The hard facts on developing soft skills

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[Written by Steve Van Remortel on July 8th, 2020]

TIME TO READ – 2 MINUTES

During a recent leadership development session, the leader’s behavioral science results measured that she had lower clarity in several areas of her life. As I explained the scientific results to her, she stopped and looked at me and asked: “Why is clarity important?”

Her question is common and legit, and the answer is one of the most important takeaways for most leaders from the leadership development process.

When you lack clarity, your soft skills in that area will be negatively impacted. In simple terms, when you lack clarity of something, you have fewer skills towards it.

For example: If you lack clarity of your future, you have fewer skills towards your future like self-management. How can you manage yourself towards something you do not have clarity of?

You can teach someone the hard skills on how to use a machine or software. But to increase their soft skills, you need first to help them increase their clarity.

The difference between average and high performers is soft skills. That’s why clarity is important.

When someone has strong soft skills, you can hear it in how they speak with such great clarity. They come across as very articulate and thoughtful.

Imagine your entire team having strong soft skills. How much easier would it be to achieve your vision with a high performing team like that?

How can you increase your team’s soft skills?

By helping them gain clarity.

The good news: you can now measure a person’s level of clarity of the world and self, giving you the capability to measure and develop 25 soft skills. Behavioral science can measure your clarity of other people, yourself, your roles in your life, and your future, to name a few.

It is a breakthrough science that leads to leadership breakthroughs in almost every development process.

Gaining clarity of where you lack clarity immediately enlightens your path and next steps.

Click here to learn more about how you can measure your team’s soft skills

This objective information will help you create a development plan for you and/or your team members that helps gain the soft skills to increase performance and life satisfaction.

It provides you the quickest way to improve your team’s soft skills and rapidly increase your organization’s performance.

Clarity needs to be your team’s new favorite word

Whether it’s to help you improve your performance or build a more effective team, clarity is the answer.

Use the exercise we discussed last week in the Scoop to have your team rate their clarity. And then talk about what soft skills come from the areas they lack clarity in.

By helping them become aware of the areas where they lack clarity, you’re shining a light on the bridge of where your team is at and where they could be. When they gain clarity in those areas, they will develop the critical soft skills your team needs to close the gap and become the highest performing team in your industry.

This week’s action plan

A couple of days after our coaching session, the leader called me to discuss her newfound clarity. The energy in her voice and conviction to increase her clarity and soft skills was palatable. We created action plans to gain the needed clarity to advance her soft skills.

Remember, where you have clarity, you have stronger soft skills, which will empower you to achieve your business, career, and life goals.

Where you lack soft skills, seek clarity.