\u201cHe never had any fresh ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe gave up too easily.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey just didn\u2019t show leadership potential.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When new hires don\u2019t work out, these are often the reasons why. Last year, a major survey of hiring professionals<\/a> showed that bad hires were far more likely to lack \u201csoft skills\u201d than \u201chard skills.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The explanation is simple. It\u2019s much easier to screen for technical incompetence \u2014 the programmer whose code doesn\u2019t work, the designer whose portfolio looks sloppy \u2014 than it is to spot the interpersonal issues, like poor time management or low emotional intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If they\u2019re so hard to find, why call them \u201csoft\u201d skills? Some say \u201cpower skills\u201d or \u201cpersonal skills\u201d instead. We use the term human skills<\/em><\/strong> because these are the unique talents of human beings, the capabilities that technology can never really master.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It can be tough to accurately assess human skills. But that doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019ll have to fire one \u201cbad hire\u201d after another. If someone is struggling, why not help them cultivate those human skills?<\/p>\n\n\n\n After all, these skills can be nurtured,. They\u2019re not just about nature. Experts insist that even the most elusive human skills \u2014 like leadership<\/a> or resilience \u2014 are developed over time. They\u2019re not fixed, innate qualities. Sometimes people just need guidance as they grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Managers can give people that guidance. They are in the best position to cultivate human skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Working closely with frontline employees, managers can identify each individual\u2019s strengths and weaknesses. In many cases, managers are also the most trusted leaders for their team members. Their actions can speak louder than words from HR or the C-Suite. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But so many managers are wasting this opportunity, according to the latest Degreed research<\/a>. The majority don\u2019t give regular feedback on performance or skills, most are not conducting periodic check-ins, and very few are creating plans or setting goals for developing skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, what should<\/em> these managers do? How can they help people become more innovative, increase resilience, or grow as leaders? What does it look like to develop someone\u2019s human skills?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The possibilities are limitless, but it\u2019s not hard to get started. We\u2019ve got some advice to share. We identified three of the most sought-after human skills and studied how managers can nurture these abilities. If your people need these skills, here are the strategies to try.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many of us believe that brilliant ideas break through almost randomly. But we got this impression from popular myths<\/a>, not from accurate accounts of innovation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though their epiphanies are apocryphal, these thinkers can still teach us how creativity actually works. One common thread? They had extended time to think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ancient Greeks like Archimedes valued the vita contemplativa \u2014 <\/em>the contemplative life \u2014 as the highest form of human existence. When Newton grasped gravity, he was waiting out the Great Plague at Cambridge University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for Darwin, he spent five years on the HMS Beagle<\/em>, took three more years to come up with \u201cnatural selection,\u201d and then needed another two decades to explain his big idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, we can\u2019t all wait that long, but innovative organizations make time for creativity. Google\u2019s approach is the most renowned. The tech company encourages employees to dedicate 20% of their time<\/a> to personal projects. Plenty of those ideas don\u2019t work out, but the payoff can be huge. Pivotal products like Gmail and AdSense started out as side projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Managers can\u2019t launch such bold policies on their own, but they can take a more measured approach. If an employee seems stuck, stay patient and allow her some time to work it out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When a worker has a unique idea, get flexible and let him pursue it more. Who knows what will come of it? Only time will tell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the wake of worldwide disruption, everyone is trying to be more resilient. Organizations are overhauling their strategies, emphasizing agility<\/a> amid uncertainty. But these large-scale adaptations also require resilience at the individual level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you want people to get more resilient, try letting down your guard a little. Some assume that strong leaders shouldn\u2019t show weakness, but this attitude makes it hard for others to relate. If your team doesn\u2019t know your struggle, they might not trust you to help them persevere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kristen Przano experienced the power of vulnerability<\/a> firsthand. She works at Capital One, as a senior manager in their innovation center, The Garage. A few years back, though, Przano was seriously struggling with postpartum depression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was ashamed, and I told my husband and my doctor, but I was afraid to tell my boss,\u201d she recalled. \u201cShe is a smart, strong, confident leader. I didn\u2019t want to disappoint her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Eventually, Przano opened up. In that moment, her manager decided to reciprocate, sharing her own past troubles. Przano was shocked at first; she never saw her boss like this. But the display of vulnerability was transformative. \u201cI began to see a glimmer of hope and my recovery was launched in turbo-charge.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, Przano has been at Capital One for more than a decade, steadily moving up the ranks. She even started a support group for co-workers coming back from maternity leave. She attributes her success to that conversation with her manager: \u201cIt took becoming totally, absolutely, instantly vulnerable to become strong again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This should not come as a surprise. Many experts \u2014 including executives like Sheryl Sandberg and researchers like Bren\u00e9 Brown \u2014 have linked vulnerability and resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, it might feel uncomfortable, especially for managers. But the benefits of vulnerability will last longer than any momentary discomfort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bad leadership advice is everywhere. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Self-help gurus shill strategies without any verifiable evidence of what works. Coaches and executives hire ghostwriters to riff on their favorite clich\u00e9s just to make a buck from a book. Corporations sink billions into leadership training, but they don\u2019t get results<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What are managers supposed to do, then? Keep pushing people into the company program? Buy the latest best-seller that folks won\u2019t read? Make up your own maxims for people to parrot?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thankfully, none of that will be necessary. Analysts at McKinsey actually did empirical research<\/a> on leadership skills. They figured out which behaviors really make a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First, the researchers looked through the lengthy literature on leadership and made a list of 20 traits that might matter. Next, they surveyed 189,000 people about the leadership behaviors in their organizations. Then, the analysts cross-referenced that survey data with McKinsey\u2019s Organizational Health Index<\/a> to identify which behaviors were happening in the strongest organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The research team found that four specific skills <\/em>account for 89% of the variance in leadership effectiveness. These are the skills that your aspiring leaders really need to master: <\/p>\n\n\n\n These four skills take time to develop, but the shortlist makes it easy to get started. For employees with leadership potential, good managers can recognize which skills need to get stronger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Are certain issues not getting fixed? Share a problem-solving<\/a> protocol. Did they fall short on some key objectives? Explain how to focus on results<\/a>. Are they overlooking alternative ideas? Teach them to seek fresh perspectives<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Do others struggle to keep up? Challenge your rising leaders to empower others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Again, cultivating those four skills will take time. But unlike most training programs or best-selling books, this leadership advice is actually backed by detailed data. That means you can dive deep into these skills, without worrying about which traits are trendy.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHow to Improve Human Skills in Management<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1. Want Creativity<\/em>? Set Aside Some Time.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
2. Need Resilience<\/em>? Get More Vulnerable.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
3. Looking for Leadership<\/em>? Be Specific About Skills.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n