Soft skills are the new survival skills.
Soft skills are the new survival skills. In today’s business economy, there is no such thing as soft skills. I think the very description, soft skills, minimizes the value and importance of developing solid customer service competencies that are rooted in emotional intelligence. These two factors are the core of all business success. They are like the cement foundation that business is built upon.
It doesn’t matter if you are a supervisor, manager, executive, CEO, business owner, or entrepreneur. These are built on the foundation of customer service and emotional intelligence. Yes, technical skills may get you in the door, but once you are inside the door your ability to work well with others is the deciding factor for how well you do in that environment.
For example, if you are an auto mechanic, I am very concerned that you are competent and able to fix my car. But beyond your skill at actually managing the repair, what determines your success with me and any customer is how you treat me. Are you polite? Are you helpful? Do you listen to me? Do you answer my questions? If I’m not satisfied with your service do you know how to make it right? If we disagree, do you know how to repair a damaged relationship and keep me as a customer? Those are not soft skills. They are survival skills.
For an educator, it’s a common knowledge that children are drawn to and learn better from people who bring out the best in them. Teachers who smile and speak encouraging words get better responses than those who don’t. Emotionally healthy people encourage others, build them up, and cheer them on. Being kind and helpful matters to the teacher and student as well as to the customer and associate. These skills get results because they build relationships. Business survives because of relationships.
As we say in the Customer Service Academy, service is not something you do, it’s something you are. So drop that old label “soft skills.” These are survival skills.
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