How do you develop your own soft skills?
Harald Frank
4 replies
As founders, makers, creators or builders our success not only depends on the hard skills, like coding, design or building business models. To stand out we have to excel in communications, decision making, pitching and many more "soft" skills.
How do you develop your soft skills? Which apps, platforms or workshops do you use?
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Mia Charlotte Anderson@miacharlotteanderson
Reading is definitely helpful for soft skills. I found the books 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' and 'Crucial Conversations' really insightful for improving my communication and leadership abilities. Practicing active listening and seeking feedback from others has also been key for me in developing stronger interpersonal skills over time.
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Totally agree that reading books on soft skills like leadership, communication, and negotiation can make a huge difference. Another thing that's really helped me is putting those skills into practice regularly - like stepping up to lead a project at work even if it's a bit outside my comfort zone, or negotiating a raise. The more you flex those soft skill muscles, the stronger they get! Podcasts and workshops focused on professional development are also great for picking up tips.
Definitely, reading good books on communication, empathy and interpersonal dynamics like 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' helps a ton in building soft skills. I've also found that proactively seeking candid feedback from colleagues and mentors on your communication style, leadership approach etc. accelerates growth. And of course, consciously practicing active listening in meetings and 1:1s to really understand others' perspectives is key. It's a journey but being intentional about developing these areas makes a big difference over time.
Absolutely! Some soft skills I've found valuable to develop are active listening, empathy, and adaptability. A book that really helped me level up my communication and relationship-building skills was 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' by Dale Carnegie. Highly recommend giving it a read if you haven't already. Aside from books, I've found that actively seeking out opportunities to practice soft skills, like taking on leadership roles in projects or volunteering for public speaking, has accelerated my growth in those areas.