Skills Gap – soft skills and the internal work makes them so hard

Here are three categories of soft skills and the internal work which I believe makes them so hard.

1. Self-awareness is hard because it requires courage. Self-awareness is an essential attribute of an effective leader. Self-awareness requires owning personal behavior and accepting responsibility for your role in situations. The self-aware leader is skilled at pausing to ask themselves “What is my role in the miscommunication?” or “What is my role is creating anxiety in the office?” or “What was my role in the unfortunate decision we just made?” Have the courage to ask the question; and have the courage to hear the answer and to learn from it.
2. Social awareness is hard because it requires respect and humility. The ability to read and relate to people is another essential skill. An effective manager works with and through people to achieve success in an organization. The skilled manager has the humility to understand the limits of their perspective. An effective manager has respect and attentiveness with the employees. A good manager listens to the input of others and melds it before arriving at a decision. These leaders ask, “What’s their perspective? Have I heard and considered it?” They challenge themselves, “Are you listening to those different from you? Are you seeking input from those you know disagree?”
3. Communication skills are hard because they require time. Effective communications take 200% effort: 100% effort to listen to others first, and another 100% effort to respond with awareness. We cannot catch the subtleties and richness of others’ ideas if we are in a hurry — and we’re always in a hurry. Communicating requires the discipline to slow the pace and listen. Rushing brushes over the opportunity to learn. The wise manager asks, “Am I slowing down enough to listen and understand another perspective?” “Am I allowing time to let information sink in, or do I rush to the next meeting without listening to myself?” Neuroscience now tells us that the brain continues to work on problems when we are not actively thinking about it. In fact, it more effectively combines information from all our experiences and the input of others during and sleep.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at Let’s face it. Soft skills are hard | @LeadChangeGroup SmartBlogs