There has been a lot of discussion about hard skills and how important they are for job success. But what about the ostensibly “soft” skills?
These are the strengths that are sometimes disregarded but are crucial. They can be a great way for women to advance their careers in male-dominated fields.
Human Resource Manager at Glencore, Fatima Hayat, thinks the most rewarding aspect of her job is seeing individuals advance and seeing their staff go to work with peace of mind and comfort.
This is accomplished by utilising the soft skills she has acquired over the years.
The expert listed four such essential skills:
Empathy
This is arguably the most important skill in leadership. The ability to relate to your employees and peers gives you the opportunity to lend a hand when needed, to offer solutions and to mentor and guide people to be at their best.
Adaptability
The fast pace that the world of work is changing, and the generations entering the workplace requires leaders who are adaptable and open to innovative and creative ideas.
Listening skills
The ability to speak less and listen more allows a leader to truly understand the requirements of its workforce.
Humility
Positions of power tend to give people egos. The ability to manage the ego and remain humble at all levels and to all people whom you deal with creates psychological safety for people in the organisation and when people feel safe they are more open and transparent.
This gives rise to creativity, inclusiveness and growth in an organisation.
“Women are by default nurturers and we naturally possess these softer skills by virtue of our roles in society. It allows us to create safe spaces for our employees and it allows us as women leaders to foster relationships with our employees that promotes growth and innovation.
“That promotes a culture of belonging. It also gives us the opportunity to foster better relationships with our male counterparts and change their narrative of women in leadership,” said Hayat.
According to her, one can gain these skills by:
Push themselves out of their comfort zones.
Determine which talents they wish to develop.
Find people who will provide feedback along the way.
Look for online or in-person classes that can help them develop these talents.
“I don’t think women need extra qualities or skills to be equal to men in the workplace. We already possess so many wonderful traits and innate abilities that make us fearless and resilient leaders in organisations. We don’t ever have to aim to be equal to men. We should be focused on shattering glass ceilings and superseding males. The sky is the limit.”
IOL