#25 Soft Skills in Demand

What is the future of work going to look like? What skills will we need in the future? How are we going to communicate? Truly important as answers to all these questions directly or indirectly are Soft Skills. Ziprecruiter looked through their data and shared the top 8 most thought after soft skills. In this newsletter we'll take a closer look at their why's and what's

“soft skills play a critical role in their decision about whom they want to hire,” Ian Siegel, co-founder and CEO of ZipRecruiter

1. Communication skills

Number of jobs listing the skill: 6.1 million

Why is it important? Communicating effectively will help you in relating better with your boss, clients, and colleagues.

What skills does a great communication skill consist of?

• Written And Oral Communication
• Presentation
• Active Listening
• Nonverbal Communication
• Feedback
• Respect
• Confidence
• Clarity
• Honesty
• Friendliness

The benefits of effective workplace communication include:?

• Improved productivity?
• Increased morale
• Higher employee satisfaction
• Greater trust in management?
• Stronger teamwork
• Higher employee engagement?

Customer service

Number of jobs listing the skill: 5.5 million

The human face of the company are people in customer service. Those people are able to create a positive dialogue with customers, foster loyalty and a good reputation (The Balance Careers). Most importantly, they are able to learn how to stay calm when the other is potentially outraged, learn to see through the emotions, and find the right next steps, if done well.

Scheduling

Number of jobs listing the skill: 5 million

Great organization skills simply make it easier to take care of business, most importantly staying on top of all the to-do's and organizing them in an effective way. It's about having a work schedule in place that makes it nearly impossible to miss a beat.

Another huge benefit? It allows each employee to ensure they are meeting (and potentially exceeding) responsibilities.?

Time management skills

Number of jobs listing the skill: 3.6 million

One of the most crucial for me personally and there is always room for improvement. Have you for example ever worked alongside someone who completed the same workload as you, only half the time? That might get you intrigued to developing this exact skill.?

We all work differently and need different nudges. So in order to excel at this skill you need to know:

• how you work,
• what boundaries to establish,
• when you're the most productive,
• and what you can bear to lose in order to move swiftly.?

According to Grammarly the top 5 skills involved in managing your time wisely:

• Do a time audit.
• Block out distractions.
• Schedule yourself.
• Avoid multitasking.
• Insist that others respect your time.
• Keep your “call to action” in mind.
• Get enough downtime and rest.

The benefits might be at hand, but let's spell them out:

• It helps you achieve your goals faster.
• It helps you prioritize your work.
• You get more done in less time.
• Reduces stress.
• Prevents procrastination.
• It boosts your confidence and ultimately offers improved career opportunities.

Project management

Number of jobs listing the skill: 2.8 million

According to Forbes in order to exell in project management we need to practice patience, adaptability, critical thinking, time management, and leadership.

Benefit: Create repeatable processes, guidelines, and techniques that help you manage the people and the work involved in your projects effectively. Hence, you can increase your chances of success and deliver projects consistently, efficiently, on time, and on budget.

Analytical thinking

Number of jobs listing the skill: 2.7 million

Today it's all about data. Data can guide the way. With great analytical skills you will be able to evaluate that data through a lense that can identify and solve complex problems amongst those datapoints.

Part of that overarching skill are: detecting patterns, brainstorming, observing, interpreting data, and making decisions based on the multiple factors and options available to you (The Balance Careers, 2020)

Why do we need it?

1. Un-Biased view

2. Trust Data/Trend

3. Defining the flow (Process)

4. Solution architect

5. Benefit to personal life

Ability to work independently

Number of jobs listing the skill: 2 million

With remote work around in some way or another, the ability to work independently became hugely important. Not only for employers but there are also many benefits to you as an individual:

• Reduces conflict
• Increases your efficiency
• Provides you with an enjoyable challenge
• Puts you in charge
• Allows you to take full credit
• Increases job satisfaction
• Allows you to work at your own pace
• Eliminates politics.

Flexibility

Number of jobs listing the skill: 1.3 million

Flexibility I believe is one of the buzzwords of 2022. So what is it and how can you attain it?

"In a rapidly changing external environment, it is now especially important to be able to be flexible, adapt quickly to new realities and function successfully in them." - Tatiana Melnichuk, 2022

What is it?

• Adapt to new situations,
• Improvise,
• Shift strategies to meet different types of challenges.

Ways you can become more flexible and adaptable

1. Say YES to more opportunities.
2. Step outside your comfort zone.
3. Keep an open mind and encourage others around you to do the same.
4. Take every opportunity to learn.
5. Set goals and stick to them – milestones may move or change, that's ok it's part of the process.

This was it for this newsletter.

Back again regularly!

See you end of the week,

Franzi