Renaming Soft Skills to Human Skills

Episode Transcript

Sari: [00:00:00] Got skills? Of course you do. But can you talk about the skills you have and how you use them? Whether it’s with your cousin, your potential new boss, or the mentor who has 20 plus years in your dream role, skills talk is hard. But it doesn’t have to be.

Michelle: As a spin-off to the Let’s Talk About Skills, Baby podcast, each week on Got Skill? The Skills Baby team is taking a deep dive into a key takeaway from an episode of the podcast, focused on actionable ways for professionals to scale up.

Sari: I’m your host Sari Weinerman, and with me is Michelle Smith. We’re here to help you breeze through the next family reunion interview or mentorship opportunity by better understanding the skills you have and how to talk about them.

Michelle: This week, we’re diving into season two episode 14 of let’s talk about skills, baby. In this episode, host Kelly Ryan Bailey speaks with Leonor [00:01:00] Stjepic, CEO of Montessori Group, about what she calls essential life skills or human skills. Just so we’re clear, these skills Leonor is referring to are often labeled soft skills.

However, she is very passionate about changing that for vernacular.

Sari: Yes. And we are equally as passionate about changing this language because when human skills are said to be soft skills, while technical skills are said to be hard skills, an automatic ‘lesser than’ connotation is given to those soft skills. The nomenclature of soft versus hard has somehow led us to believe that they’re not important when actually that couldn’t be more opposite.

Michelle: Absolutely. Human skills are those that cannot be easily replicated or taught. They’re the ones that continue to make us relevant as technology improves and machines take over many jobs. A machine can’t smile at a customer, or develop a personal relationship with a stakeholder. Well, it might be able to do quicker calculations, lift [00:02:00] heavier objects, or execute algorithms, it can’t build rapport, build trust, or even fix itself if a key part breaks.

Sari: Exactly. Machines can’t replicate human interaction or intervention. Leonor explains this concept in her conversation with Kelly. So let’s take a quick listen.

Leonor: What someone said to me that really resonated with me and it was a conference about AI.

And they said in the future with artificial intelligence, the work that lawyers do of absorbing all these case studies and stuff like, a machine will be able to do it in seconds. Audits, machines will be able to do that. Now, would you trust the machine to cut your hair? I thought, wow. It was a point well made. That human interaction. You know, I probably wouldn’t trust the machine to cut my hair. Would you trust a machine to look after your child? Probably not.

Michelle: I’ll tell you one thing. I definitely do not trust a machine to cut my hair. I’ve been going to the same [00:03:00] stylist for over a decade and a machine sounds like a nightmare.

Sari: I absolutely agree. No thank you. And this makes it even more clear as to why human skills are so integral to your skills story.

Michelle: So, Sari, we both agree that human skills are super valuable, but if everyone has them, how do you talk about them so that you will stand out?

Sari: That’s a great question.

And while you’re right, to an extent, every human has them but not every human has honed them. Let’s take a look at two examples of human skills, communication and empathy. Some people are great communicators, but they may not be the most empathetic. They may be able to speak what they feel, but are they cognizant of the experiences and emotion of their peers?

Michelle: That’s a fair question. I can see how someone might have developed one human scale more thoroughly than another. Having strengths in one, does not mean you necessarily have strength in another one. It seems to require some self-awareness to know that about yourself.

[00:04:00] Absolutely.

Sari: There’s certainly a level of reflection and introspection needed to define your own skillset, but getting feedback from people you’ve worked with or know well is also a very helpful.

Either way, being able to describe these skills will not only make you a more emotionally literate person, but a more well-rounded job candidate.

Michelle: Right. Because if they wanted to hire a robot with no emotional capacity, they will. Technology is crazy these days. And artificial intelligence can do so much, but there are still so many jobs that rely on human skills that can’t be effectively automated.

Sari: That’s exactly right, and precisely why being able to talk about your human skills will set you apart. Leonor talks about this very sentiment from a hiring perspective. In her experience hiring, she says she has never picked a candidate because of their hard skills or credentials. She picks them for who they are.

Let’s hear it in her own words.

Leonor: I have always employed people on who they are as people rather than less skills. And [00:05:00] I learned that a long time ago, because you can get some people who on paper look amazing and are just awful employees because they’re missing those key human skills. And I’ve employed people who haven’t got a qualification, barely finished school, and they’ve been brilliant.

Michelle: I love this because not only does it reiterate why human skills are so important, but why skills-based hiring in general is so much more effective. You can’t have a relationship with a college degree. It’s the person who got that degree that makes or breaks the relationship.

Sari: Earlier you asked, how can you talk about your human skills to make you stand out? And I think there’s a few answers. One is simply to make sure you acknowledge them. Failing to address your interpersonal strengths, your ability to get along with others or the value you put on communication, in favor of highlighting a software, you know how to use or a technical skill you have experience with, will make you a one dimensional candidate.

Michelle: So making sure to weave those skills into your skills [00:06:00] story is one way. Another is going that extra step to make all of your interactions more personal. For instance, add a detailed personal statement to your resume, that is completely in your own words. Ditch the typical resume template language like demonstrated the ability to, or proficient in, and really add that personal touch.

Personally, I’ve taken this approach with my LinkedIn and resume and consistently receive positive feedback when I apply for jobs or even from recruiters searching for potential candidates.

Sari: Yes. You can also apply the same sentiment to sending thank you notes or follow-up emails. That extra communication step will make you stand out, and when you really take the time to personalize those messages, you give the receiver a much clearer picture of who you are as a person. Remember that you are not just a nameless, faceless application, you’re a human.

Michelle: Exactly. You are a human, with human skills that make you unique, valuable, and unable [00:07:00] to be replicated.

So the next time you are editing your resume or talking to a perspective employer, don’t be shy about highlighting your interpersonal skills. After all, a technical skill might help you get a job, but human skills help you keep the job and ultimately grow in the job.

Sari: Thanks for joining us on this episode of Got Skills, the podcast where we explore how to understand the skills you’ve got and more importantly, how to talk about them.

Got Skills is a Growth Network Podcast production.

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We’ll see you next time on Got Skills.[00:08:00]