The dividends, the value, of people skills (soft skills, interpersonal skills …) become clear to those who jump into learning and using them. For skeptics, the dividends seem unclear because they can’t easily measure them with numbers before investing.
People-skills for Success Today By:afcool83
As a leader, whether you are a skeptic or a believer, it is worth considering how much more productivity and what new success your teams can achieve with better people skills. With virtual team members distributed in workplaces throughout the globe trying to meet objectives, people skills are more critical than ever to overcoming obstacles and reaching success. Even within one workplace, people skills are the vehicle for all to contribute their occupational knowledge so that others can use it effectively.
Help Desk Insitute, (popularly known as HDI), invited me to write a feature article, What Are the Dividends of People-Skills, for their Support World journal. The editor has graciously sent me the pdf (see link below) for all to read. The print version is available only to members. The article is copyrighted so please do not re-post on other sites without permission (Email: info@katenasser.com).
Thank you Cinda and Megan at Help Desk Institute for covering this very important people-skills topic. [HDI is the professional association for internal and external IT customer support offering industry best practice research and reports, training, and certification. For more information: Help Desk Institute.]
Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach, brings 20 years of experience, a natural intuition about people, feisty energy, and practical vision to your organization in teamwork and customer relations workshops, DVDs, keynotes, and coaching. BS Mathematics, Masters in Organizational Psychology.
The best teamwork in the workplace requires great people-skills. As a team member what you say and how you say it impacts productivity and teamwork today and tomorrow and down the road. Phrases that team members see as disrespectful (regardless of your intentions) can bury teamwork and your workplace relationship.
For all team members and leaders who like practical information for the best teamwork and people-skills, here’s a checklist of four phrases to bury and never use again!
Bury These Phrases for Best Teamwork
“Whatever!” The current popularity of this phrase does not lessen its sting. You are basically saying to your team member: “your thoughts don’t matter to me”. This will leave scars that damage teamwork. It you disagree with a team member, then say I disagree. If you are frustrated because they are talking endlessly, then say “we are short on time today…”. Bury the phrase whatever and don’t ever dig it up!
“All you’ve done is ….” The culprit here is the word all. It packs whatever you are about to say with emotion — negative emotion. A colleague of mine was speaking with a networking contact who was a driver/driver personality type. The contact said to my colleague about her work “All you’ve done is invent a job for yourself.” The networking contact’s “all you’ve’ done is …” phrase is insulting and demeaning. On a team, this phrase could leave a scar between team members that never heals. Bury this phrase all you’ve done is … deep in the ground so it doesn’t ooze up during a flood!
“Don’t you think …?” Most of the time, people use this phrase to pressure someone into agreement. Much better to state what you believe (“I think”) and ask the team members what they think. “Don’t you think we should or …” is a passive aggressive way of expressing disagreement and often triggers resistance and emotion. To reach an end goal, put the issues on the table for the team members to directly discuss. Bury the phrase don’t you think … and replace it with what do you think?.
“I’m sorry you feel I have …”. This is one of the most common and is a most offensive phrase — whether you say it in the workplace or in your personal life. Said on a team, it is deadly. The culprit here are the words you feel. If someone has told you that you have offended, hurt, insulted … them, offer a simple direct apology I am sorry. If you want to go further, use and I am sorry for the impact this has had on you. Bury your fear of apologizing along with the phrase I’m sorry you feel I have …. You will be respected for your courage and your caring.
What other phrases would you bury?
Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach, delivers transformational team building and customer relations sessions to corporations across many industries. For 20 years, her energy and experience has activated teamwork and service improvements in the toughest situations. See testimonials on this site.
BS Mathematics, Masters in Organizational Psychology.
Team success in a diverse workplace requires more than a common goal. Respecting the differences is key. Each team member must be willing to flex their style and adapt to others. Once again people-skills, also known as soft skills, impact the tangible results in business. In this case, the people-skill needed for team success is an individual willingness as well as the skill to embrace others’ styles and blend yours for the team’s success.
The underlying support for this is a basic respect for the differences. Engage your teams in a discussion on this topic. You may be surprised at what they say! Here’s a short inspirational video to help you get started:
