5 Underrated Soft Skills to Help You Get Ahead in Career

Whether it is finding new candidates to fill vacant positions or promoting existing employees, it is the people with excellent skills who always outshine the rest. Skilled people are valuable to businesses as they are capable of turning business challenges into opportunities for creating milestones.. However, just being good at your job, which is a hard skill, is not enough; how well you conduct yourself in the professional environment is equally important. . The latter counts as a ‘soft skill’.

While both ‘hard skills’ and ‘soft skills’ are important, human resource managers specifically look for the latter while hiring or promoting people. To help you understand the concept better, let us first understand–

What are Soft Skills?

In the professional context, soft skills, also known as people skills, can be defined as the attributes, traits, inherent social cues, and communication skills of a person that assists an individual in performing a job successfully.

It is easy to identify hard skills as they are teachable abilities of a person and are easily quantifiable. For example, proficiency in a particular language, programming/coding, handling machinery, etc., all come under the category of hard skills. Soft skills, as evident from the definition shared above, are subjective in nature and hence, are more difficult to identify and point out in a person.

Also Read: Improve Your Interpersonal Skills to Thrive in the Workplace

5 Underrated Soft Skills & How to Develop Them

Communication skills are generally the most talked about soft skills, but there are many other skills that are equally important. Listed below are some soft skills that don’t receive due importance or are not discussed much. These skills can help job seekers impress potential employers as well as professionals, looking for promotions, demonstrate good qualities to their superiors. Take a look:

1. Strong Focus:

   The ability to fully concentrate on a task can do wonders not just for an organization, but also for the professionals. When you engulf yourself completely in a task, you will be able to produce greater output and generate better results for the business. This quality will also help you utilize your skills and talents and stand out among others.

Tip: The best way to improve concentration is by creating an environment that cuts out any kind of distraction or temptation. Also, identify a time slot when you feel the most productive during the day and utilize it for concentrating on critical projects. Make sure to avoid scheduling meetings during this time slot to ensure your focus is not taken away from the task at hand.

2. Loyalty towards Work:

   Loyalty is one of the most valuable qualities companies look for in their employees. Therefore, as a loyal employee, you must be completely honest with the organization and to your work. You must use your judgment while doing your job, protect confidential information, and put the company’s interest before your own.

Tip: People are generally loyal to their employers. However, it is important to evaluate situations carefully to arrive at conclusions. Also, be cautious of whom you share confidential information with or it might harm the business later.

3. Ability to Adapt:

   In this modern age, organizations are prone to technical changes as well as changes in the business environment. If businesses don’t adapt to these changes, they risk losing greatly, especially if their competitors are better prepared. However, for organizations to adapt, it is the employees who first have to change themselves and adapt to the new and emerging requirements.

Tip: The best way to demonstrate adaptability is by always keeping a backup plan ready for when something does not go as planned. Doing so will help you change your course of action in no time, especially when it matters the most.

4. Openness to Feedback:

   Most people find it easy to give feedback to others, but very few are good at receiving them. People usually get defensive when somebody points out something negative or suggest a better alternative to their way of working. However, this kind of attitude might make your coworker avoid working with you and/or considering your ideas/suggestions unimportant.

Tip: Alter what you think about getting constructive feedback by looking at it as an opportunity to become better at your job. Instead of getting defensive, take a deep breath and listen to what the other person is trying to say with an open mind.

5. Sense of Accountability:

   A strong sense of accountability keeps everybody on their toes and makes sure they complete their tasks/projects successfully. It also ensures that you don’t just take up projects on a whim, but also see them through to completion. This also includes taking complete responsibility for the failures and challenges that may come your way.

Tip: Consider yourself the CEO of whatever you are responsible for in the workplace. For example, if you are a customer service representative, you are the CEO of keeping your customer happy and satisfied. Similarly, an accounts executive will be the CEO of maintaining error-free accounts for the company.

Also Read: Top Skills Employers Want in College Graduates in 2018

Soft skills can be acquired over time, so even if you fall short on some of these skills, you can definitely master them if you make a conscious effort. Follow the tips shared above to develop these soft skills and become a great asset for your organizations.

All the best!

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