Your ability to work well with others鈥攐r your people skills鈥攁re valuable abilities. Learn more about key people skills to feature on your CV.
Working with others鈥攁nd working well with others鈥攊s often a key part of many jobs. People skills, sometimes called interpersonal skills, are important traits you can develop or strengthen to create stronger relationships and improve your work with others. As automation continues to escalate, 鈥渢he need for finely tuned social and emotional skills will rapidly grow鈥 by 2030, according to a recent skills report from McKinsey [闭.听
In this article, we鈥檒l review several important people skills you can build or refine to succeed in your role.听
People skills are typically used in social situations when working with others, be they colleagues, managers, clients, or some other type of work-related relationship.听
People skills are essential because most people work with others. Even though you may work independently at times, you likely have relationships at鈥攐r as part of鈥攚ork. It鈥檚 vital to build and maintain these relationships. Refining your people skills throughout your career can bolster other valuable job skills, such as technical and workplace skills.听聽聽聽
Most people's skills are based on emotional or social components. The list below gathers the top people skills with examples of what they look like in the workplace.听
Emotional intelligence is your ability to understand and manage your emotions and those of others. Developing greater emotional intelligence can be helpful when it comes to regulating how you feel at work and cultivating greater self-awareness, empathy, and social skills.听聽
Emotional intelligence looks like this:聽
Thinking through situations carefully before reacting
Avoiding judging others聽
Problem-solving in a way that benefits everyone
Workplace communication varies, often entailing an array of written and verbal efforts and understanding how to communicate clearly and effectively with your colleagues. Being strategic about communicating can lead to smoother interactions and better results.听
Communication looks like:聽
Listening to and engaging with what others have to say
Asking questions to gather more information聽
Being concise rather than over-explaining a message聽
Teamwork鈥攐r collaboration鈥攊s an essential people skill. Collaboration often means working towards a shared goal, which requires several abilities, including communicating, establishing responsibilities, and managing your time strategically.听
Collaboration looks like:
Making sure everyone understands the central goal聽
Establishing communication preferences and methods聽
Trusting colleagues to do their part
In the workplace, listening to others and hearing what they鈥檙e saying is important. This skill is especially critical in facilitating strong relationships. With active listening, you should make eye contact, develop thoughtful body language, focus on what the other person is saying, and ask relevant questions.
Active listening looks like this:聽
Concentrating on what someone has to say rather than thinking of your response
Smiling, making eye contact, or nodding to show engagement聽
Paraphrasing what someone has said and asking questions to gather more information
When you work with others, it鈥檚 important to be flexible. Sometimes plans or projects change, and flexibility can help keep things on track and running smoothly. Being flexible may also mean reprioritising tasks.听
Flexibility looks like:
Approaching things with an open mind
Remaining calm when things change
Developing contingency plans to make pivoting easier
Being a supportive colleague, team member, or manager is crucial to building and developing relationships in the workplace. You can be supportive by offering encouraging words or helpful actions, like reorganising a project to distribute the workload more equitably.听聽
Support looks like:
Checking in with colleagues and seeing how they鈥檙e doing聽
Offering advice to those open to hearing your perspective聽
Being positive when listening to others聽
Respecting those you work with, ranging from your immediate colleagues to any outside vendors you may encounter, helps lead to stronger and more positive relationships. Listening to what others say and respecting their perspective, even if you don鈥檛 always agree, creates structured, safe workspaces.听聽
Respect looks like:
Responding to emails or messages in a timely fashion聽
Saying 鈥渢hank you鈥
Apologising if you do something that hurts or offends someone
Patience can help you do your work with less stress and contribute to teams and projects more smoothly. To cultivate patience, it鈥檚 helpful to recognise when you feel impatient and what may be causing that, and then take steps to develop better structures, organisation, or time management.听聽
Patience looks like:
Noticing what鈥檚 causing your impatience聽
Letting things you can鈥檛 control go聽
Establishing priorities so you can better manage your deadlines
While you should aim to be respectful and supportive when working with others, there may be times you need to be assertive. This skill is more about cultivating confidence and calm so that you can strategically communicate your ideas to others and stand up for what you believe.听
Assertiveness looks like:
Speaking up when you have an idea, using 鈥淚 think鈥 or 鈥淚 believe鈥 statements
Making eye contact when speaking to others
Saying 鈥渘o鈥 when you can鈥檛 handle additional work requests
Like assertiveness, negotiating with others鈥攚hich tends to involve active listening and compromise鈥攊s valuable. It can help avoid larger conflicts and is an excellent way to use valuable problem-solving skills.
Negotiation looks like:
Discussing to facilitate clear communication
Being honest about your needs or goals聽
Thinking creatively about potential solutions
When you work alongside others, conflict might arise. Listening to others, hearing what they鈥檙e saying, and identifying a solution to the problem will make for healthier, more long-lasting relationships.
Conflict resolution looks like this:聽
Identifying your emotions聽
Respecting the other person鈥檚 perspective and how it might differ from yours聽
Letting things go once you鈥檝e reached a resolution聽
No matter your role at work, whether an entry-level employee or a manager, developing leadership skills can help you work well with others. Leaders are dependable, organised individuals who listen to what others have to say and communicate clearly and effectively.听
Leadership looks like:
Approaching work and others positively
Communicating with others in a timely fashion聽
Being dependable聽聽
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McKinsey and Company. 鈥, https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/skill-shift-automation-and-the-future-of-the-workforce.鈥 Accessed March 20, 2024.听
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