Have you ever thought about what is meant by the term “soft skills?”
While the distinction from skills focusing more explicitly on numbers, machines, and patterns is taxonomically helpful, the word “soft” unfortunately comes with baggage we could do without. In fact, the word is far more often associated with tones of insult or shortcoming than anything actually desired–especially in a context as dominated by competition and self-promotion as job seeking.
Yet, in survey after survey, employers are identifying what are traditionally thought of as soft skills as their most sought-after abilities in new hires. To name but a few: written and verbal communication; identifying and solving problems; teamwork; leadership.
I wouldn’t blame you for experiencing feelings of confusion. Just to the side of the soft skills emphasis is a constant stream of encouragement extolling the virtues of degrees made of “sterner” stuff, requiring “harder” skills: science, technology, engineering, and math. Because we love to categorize by nature, it can become really hard to get away from an either/or perspective when it comes to these kinds of skills. In reality though, you have many skills that help to define you as a complex individual. These skills defy outdated categorizations, and they all have value.
There’s nothing soft about the in-demand skills listed above. In fact, a more accurate way of grouping them might be their shared application to, or association with, people. And as someone who spends their workday listening to them at their most vulnerable, I’d suggest that there’s most certainly nothing simple or easy about people.
All skills can be improved with time, practice, and the right kind of training. For the more quantitative skills out there, a straightforward path often exists. Want to become more skilled in calculus or a programming language? Learn the methods, apply them, then learn more complicated ones and apply those. It might take a long time and lots of repetition, but eventually you are left with more confidence in that skill. Things are less straightforward if what you want to learn is how to communicate a complex idea in an understandable way, or collaborate in a group of conflicting personalities, or simply listen to someone in a manner that makes them feel heard. Even professional email etiquette seems too difficult a skill for a surprising number of people!
The good news is, these are absolutely still skills that you can improve, and the even better news is that you have nearly limitless options as to how you can do that. I chose to volunteer and work part time during my own studies. You may choose to pursue experiential education opportunities, or work abroad, or go on exchange, or simply travel somewhere new. As you reflect on these experiences, you’ll discover you’ve grown.
And while there’s nothing soft about that, it sure doesn’t sound hard.
