What are interpersonal skills and why do they matter?
Today’s workplace isn’t about what you know or who you know – it's about how well you can relate to them.
We're talking about interpersonal skills.
Skills and qualifications might open doors, but your interpersonal skills define your ability to thrive in a workplace. Think of them as your superpower for career success.
So, what are interpersonal skills? Why do they matter? And how can you improve your interpersonal skills?
Let's jump in.
What are interpersonal skills?
Interpersonal skills, also known as soft skills or human skills, are what we use when interacting and communicating with others. They include behaviours like active listening, showing empathy, and communication.
In other words, interpersonal skills are the tools you use to get along with others. They are essential for building and maintaining positive relationships in your personal and professional life.
Types of interpersonal skills at work
There’s a variety of interpersonal skills that people need to have or develop to be successful in the workplace.
Here are four interpersonal skills valued by employers:
1. Communication
What sets high achievers apart from everyone else is their excellence in communicating. Think about it – every day, you engage with various people in the workplace and outside of it, so having the skills to adapt and deliver your message effectively is the key to hitting your career goals.
Being a good communicator doesn't mean you need to be a smooth talker or brilliant wordsmith – it means you can express yourself and get your message across to others.
This means considering your audience, what information you want to share and the best way to ensure that the message is understood and inspires action.
2. Listening
Listening is half the equation when it comes to communicating better. Yet few people know how to be fully present in a conversation and respond thoughtfully to what the other person is saying. Listening is a powerful skill that involves removing judgement, bias and noise to really listen to another human being.
Great listeners positively impact how people feel after speaking to them. They understand where people are coming from, build rapport and trust with others, and show they’re open to feedback and willing to learn from it.
3. Emotional intelligence
Our emotional intelligence, or emotional quotient (EQ), is our ability to understand and manage our own emotions as well as understand and influence the emotions of others.
EQ has a direct impact on our relationships at work. When our EQ is high, we tend to get along better with others, have a better work-life balance, and approach work with a better attitude.
EQ is also linked to listening. Dr. Goleman, who coined the term "EQ" in 1995, said the most prevalent sign of low EQ is poor listening, such as interrupting people.
4. Collaboration
Collaboration is about working well with others to achieve a common goal. This requires clear and thoughtful communication and the ability to resolve conflicts in healthy ways. It means being open to and accepting new ideas and feedback and adapting to change.
Why do interpersonal skills matter?
There are very few jobs where you will work entirely on your own. Even the roles you might think are mostly solo affairs still require human interaction, whether with colleagues, customers or clients.
That's why employers are looking for candidates with standout interpersonal skills.
When recruiting management roles, 71% of employers look to hire and promote candidates with a high EQ over their intelligence quotient (IQ).
In the World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2023, employers rank empathy and active listening among the top 10 skills employees need - higher than AI and big data.
Research also demonstrates that our interpersonal skills enable us to excel and thrive amid ever-evolving dynamics of the workplace.
Take collaboration. According to American Psychologist's "The Science of Teamwork", collaboration can make you more intelligent, creative, and successful. It can unleash your potential to do better work, grow as a person, and be happier, too. Who can argue with that?
So, to truly shine in your career, don't just focus on sharpening your hard skills. Make sure to give your soft skills some love, too.
How to supercharge your interpersonal skills
Powering up your interpersonal skills starts with self-awareness. You need to understand yourself to relate well with others. What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses? Do you listen to others? How well do you work in a team?
The most important thing is to treat interpersonal skills development as a lifelong process. It's something you should always be doing. The sooner you start to work on your interpersonal skills, the sooner you can use them to skyrocket your career.
To start developing your human skills today, simply download the Hodie app, or explore Maxme’s menu of human skills programs for organisations or schools.
Prefer to talk through your options? Contact us at any time.
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