In order to be successful in today’s workplace, not only do you need the knowledge to understand what you need to do at your job, but you also need the soft skills that allow you to work in teams, communicate effectively, respond well to failure, etc. If you asked someone who hires for their company, they may say that these soft skills are even more important than rote knowledge of how to do something. You can only learn these skills, however, by putting yourself in situations or circumstances where you need to use them. This is why internships are SO IMPORTANT! I have written two other posts titled, “The Value of a High School Internship” and “Gen Z X Factors” that also speak to the importance of these soft skills.
Sophomores and Juniors are required to complete 20 internship hours (Sophomore Externship) and 40 hours (Junior Practicum) respectively. As we “educate students who will serve God and impact the world through Biblical thought and action” at DCCS, it’s important that students “go into the world” through these internship experiences.
Keep in mind, as adults we need to continue getting better at these soft skills. However, we grew up in a generation without cell phones and constant communication so we were able (or had) to learn these skills sooner. High school (and college) students today need to seek out opportunities a bit more today, especially after the COVID pandemic, in order to learn these soft skills. While you can learn these skills to a certain extent in a traditional classroom setting, you won’t truly grow in each of these soft skills unless you are in situations that are new and challenge you, with people you may not be familiar with, in settings that are different and being asked to complete tasks that are difficult. Based on a poll that I had staff/administrators at DC take, below are the most important soft skills to learn and grow in as you get older. There were many others that didn’t make the cut but are also important. For the sake of this post becoming too long, I needed to keep it at ten.
- Communication– I can write another entire blog post on communication. In my mind, the most important communication skills a high school student can improve in are asking good questions, have a good tone of voice, friendliness, listening, clarity and respect. I was at a wedding this past weekend and my 90-year old grandmother, who wanted to know why we didn’t have bread at our table yet, said, “only the squeaky wheel gets the oil” after she asked for bread. When you deal with people, you just can’t ask Google for an answer, you have to ask them. The more you ask, the more you’ll know and the more opportunities you will have.
- Teamwork– The ability to work in a friendly and peaceful manner with fellow employees in all kids of situations and with empathy. It requires a sense of maturity, which allows the individual to think above misunderstands that arise. Lastly, in involves helping other members of your team achieve a common goal quickly and effectively.
- Adaptability/Flexibility– In the 21st century companies need to make rapid changes to remain competitive. So they need workers who can also shift gears or change direction as needed. In today’s tech-driven and rapidly evolving business environment, employees need to be able to handle many different tasks and demonstrate a willingness to take on responsibilities that might lay outside their area of expertise.
- Problem Solving– Glitches, bumps in the road, and stumbling blocks are all part of a job and represent learning opportunities. The ability to use your knowledge to find answers to pressing problems and come up with workable solutions will demonstrate that you can handle (or excel) at your job. Discussing mistakes and what you learned from them is also important to growing in this area.
- Conflict Resolution– In the past, when there weren’t cell phones, we used to go outside and play with our friends all day because that was the only way to interact with them. We couldn’t FaceTime, text, etc. When you interact with people face to face you are going disagree. I know when I had disagreements, sometimes it ended up in yelling, fights and maybe leaving wherever we were and went home. However, we had to resolve our differences, apologize or just move on knowing we were being dumb because we wanted to keep playing and interacting. Today, kids and teens can hide behind a device if they get mad or disagree with someone. They don’t talk to someone they are angry at or disagree with face to face to resolve their differences. How to talk through your disagreements with someone, apologizing, compromising and learning to “agree to disagree” in a respectful manner, are skills in short supply these days.
- Work Ethic– Employers are looking for employees that take initiative, are reliable, and can do the job right the first time. They expect you to be responsible and do the job you’re getting paid to do, which includes being punctual when you arrive at work, meeting deadlines, and making sure your work is error-free. Also, going the extra mile shows that you’re committed to performing your work with excellence.
- Self-Motivation– Having a positive attitude and the initiative to work well without someone having to look over your shoulder all the time is a vital soft skill for any employee. This demonstrates reliability and commitment, but also independence and self-sufficiency. If your boss has to constantly find ways to motivate you, which means they are probably taking time away from more important things they have to do, you won’t be around much longer.
- Self-Control– This is the only soft skill on the list that is also one of the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). So self-control is even more important because it requires us to hold our tongue when we know our words may be harmful, listening instead of speaking, not taking something or thinking we can get away with something because we convinced ourselves it’s okay for some reason or another and having wisdom on what to say if we know our words won’t help the situation. These are such critical skills to learn not only for when you are at the workplace, but trying to shine the light of Jesus to those you work with.
- Confidence– This is your belief or trust in something. In the workplace, it can be the belief you have in yourself to carry out your job and the belief you have in your own abilities. Having this skill means you know what you can do well and what you’re ultimately capable of. However, it’s also being confident that you know what you are weaker at or not as skilled in and when to ask for help or possibly teaming up with someone who can provide a great balance to complete a task.
- Time Management– Employers in every industry look for employees that make optimal use of the time available to them on the job. Saving time saves each organization money and increases revenue. Effective time management requires one to analyze their workload, assign priorities and focus on the most productive tasks. It also includes the ability to work under pressure, as well as within tight deadlines. You also must have an attitude which allows you to take on new tasks.
