From an entrepreneurial perspective, a person’s set of skills can be categorised into two groups; hard and soft skills.
Hard skills are job specific qualifications or knowledge that enables a person to perform their job. They are gained from professional experience, education or training programs. Hard skills are crucial as it allows for specialisations in the workplace. However, an entrepreneur which possesses only hard skills will struggle to succeed. It crucial that these technical skills are supported by soft skills, which are often described as ‘interpersonal’ skills. Soft skills are often personality driven and includes communication, leadership and problem solving.
We can use a sale personnel to illustrate the need for both sets of skills: A sale personnel will have extensive knowledge (hard skill) about the product and brand they are selling, however, without adequate communication or negotiation skills (soft skills), they are unlikely to persuade customers into making a transaction.
Soft skills can be viewed as internal building blocks of a successful entrepreneur, they enable effective interaction among team members and customers. They are the set of skills that should be possessed and enhanced by every entrepreneur (although some jobs may require a higher degree of certain skills), alongside their more specific set of hard skills.
Important Soft skills include:
- Communication
- Leadership
- Responsibility
- Teamwork
- Self-motivation
- Flexibility
- Decision Making
- Critical thinking
- Problem solving
- Conflict resolution
To enhance your soft skills and stay on the right path to success, take a soft skill class from us. Contact us at 518-290-0812 or at https://tempobusinesstraining.com/.
Sourced from: The Balance Careers: ‘What are Soft Skills’ by Alison Doyle & WikJob: Soft skills
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