What are interpersonal skills?
As the name says “Interpersonal skills” are those required to communicate with people, a set of skills needed for better human interaction in real life and the workplace. These skills are necessary to communicate well in groups and with individuals whether verbal or non-verbal.
Humans are social creatures and cannot live without social interactions, hence to get better at this we use Interpersonal skills, which can be explained as a cheat code to a sustained friendship, contact with people, and an overall better life.
Importance of interpersonal skills
Research has found that finding an employee with the right interpersonal skills is more difficult than someone with hard skills. (Hard skills here refer to the technical skills)
Soft skills provide a build-up and foundation for strong communication and relationship and help tackle difficult situations.
It's simple to concentrate on all of your hard capabilities when applying for jobs and overlook the significance of mentioning soft skills like your interpersonal skills.
In a professional setting, having strong interpersonal skills is a critical success factor. Benefits might include, for instance, having the capacity to:
- Work together with teammates to overcome challenging issues
- Cultivate cooperative ties with co-workers
- Recognize and fulfill client’s and customer’s needs
- Successfully manage and lead others
On the other hand, a lack of interpersonal skills might result in misunderstandings or miscommunications with management or co-workers, which may result in unnecessary confrontations.
You may promote a positive work environment, repair any relationships that are interfering with your ability to execute your job well, and free up your time and energy by working on your interpersonal skills.
The Core Interpersonal Skills
Communication:
Communication doesn’t only mean speaking out random words, it is the way to convey one’s thoughts and interpret others.
Verbal Communication
Oral communication is in which the speaker conveys their message, information, or feelings in the form of words. Effectiveness depends on the clarity of the words and how it is delivered. Verbal communication works both ways
– speaking and listening – one has to be a good listener too in order to be a good speaker
Non-verbal Communication
Non-verbal communication is the method of communication that conveys the mood or feeling of a person by nonverbal cues – expressions, body posture, tone of voice, eye contact – that take place automatically or spontaneously and are shown physically.
(for more information read on our blog about Non-verbal Communication)
Listening
Any job that requires you to interact with others demands you to have the ability to actively listen. When you actively listen to others, you can establish a connection with them, show that you comprehend what they are saying, and pave the way for productive collaboration and problem-solving.
Strong listening abilities are especially useful in jobs like customer service or sales where understanding and meeting the needs of customers and clients define your success.
Influence:
Influencing is the ability to persuade people, morphing their opinions and perception to align with the speaker’s. Sticking with the professional viewpoint influencing is changing employees’ mindsets and attitudes to align with the leader or the organization.
Taking an example - A team leader can have an impact on followers through his conduct, policies, and communication. Regardless of their professional hierarchy, influencing is one of the critical soft skills that everyone needs to have.
A leader must exhibit a number of talents that help in influencing, including honesty and integrity, flawless communication, the capacity to provide constructive criticism, and emotional intelligence. To develop influencing talents, one needs patience, concentration, practice and experience.
Negotiation & Conflict Management:
Leaders must be able to negotiate with internal and external stakeholders in a method and manner that builds or sustains relationships, provides value, and can be applied cross-culturally in order to lead and govern any organization efficiently while being able to recognize conflicts that call for dispute resolution as well as the many dispute resolution approaches that are accessible.
In a similar vein, the leader must be able to recognize various forms of conflict, control them, and use them for the benefit of important stakeholders' professional and personal development.
Emotional Intelligence:
The term "emotional intelligence" refers to the capacity for emotion perception, analysis, expression, and regulation. Some people contend that emotional intelligence is a skill that can be developed, while others argue that it is an innate talent that can only be passed down through genes. In the current world, people's personal and professional lives both depend on their ability to express their emotions. Even some psychologists contend that a person's emotional intelligence (EQ) is more significant than their IQ.
Networking:
The practice of networking involves keeping in touch with customers and other business people in your sector. Keeping a contact list can help you communicate crucial information, keep up with market developments, and accomplish professional objectives. Additionally, you might share and get useful career advice, as well as find out about work prospects. Business people frequently look for ways to purposefully increase their network of professional contacts in order to build a strong network.
What is the importance of networking? It helps you with more opportunities at the workplace that one would not have gotten on its own, for example insights of the company's different sectors, information on different organizations such as marketing stats and strategies.
Knowing how to use business networking efficiently may be a great instrument for a company's development because it can save you time and reduce stress. Additional justifications for the value of business networking include:
- Business Leads
- Strategies
- Knowing Insights
- Identifying trends
To sum it up, a balanced blend of all these skills will help bring out the best in a person and set them on a path to becoming an efficient and dependable leader.
Hope you found this article helpful. If you or your organization is interested to learn more about such attributes and behavioral skills at the workplace, feel free to get in touch with us at RGB Training Services!
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