3 Key Soft Skills You Need for Professional Success

Technical prowess gets you the job - but soft skills get you noticed!

So, you’ve got the qualifications, you’ve put in the time to gain experience and you’ve honed your skills - but you’re still not getting ahead. Sound familiar? Watching other less skilled colleagues get promoted ahead of you can be frustrating and demoralizing, and can leave you thinking “what do they have that I don’t?” In many cases, the answer to that is soft skills.

What are "Soft Skills"?

The term "soft skills" sounds a bit, well ... soft ... doesn't it?  Well, that's wrong!
We use this term to describe a set of interpersonal skills which work hand in hand with the knowledge and expertise required for a role. Some valuable soft skills are:

• Communication
• Emotional intelligence
• Critical thinking
• Leadership
• Empathy

These soft, or alternative, skills are the key to taking your career to the next level; whether that’s improving your performance in your current role or nabbing that corner office you’ve had your eye on.

Finding the soft spot

Knowing which attributes will complement your skill-set - and how to nurture them is vital and so, in this section, we’re exploring the  essential soft skills for success, and how to develop them.

The Importance of Soft Skills

A LinkedIn study found that 92% of hiring managers believe that the following soft skills are just as important—if not more so - than hard skills, so, let’s take a deep dive into these essential assets:.

1.    Communication Skills

Effective communication is the cornerstone of career success and improving your skills here may be the secret sauce when it comes to career recognition and promotion.



While you may know your subject back to front, this is of little value if you don’t have the ability to communicate information to others in a clear and compelling manner. Strong communication is the art of taking a complex concept and translating it into language that is not just easy to understand but also ignites passion.

We all know Berkshire Hathaway CEO, Warren Buffet as an investing superhero but his acumen with finance is only half of the story. Buffet’s other super power is an ability to communicate complicated financial concepts by using simple, relatable language - so much so that his shareholder letters are widely praised for their clarity and effectiveness.

Great communication isn’t just for the rich and powerful though - for example; Sarah is a financial advisor at a major bank - technically brilliant but her attempts at connecting with clients fell flat. After working on her communication skills, Sarah increased her client retention rate by a whopping 40% because she was able to more effectively explain the value of her recommendations rather than just spitting numbers and jargon at her clients.

Communication works both ways and so this important skill also means being able to listen effectively. When we talk we’re simply repeating what we already know; however, when we listen, we may actually learn something and so, listening properly rather than just waiting for your turn to speak is an essential skill.

When looking to improve your communication skills, think about:

• Practicing storytelling. When we use narratives to explain a concept, this brings it to life for the listener and makes data and reports more engaging and therefore more memorable
• Being concise. While you may be utterly fascinated by every tiny minutiae of your subject, your audience may not be. Cut unnecessary jargon and fluff and cut to the chase to get your point across more succinctly
• Listening actively. Great communicators don’t just talk; they listen and adapt their messages accordingly. Grab some listening exercises and make these part of your routine for more effective communication

2. Leadership: Even Without the Title

I’m not a manager so I don’t need leadership skills, right?” Wrong. Firstly, leadership skills are important whatever your role and, secondly, how are you going to attain a promotion if you don’t display leadership?

Leadership is not just about being the boss - it’s about being able to drive projects forward, inspire your team and promote a positive workplace culture through initiative and informed decisions.



Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Meta (formerly Facebook for Business), played a key role in scaling the social media giant by fostering a culture of accountability and mentorship for all employees. By displaying outstanding leadership, she earned huge acclaim for empowering employees and driving business growth. Sheryl’s leadership worked through TIME:

• Taking responsibility for results and outcomes
• Inspiring and motivating others
• Making confident decisions - even when the full information wasn’t available
• Empowering, developing and mentoring staff

Working on your leadership skills will stand you in good stead in both your professional and your personal life and you can do this by:

• Taking ownership - Projects often stall or fail simply because nobody is taking responsibility. Even if it seems hard, embrace the challenges and grab your chance to shine by seeking out opportunities rather than waiting for them to fall into your lap
• Be generous - While it may sound like a contradiction, the key to personal progress is in helping others grow. A good leader focuses on the whole team, not just on their own interests
• Leading by example - Don’t shy away from the hard or boring tasks - a great leader never expects others to do what they won’t do themselves
• Have the courage of your convictions - Leadership is often about making decisions and so focus on learning to assess situations quickly and to make confident choices.

3. Emotional intelligence - Reading the room

If you’re not getting ahead at work it could be that it’s your EQ that’s lacking, not your IQ. EQ (Emotional Intelligence) is the art of being able to take the emotional temperature of those around you and to then react appropriately. For example; somebody with strong EQ skills will recognize that their boss seems to be stressed or having a bad day and will respond to this with empathy and an offer of help.



A real life example of this might be that of Michael, A Compliance Officer with a prestigious law firm. Michael used to be so focused on rule violations when reviewing work that he fostered defensiveness and failed to motivate. After making the decision to improve and develop his emotional intelligence, Michael’s team’s compliance rates improved by an impressive 25% as his team are now more receptive through his constructive feedback and motivation. Michael learned that emotional intelligence is all about:

• Identifying negative emotions and how they impact on work
• Actively working to understand other people’s feelings and perspectives
• Managing relationships more effectively to better resolve stress and conflict in the workplace

Tapping into emotional intelligence

Improving your emotional intelligence can be tricky but it’s certainly not impossible. The following can really help you to add this important skill to your repertoire:

• It starts with you - By getting to know your own emotional weather fronts and how they affect your decisions, you are better placed to recognise these in others
• Stress management - Keeping a lid on stress is important whatever your role and should therefore be prioritized. Use mindfulness, meditation, journaling or exercise to help you to manage your stress and develop better active listening skills
• Read between the lines - Learn to read your team and / or your clients in terms of how they’re feeling as this will allow you to respond more effectively and avoid mistakes

Bonus soft skill - Adaptability

The professional landscape is an ever-evolving creature and is subject to constant change. Whether this is a big change (the pandemic, major staff cuts) or a smaller one (a new system or process), adaptability is key.



Adaptability is all about reacting positively to change rather than fighting it and we can do this by:

• Regularly learning new skills and improving existing ones
• Learning to look further ahead in order to predict changes
• Learning to adapt to new circumstances
• Remaining positive, however challenging a change may seem

In today’s world, “this is how we’ve always done it” is an obsolete statement and to survive and thrive in your career, you need to be open to new ways of doing things.

Building Soft Skills to Overcome Career Obstacles

While technical skills are the foundations of your career, soft skills are the building blocks that get you where you want to go. Communication, leadership, emotional intelligence and adaptability all play their part in making you a more proactive and effective employee.

These skills are also essential for career longevity - over time, your foundation skills may become less desirable and even obsolete; however, your soft skills will never lose their value, no matter what industry you work in.

Next Steps:

• Identify areas where your soft skills need improvement
• Seek feedback from colleagues and mentors
• Consider enrolling in a professional development course to accelerate your progress

While there may not be a degree in soft skills, this doesn’t make them any less important.  Investing in these skills is not just a good way of getting a promotion but also a way of solidifying your long-term success. For this reason, prioritizing your soft skills should be top of your To Do list for today, tomorrow ... and the future!