There are certain skill sets that are crucial for employees to be successful in their work environment. Regardless of your work history, interpersonal skills (such as being able to effectively communicate) are important because they:
Help employees develop and foster strong working relationships with each other and with their clients
Contribute to increasing team and organizational productivity
Create an overall positive work environment
One of the best and most basic ways to learn any skill, including various interpersonal skills, is to learn by doing and actively practicing every day. Here is a list of eight of the must-have interpersonal skills for every professional in the workplace:
1. Exercising Self-Awareness
In general terms, self-awareness means that a person can consciously know what they’re feeling and why they are feeling it.
Being aware of your own feelings and emotions can help you be cognizant of the messages you convey to others whether through your words or non-verbal forms of communication. A lack of employee self-awareness can be detrimental to the success and productivity of any career.
2. Being Cognizant of Non-verbal Communication
Are you conscious about the nonverbal messages you are sending throughout the workday? Non-verbal communication is an often-overlooked bridge between yourself and others, including your colleagues, supervisors, partners, and clients.
However, nonverbal cues can either make relationships stronger or damage them, depending on how they are used and the context of the situation. Some forms of nonverbal communication include:
Eye contact
Facial expressions
Body language
Gestures
Physical contact (such as shaking hands, touching an arm, pushing, etc.)
3. Being Respectful of Others
It is well known that respect can go a long way in fostering positive relationships and work environments. Showing respect in the workplace can be done in any number of ways, including:
Showing appreciation for employees’ efforts and time
Showing gratitude and courtesy
Listening to what others have to say rather than listening only to respond
Being respectful of others’ ideas and opinions, even when they differ from yours
Not disparaging, insulting, or attacking others
Not taking credit for others’ work, even if you build or improve upon someone else’s work, be sure to acknowledge their initial contributions
4. Showing Empathy and Understanding
Having empathy for others is a crucial part of relationship building in the workplace because it helps you consider the thoughts, feelings, and needs of others. There are different ways that learning and developing professionals can encourage employees to develop and grow these skills through empathy-building exercises.
5. Being a Clear Communicator
Regardless of where you are from, communication is an important part of life, as well as a necessary component of any personal of business relationship. Having effective communication skills can be the difference between success and failure.
6. Engage in Active Listening
Active listening is self-explanatory. It’s all about actively listening to what someone else has to say rather than passively hearing their message. Approach each conversation like you have something to learn – because you likely will find yourself doing just that.
Everyone has their own unique insights, experiences, and perspectives on different subjects. By actively listening to other viewpoints in the workplace (as well as in our personal lives), it helps us as humans to learn and grow. We’re able to increase our own understanding by having an open mind and considering new ideas.
7. Behaving Appropriately
Behaving appropriately should go without saying in the workplace. Depending on the culture of your individual organization, what’s considered appropriate can vary. However, there are some universally accepted behaviors that should be exercised by employees, including:
Being punctual
Being friendly and respectful of others
Showing courtesy
Being cooperative and easy to work with
Having a positive attitude
Dressing appropriately
Taking personal responsibility and being accountable
Limiting cell phone use to break times
8. Being Receptive to Feedback
Feedback is necessary for personal and professional growth. However, nobody likes to feel like they are being criticized. Therefore, it is important to recognize the difference between receiving feedback and criticism. Feedback – whether positive or negative in nature – is like criticism in that it involves and evaluation of some kind by another person. However, a significant difference between these two terms is intent.
