With the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and more and more jobs becoming increasingly automated, “soft” human skills — which cannot yet be replicated by machines — have become crucial success factors in any and all careers. (Photo by Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images)
With the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and more and more jobs becoming increasingly automated, “soft” human skills — which cannot yet be replicated by machines — have become crucial success factors in any and all careers. Collaboration, empathy, optimism, adaptability, grace – these are the “soft skills” they don’t teach you in school – but are increasingly acknowledged as essential to the future of leadership in an organisation, and the world at large.
In 2017, consultancy firm Deloitte reported that “soft skill-intensive occupations will account for two-thirds of all jobs by 2030”. And today, talent acquisition and recruitment specialists will confirm that hiring employees with soft skills is not only necessary but also goes a long way to improving teams, building culture, as well as increasing overall company performance, too.
But which soft skills are most important to master? Which soft performance pins will level up the field of play and outweigh the career experience on your CV? These days, companies are seeking out ‘The Big 5’ in terms of soft skill acquisition amongst leaders and team players. These include collaboration, empathy, optimism, adaptability and, perhaps the softest on the list, but arguably the most impactful — grace.
It’s becoming more and more vital to hire for skills that can’t be taught in school but rather acquired through character building and life experience.
So, here’s what I know about the importance of soft skills, and the role they play in all our lives:
Collaboration
They say teamwork makes the dream work and, speaking to leaders in any field, nothing could ring more true. Being able to collaborate and contribute as a team player goes a long way to furthering your career. For example, one of Africa’s top 100 most reputable marketing leaders and one of the coaches on the recently launched elearning platform called MyPlaybox, Santie Botha, advocates for collaboration as one of the Big 5 most coveted skill sets. Botha believes that as a leader, you have to be a team player and that it’s about long-term thinking, implementation with intent, collaboration and compassion.
Empathy
No stranger to the human-centric workforce, Empathy takes its place as one of the key players in charismatic leadership around the world. Prevalent in notable presidential statesmen, namely the late Nelson “Madiba” Mandela, Winston Churchill and Eva Perón — leaders today are sounding the call for empathy more and more to the world’s captains of industry, in an attempt to reinstate a certain human essence into the workplace.
In a deeper study on empathy, Harvard Business Review has demonstrated that empathetic companies undoubtedly outperform their more dismissive counterparts by at least 20%. Another one of the coaches on MyPlaybox, Joey Rasdien, has a strong opinion about empathy as one of the prevailing soft tools for comedic success, and self-development. He says that when you understand how to use empathy, it becomes your superpower.
Optimism
There is a misconception that optimism is something you’re born with, but in fact it takes a certain kind of nerve and resilience to attain optimism, and sustain it; it’s the kind of skill textbooks can’t teach you, but arguably, people can. Learning to be optimistic in the face of adversity, is one of life’s toughest lessons, and a hard nut to crack in business.
A good example of optimism is the critically acclaimed chef, Mogau Seshoene, aka The Lazy Makoti, who shares how a string of “No’s” shaped her to begin believing in her own “Yes,” leading her to her ultimate best-selling success and the number one cookbook in South Africa, with over 34 000 copies sold and a fan following of over 600 000 in a short space of three years. The experience definitely made her stronger, more determined, less likely to take a no; and it gifted her with confidence and self-belief.
Adaptability
A certain type of resilience goes hand-in-hand with growing one’s career and having the confidence to not only adapt to your changing landscape but also to back yourself no matter the challenge. Ryan Sandes, world-renowned ultra-trail runner and South Africa’s golden boy as the first to win an ultra-trail on all seven continents, is great at teaching the power of adaptability on and off the trail. Sandes believes that life is unpredictable, fast-paced, and changing all the time so how you choose to adapt to your climate and landscape will ultimately make the difference and push you to make it out there.
Grace
It’s almost as underrated as it is invisible, yet soft skills like grace in the workplace are key to succeeding in your career as well as in your life. Yvonne Chaka Chaka believes that grace begins with learning the art of “Sawubona, unjani?”. “Unjani” is one of her favourite South African words. It’s an African greeting that means “How are you?” She strongly feels that you are never too famous to stop asking that question! If you want to be successful: Be human first. You need to see yourself in others, and others need to see themselves in you, and that, she believes, is grace.
Mark Levy is the founder and chief executive of Digital Planet, one of South Africa’s first electronic online stores. His latest venture, Playbox, is an e-learning platform where people can learn skills by watching some of the nation’s most talented icons.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Mail & Guardian.