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Peggy Klaus: The hard truth about soft skills

Thu 01 April 2010

, Peggy Klaus, LEAP

What’s the hard truth? Soft skills get little respect but can make or break your career. Yet unfortunately, most people learn them the hard way!

Peggy Klaus—the woman who busted bragging myths and made us rethink self-promotion with the 2004 release of BRAG! The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn Without Blowing It—now brings us The Hard Truth About Soft Skills—Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They’d Learned Sooner. Klaus reveals why these core competencies are often ignored and brings their importance to life in 54 lessons that highlight how soft skills mastery can become the key to hard success.

Read the full story at Bettersoftskills.com

Among Klaus’s favorite workplace lessons are the following:

• Knowing yourself is as important as knowing how to do the job.

• Learn when to stick and when to shift or the details will hang you.

• Your procrastination is trying to tell you something.

• Get smart about asking dumb questions.

• You don’t need to be everyone’s best friend—that’s what dogs are for.

• Know where to draw the line between self-improvement and self-destruction.

• When it comes to gossip, learn the art of deflection.

• Keep your visibility when you’re not face-to-face.

• Don’t take it personally.

• Stop stereotypes from sinking you.

• You’re the boss, stupid, that’s why they hang on your every word.

And, perhaps, most favorite of all: Get out of your own way.