Soft skills courses everyone should complete

No matter which industry you work in, landing your dream job isn’t easy. Sometimes even the best grades and technical skills aren’t enough to get you further than the first interview round, or noticed for promotion. Sound familiar? You may need to look at the soft skills you can offer an employer – because it’s often skills such as self-awareness, self-control and teamwork that will set you apart from the competition.

Having the right technical skills and knowledge to successfully carry out your job is only one part of being the best you can be in the workplace. In addition to these hard skills, you need a good combination of soft skills to know how to work well with others.

According to a survey by Talent Q, “nine in 10 employers believe that graduates with soft skills will become increasingly important” – yet a massive 80% of employers are struggling to find graduates with the soft skills they need! While this is bad for employers, it's great news for anyone who is willing to put some time and effort into their professional development, because soft skills are something that can be learned and improved upon.

You can even do this online, through soft skills courses that you can complete at your own pace, in your own home. While your employer (hopefully!) offers plenty of training and development in the workplace, learning materials can often be focused more on those hard, technical skills. So it could be up to you to take the initiative and work on your soft skills in your own time, if you really want to get ahead.

In a previous article, we looked at the top 5 soft skills you need and how to get them, highlighting a selection of online courses to improve:

• Communication skills
• Emotional intelligence
• Problem solving
• Teamwork and collaboration
• Building resilience

Today, we’re going to look at 3 online courses that offer an overall perspective and introduction to soft skills. This way, you can get more of a ‘crash course’ in soft skill development, while covering all the elements mentioned above.

10 Soft Skills You Need To Be Successful

With the 10 Soft Skills You Need course, you’ll start to understand why it’s so important to develop a set of soft skills – for both personal and professional development.

This course has been created for employees at all levels, including managers and supervisors, so is suitable for any audience. It discusses the 10 key soft skills that contribute most to career success, presenting practical ways to improve interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, communication, self-confidence, and more.

It’s particularly good for anyone looking to work on their communication, problem solving and conflict resolution skills, to build more positive relationships at work. Another great thing about this course is that it encourages learners to have the right mindset and expectations when starting the course, acknowledging that while technical skills can be learned in a short period of time, soft skills on the other hand require a change in habits and self-awareness.

The Essential 10 Soft Skills You Need

Similar name, different content - The Essential 10 Soft Skills You Need course speaks to a broader audience, making it just as suitable for business owners, startups, and entrepreneurs, as well as employees.

This online course breaks down soft skills to the fundamental perspective that “no matter what your position, organization, or industry, you work with people!” You’ll learn how taking the time to build effective soft skills can contribute to a more efficient, more harmonious, and more productive workplace, as well as to your own overall job happiness and satisfaction.

From this course, you'll gain a better understanding of how to apply soft skills to specific situations in the workplace. There’s a good focus on attitude and work ethic, which can often be overlooked or simply assumed when talking about employee development. You’ll also look at improving your time management skills, flexibility and adaptability to change – all important things for successful employees and entrepreneurs.

You might also like to look back at our previous articles on soft skills:

•  The Importance of Soft Skills in Today’s Workforce
•  The Top 5 Soft Skills You Need and How to Get Them
• How to Write Soft Skills Learning Objectives