruitful in your organization, start amping your performance when working in teams. Working in teams doesn’t just include showing up and working with a team but includes inculcating others’ strengths and understanding their weaknesses as well. Remember, the ladder to success is big enough for you and your colleagues to get on it together, and when you get to the top, it should be your responsibility to lend a hand to the ones on the ladder and not push the ladder from the top.  

Pro tip: Speak and let others speak! 

Communication: The importance of effective communication cannot be stressed enough for success in personal and professional life. We all have ideas and propositions in our heads, which can lead to something novel and ground-breaking but the only thing stopping us is our inhibition to communicate our ideas in front of others. The reason is we don’t feel confident enough with our speaking skills. Well, being a Communications educator, I can frame this entire blog about this topic, but for starters, you can note down this pro tip: Know your audience’s motive/intention for an effective flow of communication. 

Critical thinking: We all have unique ideas and the knack for thinking critically about situations (sometimes when we overdo it, it’s called Overthinking) but the only thing stopping us from putting forward our thoughts is the inhibition of communicating them to others. Once we master how to communicate our thoughts clearly, we can present our ideas without being self-conscious. Critical thinking comes with experience and exposure. It is a skill that can be developed over time through reading, experiences, and always being curious.  

Pro tip:  Be present in the moment so that you can come up with ideas and suggestions. 

Problem solving: In life, you will mostly find people who will focus only on the problem. Among all such people, you should be the one who focuses on solutions. The problem will not be solved by discussing it again and again or by cribbing about it. It will get solved when we start focusing our attention on finding the solution. Once we start focusing on solutions rather than problems, more than half the problems in life will disappear automatically. 

Pro tip: Holding a glass of water in your hand gets more difficult with time. So do not hold problems in your heart and mind! 

Adaptability: Adaptability means how well you can fit in under different circumstances. Being too much resistant to change is not a good characteristic to have, and such people do not make good candidates for top managerial positions. Your attitude towards dealing with the problem at hand tells a lot about you as a person. An easy-going attitude is welcomed and preferred by everybody. Be ready to take up challenges! Be ready to step outside your comfort zone!  

Pro tip: Do not fear that your adaptable nature will get you treated in the wrong way, or you will be taken for granted. The way you behave showcases your upbringing and sanity, and the way ill manners practiced by others will showcase theirs. 

Time Management: Managing time is an important type of Non-Verbal Communication known as Chronemics. Time management includes executing your task on time, punctuality, and willingness to wait. How punctual you are at your workplace depicts how sorted you are in your life. A person must also possess the willingness to wait. Wait for others ahead of you in line to finish the task and pass it on to you. Also, the composure with which you wait depicts a lot about you as a person. Whether you are patient enough to wait for things to work out or is waiting makes you impatient.  

Pro tip: Use POSEC Method and ABC Analysis to make your time efficiently. 

Conclusion

 

Most of the soft skills are not taught but are acquired through real-life experiences. You can develop them during your education or at workplace. An MBA is one such course that not only equips you with the knowledge and skills to make you job-ready but also makes you inculcate the soft skills that help you thrive in the corporate world. Online Manipal’s UGC-entitled online MBA program is designed by industry experts keeping in mind the latest developments in the business world.  If you’re someone who’s looking rise up the corporate ladder, an online MBA is the right choice for you.