Interpersonal Skills - The Keys to Management and Leadership

According to some research studies, the number onethem, motivates them, and reinforces their value to
reason why managers and executives findthe team. Improving interpersonal skills The good
themselves with a stalled or underperforming careernews is that everyone can learn new interpersonal
is a lack of interpersonal skills. This might seemskills and improve upon their old ones. Most managers
surprising, given the amount of training and attentionwill say that they already have good interpersonal
given to technical skills and business knowledge, butskills, so it comes as a shock when they receive
the fact remains that there is more to careeropen, honest feedback that says they need to make
success than just knowing the facts. Hard skills vs.improvements. Only through such feedback, though,
soft skills A typical business degree program orcan areas for improvement be identified and specific
executive training program will focus on what aregoals set for practicing new behaviors. For example,
considered hard skills. Examples might include strategicif you are perceived as a poor listener then you can
business planning, financial analysis, budgeting, orpractice new behaviors to change that perception.
product development. These are all important thingsYou might set a goal to focus more on listening to
to know, but an increasing number of companies areanother person in one-on-one situations, or to limit
also interested in the so-called soft skills. These softyour contributions in a group discussion so that
skills are best defined as how a manager interactsothers can contribute more. Another strategy is to
with people. An evaluation of soft skills might includeenlist the help of a learning partner. This person
answer the following questions: What behaviors doesobserves you and provides you with regular
the manager consistently demonstrate? How is thefeedback on whatever behavior you are trying to
manager viewed by others at levels at, above, andimprove. He or she is your cheerleader when you do
below his or her organizational level? How does thewell and your coach when you can do better. Putting
manager communicate with others? How does theit all together The bottom line is that when it comes
manager handle team-building situations? Does theto being a good manager or leader, you must master
manager get along with other people? Gettingthe hard skills of your specific job as well as the soft
personal Many business professionals have difficultyskills of interpersonal relations. Interpersonal skills must
with soft skills because they are so personal inbe a focus of your leadership development. Some
nature, but it is exactly these soft skills that are keyspeople are naturally better at personal interactions,
to success as a manager and leader. Even morebut anyone can learn to do better. The key is to
difficult is accepting the reality of poor soft skills andrecognize the importance of interpersonal relations,
making an effort to improve. It is not enoughhonestly evaluate your skill level, and consciously
anymore to know how to analyze a profit and lossimprove those behaviors that need work. Visit for a
statement. A good manager or leader will take thatwealth of leadership development information. Susan
profit and loss statement and use it to coachWest has held many executive leadership positions
employees, facilitate team productivity, and leadduring her 25 years of business experience. She
toward performance improvement. This cannot beshares her knowledge and lessons learned through a
done simply by reading the numbers and tellingvariety of programs offered by QuadWest
people that numbers need to change. It is done byAssociates, LLC including coaching, leadership
interacting with people in a way that encouragesworkshops, tele-seminars and consulting.