Real interpersonal skills are about connection. This includes actions like smiling, a handshake, an outgoing personality in addition to a good mindset. Working in a team is important in today's workplace and communication skills are essential. The Center for Public Resources did a national survey and discovered 90% of the time individuals are terminated for poor attitudes, inappropriate behavior and poor interpersonal skills rather than deficient job skills (McNamara, 2003).
Below are some important interpersonal skills that will help you at work and in your personal life:
- Listening. Make sure you understand other people's perspectives before trying to just emphasize your own. Paraphrase to clarify understanding. If you make an effort to hear what someone else is saying, they will be much more likely to hear your ideas. Be an empathic and engaged listener. Listening is a key interpersonal skill for building connection with others.
- Look for the best in others. When you expect people to do the right thing and have worthwhile motives, your relationships improve. You will naturally treat others with respect and they will most likely respond in kind. One of the strongest ways to build a connection is to let someone know what you sincerely appreciate about them.
- Adapt your style to the needs of others. When you know your behavioral style and can recognize the styles of others, you can approach other people in a way that builds rapport, strengthens relationships and reduces conflict.
Interpersonal skills are critical for keeping your team motivated and getting them to do their best work. With good use of interpersonal skills, you can increase your team's happiness and engagement in what they're doing, and improve your organization's productivity.
For More Information
Listen to our recorded webinar "3 Key Interpersonal Skills You Need at Work Today".
This webinar will discuss the 3 Most Important Interpersonal Skills you Need at Work Today. Here's what you are going to learn in this ground-breaking training:
- How to Empower Joint Problem Solving, so you are not carrying the monkey on your back and have successfully encouraged other people to take responsibility.
- How to Encourage Better Connections with Others, by understanding what they need from you and how you can build a stronger bridge to them.
- How to Engage People to Want to Help You, because your relationships are stronger and your message is clear.
