The 7 key soft skills in the world of work

These are several fundamental social skills in the workplace, and their functions.

Each job profile requires certain characteristics, but there are a series of skills that are ideal for any type of activity.

Let's go over some of them to find out what they are the most valued and useful social skills to ensure a satisfactory working life.. We will see that some of them are also demanded by personnel managers when they form their teams.

The importance of key social skills in the professional sphere

Most of the jobs we do today require very specific skills for each position, but it is also essential that candidates demonstrate key soft skills in the world of work. But why are these qualities so important?

First of all, these competencies are a good guarantee of an optimal working environment.. If all or at least most of the workers in an organization have some of the key social skills in the world of work, the company will have most of the work done in terms of maintaining a pleasant working environment, without the proliferation of conflicts between workers due to friction and personality clashes, something that is common in companies as in any other human group.

It goes without saying that, if the work environment is favorable, workers will feel more at ease and will therefore perform better. Increased productivity would therefore be another advantage provided by key social skills in the world of work.

Likewise, This has an impact on the company's internal communication channels, as the team members will be committed and the information will flow smoothly, thus avoiding incidents.This also avoids incidents in this regard.

Of course, it should not be forgotten that if a person has key social skills in the working world, he or she will automatically become a valuable asset to the company. In that case, the company will be more likely to allocate resources for this person to further develop his or her characteristics and to develop a long career working for this corporation. In this case, a symbiosis effect would be produced in which both parties would benefit.

What are the most important soft skills in the world of work?

After knowing the importance of key soft skills in the world of work, the most logical question most readers will ask is what are these skills? Therefore, in this section we are going to compile some of the main ones.

1. Empathy

Nowadays, empathy is an especially valued ability, both in the professional field and in other spheres of life. It is therefore not surprising that it is one of the key social skills in the world of work. Thanks to empathy, workers will have the ability to recognize the emotions being experienced by the people around them, whether they are their own colleaguesWhether they are their own colleagues or the customers with whom the company works.

This capacity will favor the interpersonal treatment and therefore the relationships between the people involved in the commercial activity of our organization.

2. Leadership

Another of the key social skills in the world of work that are valued in today's market are those that have to do with management or leadership skills. We do not seek authority but the ability to be a leader and team builder, setting an example and knowing how to motivate colleagues to get involved in the tasks of the organization. and motivating colleagues to get involved in the organization's tasks.

Therefore this will be one of the most demanded skills, especially for positions of certain responsibility, such as middle management, as it will make it more likely that the team in charge is properly managed.

3. Communication skills

Communication is a key dimension for any company and therefore knowing how to manage it will represent one of the key social skills in the working world. For an organization to function correctly, the messages it sends out must be clear, concise and not give rise to any ambiguity. not give rise to any kind of ambiguity.. The people in charge of this task must be able to meet these criteria.

Likewise, when the company is not the sender but becomes the receiver, it must have workers who know how to interpret the information that reaches them and transmit it synthesized but without interference to the corresponding department.

4. Listening skills

In line with the previous point but adding a dimension more oriented towards personal treatment. Knowing how to listen to others is another of the key social skills in the working world. A group of workers who know how to listen to each other will probably coordinate in an efficient way and therefore will achieve a very satisfactory level of operability and productivity for the company.

Of course, this is also a highly demanded skill for positions that involve direct dealings with the consumer, especially if it is theespecially in the customer service department. In these cases, the ability to listen is essential in order to convey to the customer that the company fully understands his problem and is doing its best to solve the incident in a satisfactory manner.

5. Emotional intelligence

Knowing how to identify one's own emotions and having the ability to regulate them so that we can always act rationally is known as having good emotional intelligence. This is, without a doubt, another of the key social skills in the world of work. It is especially useful in demanding jobs where people are under a lot of pressure..

It is also a highly sought-after skill in customer service departments, just as we saw with listening skills. This is because these teams are the ones that usually receive complaints from dissatisfied users, who can sometimes express themselves too vehemently and even disrespectfully, so the receiver must be able to regulate their emotions and therefore their response.

People with emotional intelligence will have the ability to remain calm at all times and not get carried away by the impulses of the moment, which makes them the perfect candidates for this type of work.

6. Persuasion

Another of the key social skills in the world of work is persuasion, an ability that is very valuable in any section of the organization that has to do with commercial tasks, whether buying or selling.whether they are sales or purchasing. Having a particularly persuasive worker when negotiating with customers is synonymous with having the best possible deals.

7. Creativity in teamwork

The last of the key social skills in the world of work that we include in this list is none other than creativity. The ability to see beyond the rigid protocol and find alternative solutions that open up new ways for the company to achieve the goals it has set for itself. to achieve the goals it has set for itself, is another of the skills that is most sought after in certain sectors.

Bibliographical references:

• Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional Intelligence. Bantam.
• Moreno-Jiménez, B., Blanco-Donoso, L.M., Aguirre-Camacho, A., Rivas, S. de, Herrero, M. (2014). Social skills for new organizations. Behavioral Psychology / Psicología Conductual. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
• Robbins, S.P. (2004). Comportamiento organizacional. Pearson Educación.