[lwptoc]

Workplace skills can make the difference in today’s ever dynamic and competitive working environment. Having the correct workplace skill can be the difference between stagnated career and a long-lasting and successful career. With technology paving the way of business growth, globalization and increasing demanding workfare expectations, employers of labor a constantly looking for people who brings not just qualifications but also skills to the table. They are seeking for people with future-ready, adaptable and valuable workplace skills.

Irrespective of your career level, these top 5 essential workplace skills will definitely position you for long and short term career advancement.

1. Communication Skills

Effective communication is still the foundation to a career successes. Communication entails effective listening with active response it is not only about speaking and writing. Effective communication has been proven tools to helps avoid misunderstandings, enhances collaborations and thus drives projects. To builds this workplace skill enhances:

• Effective professional emails writing and reporting
• Public speaking and presentation delivery
• Active listening and constructive feedback
  

  

2. Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

This skill is most of the time underestimated, but emotional intelligence is infect an essential workplace skills that helps in building durable and lasting professional relationships. It involves emotional management and understanding, while being able to positively influence the other people’s emotion.

People with high Emotional Intelligence are

• Empathetic leaders and coworkers
• Professional conflict revolutionists
• Masters in stress and pressure management.

EQ individuals are mostly valued in organizations because they fosters trust and build a healthier working environment.

3. Adaptability and Flexibility

Just as the saying goes “the only thing constant is change” such is the importance of adaptability and flexibility. Flexibility is considered one of the non-negotiable workplace skill in the workplace. From accepting a new change in operational objective to navigating some organizational restructuring, this skill are core to fast learning, and resilient to ever-changing situations at the workplace.   

Below are the core essence of adaptability:

• Accepting new tools, procedures and platforms
• Being open-minded receiving feedback and learning
• Remaining productive in different environments

4. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Irrespective of the industry where you functions, at some point we need some level of creativity analysis and decision-making. More are more employers now look for individuals with the capacity to read a situation and provide out of the box solutions to respond accordingly.  Creativity, problem solving and analytical skills are some of the characteristics associated with this workplace skills, and are highly valued in organizations.

Steps to improve on this skill:

• Breaking complex problems into small manageable parts
• Engage in strategic thinking activities
• Always access the level of workability of your decision-making by seek feedback

5. Collaboration and Teamwork

Given the interconnectedness of our working environment, no achievements is made in isolation. Collaborations have always been the key to achieving wonderful things in an organization. Effective working with others is one of the first workplace skill essential for task and project management to achieve organizational goals. From group discussions to group projects, a reliable team player is vital to achieving career growth.

Essential to this skill:

• Fair level of responsibilities sharing.
• Respect diverse perspectives
• Open communicate and support.

Why are These Workplace Skills Essential?

The present day career prospects are changing. Technical skills are essential to opining the door for career growth, but it is the workplace skills that nourishes you and keeps you relevant and thus becomes the cornerstone for your advancement. They are useful in navigating workplace nuances, personally solve problems and contributes to collective success. Giving the transferability of these skill, they make career switches possible.

By deliberatively developing these workplace skills, not just future-proofs but enriches your professional career and experience. With Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automations set to replace some positions, employers of labor will no doubt fancy more human-centric skills. Skills like collaborations, critical thinking, and empathy stands as evergreen skills.

My Final Thoughts

Success in your career my not be solely determined by what you know, but also the application of them in our different places of work. Workplace skills does not depend only on your technical abilities, but also on your working relationships with others, adaptation to change, solve problems solving and communication abilities. These makes your career eve more sustainable.