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What are soft skills and why are they important?

When job searching, we can often overlook the importance of soft skills and focus more on the hard skills we have. However, soft skills are just as, if not more, important than hard skills – they make us employable. Today, we’re going to be talking about soft skills. What exactly do we mean by soft skills and why should you care about developing them? Let’s take a closer look.

The term soft skills, which can also be called interpersonal skills, refers to the abilities that help us better understand those around us. These skills also increase our ability to effectively interact with others in ways that positively affect them, creating an environment where everyone benefits. In short, they are traits that make you not only a great employee but also a great team player, and a team player who gets along well with others is a good hire for any company—regardless of their skill set. By being someone that people want to work with, you can demonstrate your value even before showing off your more technical skills.

What is the difference between hard skills and soft skills?

The major distinction between soft and hard skills is that soft skills are more personality-based, whereas hard skills tend to be more developed through technical training. When it comes to job-searching or making a career change, having strong soft skills can be just as valuable as being proficient in a certain software application or language.

When you want to develop these soft skills for your CV, there are several ways you can go about doing so! Here are the top three tips…

1) Take advantage of career fairs – we recently held our yearly careers fair online and it can serve as a way to network, find new and exciting opportunities, and get advice from industry professionals.

2) Network with professionals through LinkedIn – it’s a great online platform that allows you to connect with millions of potential employers. It also is a great way to see what’s happening in your industry of choice, thus improving your commercial awareness.

3) Take part in our 3-week training programme, designed to give young aspiring professionals not only the soft skills needed to succeed, but the confidence to do so too.

You can apply to the ACE programme here.

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