Are “hard” skills the only type of useful skills?

Many organizations provide individual contributors with technical or hard skills training but put off doing leadership or soft skills training until individuals are promoted into management.

When it comes to those sitting on the lower levels of the corporate ladder, there are many controversial views of the value of developing “soft” skills for the “worker bees”.

Analysis from Zenger Folkman verifies that while individual contributors with hard skills are more valued than those with soft skills, the combination of both soft and hard skills plays a critical role in improving the performance rankings and overall effectiveness of an individual contributor.

For this research, hard skills were defined as:

• technical expertise
• problem-solving ability
• drive for results
• and taking the initiative

Soft skills were defined as:

• ability to communicate
• relationship building
• coaching and supporting others
• development of colleagues
• and collaboration and teamwork

 

TOP PERFORMANCE RANKING ON PRODUCTIVITY AND EFFORT

The above study demonstrates that individual contributors with hard and soft skills are rated as significantly more effective and are substantially more likely to receive high-performance evaluations.

If you are an individual contributor, remember that you can influence and lead those around you. Don’t brush off the soft skills that will advance your career.

SUMMARY

Leadership is the ability to influence others, at times, the ability to influence their peers and manager. Individual contributors can be substantially more useful when they possess better interpersonal and leadership skills.

Providing individual contributors with soft skill training early on in their careers provides each person with time, experience, and opportunities to strengthen those soft skills. When they are put into a management position, their level of effectiveness is much higher.

Young leaders are being promoted to mid and senior-level positions quite often. But do they have the necessary skills and training to be great leaders?

Soft skills are developed and improved over time.

Employees in organizations where development opportunities are more plentiful have higher engagement, lower turnover, and higher productivity.

Read on research article here by Jack Zenger that even if an individual contributor does not move into a management position, their performance is improved by soft skill development.

Image credit: Aevo 

“What makes you, YOU?”

After watching Pixar’s latest animation movie “Soul” I was captivated by all that goes into what makes a person unique. One’s personality, interests, passion, discovering that spark to life. Before reading on, I must warn you that there are spoilers ahead. If you have not seen the film, it’s best to catch the trailer to get an idea of what we’re about to explore.

The movie follows a Mr Joe Gardner, our main protagonist who navigates through life in hopes for a big break and to achieve his dream as a successful jazz pianist. A drastic turn of events lands him with an unborn soul in “the great before”. Before each soul gets their “earth pass” they each require finding their spark which gives them their personalities, interests and quirks. For some it’s music, for some it’s food, for others, archery, it could be anything!

That’s when I went into existential mode – What is it that gives my life that.. spark?

“Find the spark.”

I translated that into finding my passion. Referencing an assessment I did recently (Behavioural Attitudes Index) I it helped me unravel six dimensions of hidden motivations: I-SPEAK (inner awareness, spirituality/faith, power/political, economical, artistic, knowledge). Considering I always identified myself as someone creative, I expected my highest score to be in the “artistic” realm.

Instead.. “Wendy’s primary style is power/political” came up and I was surprised. Reading on, while I recognised that I have many interests such as music, singing, content creating, it struck me that it was the desire to influence others through my creative work that gave my life meaning!

“Life is full of possibilities. You just need to know where to look.”

While my life was filled with the vibrancy of the creative work I do, I truly only realised this spark/passion quite recently. I found myself thinking “How can I influence someone positively through the content I make?” “How am I displaying my values through my videos”. This eventually lead me to discover my purpose and find meaning in the work I do.

Perhaps the question you can ask yourself, where are you looking?

We are in the business of helping people discover themselves, how about we work together to discover that “spark”? 

We got to love how Pixar takes a complicated concept and makes it so easy to relate to and understand. Give it a watch and let me know what you think!

Article Contributed by Wendy, Programme Consultant at Lifeskills Institute 

If you love helping people discover what they love – what they want to “be when they grow up,” and help them navigate the changing and increasingly complex job market, then career coaching may be just what you need.

Career Coaching helps individuals identify career resolutions in the areas of job satisfaction, promotion, career opportunity and career planning. A Career Coach comes in from the outside and challenges executives to explore new learnings, honor new perspectives and further develop their capabilities. 

According to the Forbes article “10 Things You Should Know About Career Coaching” by Demetrius Cheeks, a career coach helps people make informed decisions about their career trajectory and development. It’s a more solutions-oriented role than that of a mentor because it focuses on concrete steps you can take to achieve your career objectives. 

Career Coaching has proven to help Managers, Professionals, Executives and Entrepreneurs that are congruent with their personal goals, ambitions, values and family life. 

Key Benefits of Career Coaching

• learn the concepts, toolset, and frameworks to perform as a career coach
• Gain clarity and productivity in business and personal lives
• Sync passion with productivity and reduce detachment from work
• Establish a career path, not just a job
• Build confidence and define your value proposition
• In-depth career assessments of skills, values, potential
• Acquire the tools to help others identify their unique personality strengths, skills, values, and passions

• Improve your marketability
• Minimising risk
• Enhancing job satisfaction and interest
• Career coach on job offers

If you’re serious about finding a new job, landing that promotion, or advancing your career, learn to apply principles and practical step-by-step techniques for career coaching and getting started in a career as a professional career coach. 

We encourage individuals who are at an inflection point in their career or life and to step back to create a clear vision of the future they want for themselves.

Acquire the mastery of coaching to enable the change to support people in making informed decisions about their career development and trajectory.

For a confidential and complimentary conversation on whether executive career coaching is for you or your organisation, drop us an email/call and our consultants will be in touch to share more. You may find more information on the Certified Career Coaching Course (CCC) here.

Three-Sets to consider when deciding on a Career Coaching Course

Most of us in our lifetime have lived through the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997 and the Great Recession of 2007. Now, we are weathering the impact of Pandemic 2020. In times of uncertainty, we tend to turn much of our attention to the outside world and its changes; looking out for signals or trends to determine our next steps forward. 

This, more often than not, causes us to lose sight of some of the things that matter most in our careers. Career Coaches are growing into an invaluable asset to help us draw attention to the inward voice that matters the most. The process of coaching not only serves as a sound reminder, but also draws emphasis to our personal attributes and uniqueness when making those big decisions in life.

Before you embark on this journey of helping others, considering these three-sets as you decide on a career coaching certification course. These are the key takeaways that you will receive from the Certified Career Coaching course (CCC).

1. The Mindset of a Coach

We lay foundation to what coaching is all about. Being a Certified Career Consultant goes beyond the definitions of coaching to explore the dispositions and perspectives of an effective coach. This includes the do’s and don’ts of the craft, along with your role as a coach and the impact it brings. In quick summary: coaching is a fully empowered, self-discovery process experienced by the client, to reach an outcome with new insights, choices, and actions.

2. The Skillsets of a Coach

Through a modular, step-by-step approach, we set you up with the techniques for actual, practical coaching application. You will be familiar and competent to apply the ASPIRE© coaching model to increase your success as a coach. Through real-time demos, practice, and feedback, this will be a hands-on journey to experience coaching in person.

3. The Toolsets of a Coach

Most unique to CCC, this certification programme incorporates four self-awareness tools and psychometric assessments to help clients uncover their unique career attributes. Your accessibility to a range of tools will differentiate you as a coach, to support them using validated assessments and build confidence in their career pursuits. The toolset enables you to help clients explore their personality, values, skills and passions.

If you’re still wondering if our certification is for you, drop us an email/call and our consultants will be in touch to share more. You may find more information on the Certified Career Coaching course (CCC) here.

1. DISC Report: Personality Style (Online) 

The DISC Report report provides a comprehensive overview of the way that people think, act, and interact. It is the most widely used profiling tool of its kind, and is supported by decades of validation and reliability studies. It is best used to help you understand your personality style to enhance communication, strengthen relationships, build strong teams and motivate yourself and others. 

Click here to see a sample report. 

2. Behavioural Attitudes Index (BAI) Index Assessment (Online)

The Behavioural Attitudes Index (BAI) gauges the underlying passions and motivations of an individual within a specific environment. Behavioural attitudes coincide with the feelings and thoughts that unwittingly mold every choice a person makes.

Click here to see a sample report. 

3. DISC, Teams and Values (DTV) Report (Online)

Experience the most powerful and comprehensive assessment tool. By combining DISC Personality Style, TEAMS Thinking Style and Workplace Values assessments into one report (DTV), you will gain insight into the 3 dimensions of one’s personality: behaviour, motivators, and thought

Click here to see a sample report. 

4. 4D – DISC + Teams + Values + BAI

(Online)

By combining the DISC Personality Style, TEAMS, Workplace VALUES, and the Behavioural Attitudes Index (BAI), you can assess 4 different dimensions of personality, behaviour, thought processes,  and motivators. Four Online Behavioural Assessments All Rolled Into 1 Thorough and Comprehensive Report!

Employ the most comprehensive and thorough personality assessment on the market today. The Four Dimensions of Personality Report (4D) is a revolutionary new report that offers over 1440 different points of comparison for successful predictive hiring and to generate the most comprehensive personality profile available today. 

Click here to see a sample report. 

From 16 – 31 December, enjoy our exclusive promotion available this season!

Contact us to purchase this package deal! 

11 Components of a Best-in-Class 360-Degree Assessment 

360-degree assessments are the backbone of most leadership development programmes. More companies than ever before offer a variety of different 360-degree assessment options, including many talent management systems that provide organisations the ability to build and process their own. 

There are many instruments available with apparent similarities but… not all are in the same class as far as quality and effectiveness. We encourage organisations to seriously consider these 11 elements when selecting 360-degree instruments for their development programs. 

What Is a 360 Review? 

A 360-degree feedback assessment (also known as multi-rater feedback), is a powerful tool that enables a group of coworkers and managers as well as a self-evaluation to provide feedback about a fellow employee’s performance. By understanding leaders’ current effectiveness, strengths and potential, you can set the stage for organisational success.

Unlike a typical employee performance review in which an employee’s work performance is evaluated by only their manager, a 360-degree review takes into account feedback from co-workers and reporting staff—even other people who have once interact with the employee. 

By integrating 360 assessments into their talent management plan, organisations can help identify what’s most important in order to attain their strategic goals. The correct implementation of 360 assessments should improve an organisation’s financial performance, strengthen its existing talent, and enhance its talent pipeline. 

Download this white paper to learn the distinctive features and what look for in a 360 survey instrument. 

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What is the secret ingredients to build a high-performance team?

Research has shown that high-performing teams thrive when diversity exists in the organisational structure. It creates a positive employee experience where creativity, innovation, and collaboration become strengths, empowering the team to perform more efficiently, while achieving organisational goals. Is your team enough diversified, and do you have different personality strengths on board? 

Individuals’ personalities play a significant role in determining team performance. In particular, personality affects:

– What role you have within the team

– How you interact with the rest of the team

– Your inner values (core beliefs) align with the team’s

These psychological factors are the main determinants of whether people work together well. High-achieving individuals with a common vision create high-performing teams and people are the key to drive long-term success. A high-performance organisation gets better results than its peers over time.

For many, this may seem like a dream. However, these outcomes are achievable. Every individual brings their own set of unique traits, skills, strengths, and weaknesses to the table.

The key to cultivating a high-performing team that runs on all cylinders is determining the specific personality types of your people, understanding how these types motivate or detract from one another, and identifying how they all best align.

While coaching top executives & leaders, we encourage everyone to complete a validated multi-dimensional personality test, the 4D assessment.

This test offer an eye-opening look at the hidden dynamics at play within organisations and can provide insights about a team’s composition. One person may exhibit multiple strengths, or perhaps several each have their own shining proficiencies.

By understanding your team this way, you can begin to piece together the parts that work well together and rearrange the ones that don’t, overcoming limitations and achieving results quicker. The assessment results which will aid in the proper selection of candidates to a specific set of job requirements.

The Four Dimensions of Personality Report Includes:

DISC–  An individual’s predictable behaviours, their communication styles, preferences for specific environments and tasks, decision making processes, leadership abilities, organisational skills, and other observable and predictable behaviours. The profile incorporates an overview of each individual’s strengths and areas for improvement and comes with a goal setting worksheet aimed at their personal improvement. Understand and identify the Dominant, Inspiring, Steady, and Conscientious personality styles.

TEAMS– An insight into the individual thinking styles and strengths and limitations of a group within a specific environment. Discover which of your group members are skilled at thinking like a Theorist, Executor, Analyst, Manager or Strategist.  A well-balanced team that places people in positions where they can utilize their strengths creates a more effective and less stressful work environment.

Values–  While DISC profiles determine what an individual’s needs-driven motivations are, the Values Profile identifies a person’s values-driven motivations. These are the deeply ingrained automatic responses to different scenarios. These values are Loyalty, Equality, Personal Freedom,  and Justice.  These values based motivators are not necessarily something that a person will be aware of, but these are the internal values that a person is willing to fight for.

BAI–  The Behavioural Attitudes Index assess the hidden passions, interests, and motivations for a person within a particular setting. Behavioural attitudes correspond with the emotions and thinking processes that subconsciously shape every decision an individual makes. The BAI assesses which of the I-SPEAK behavioural attitudes are predominant.

These align with whether or not a person is willing to expend energy toward Inner Awareness/Spiritual, Economic/Tangible, Artistic/Innovative, Power/Political, Social/Humanitarian, and Knowledge/Proficiency endeavours. When a person’s behavioural attitudes are aligned with their environment, their natural motivation, passion and interests are in harmony- creating contentment and longevity in a position.

Predictive Hiring:

DISC + TEAMS + Values + BAI creates a 4-Dimensional picture of one’s personality and provides a predictive hiring analysis forecasting an employee’s future success within a given role, based on established industry standards and top performers. This revolutionary 4D Report combines 1440 unique points of comparison making the most comprehensive and sensitive behavioural tool available on the market. A good hiring process often uses DISC as an on-boarding tool as well, to acclimate a new employee to their manager and vice versa.

Download international hiring data study (here) of DISC and 4D reports statistically the most accurate predictor of workplace behaviours in the world; able to identify some styles that are literally one in a million.

As always, we recommend DISC to be one part of a strong, comprehensive hiring process. You should never determine a hiring decision on one factor alone but candidates can explore these possible concerns at more depth.

To purchase the 4D Report, email enquiry@lifeskillsinstitute.sg  or call us at +65 6346 1455. 

From now till 17 November 2020, receive 2 FREE reports for every 10 online reports purchased. While Stock Last! 

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Economic and lifestyle impacts from COVID-19 are taking a severe mental toll on this group, according to research from Sandpiper Communications.

The results of the survey were based on 1,226 Gen Zs (aged 18 to 24 years) across Australia, China, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Generation Z in Asia Pacific (APAC) struggle to talk about their mental health despite mounting pressures arising from the ongoing pandemic. It is reported that this group faces the highest levels of stress compared to other generations and was the most likely age group to report symptoms of depression. 

More than 7 in 10 Gen-Z adults surveyed said they experienced common symptoms of depression such as: feeling tired, doing nothing, having trouble thinking and concentrating and feeling very restless, lonely, miserable or unhappy.. 

Source: https://www.campaignasia.com/

“Youths are experiencing adulthood at a time when the future looks uncertain while older generations might have more perspective that enables them to cope with the changes”, according to the report.

The Gen Z group in Singapore reported that the top source of overwhelming stress was family pressures (63 per cent), followed by relationships with friends (46 per cent) and career pressures (42 per cent).

To put that in perspective, millennials (ages 24-41) ranked their stress level 5.6 out of 10, and Gen X (ages 42-55) said their stress was a 5.2 out of 10. The overall reported stress level for millennials is about 5.0.

For Gen-Z teens, ages 13 to 17, 51% said that the pandemic made it impossible to plan for the future, and 67% of Gen-Z adults in higher college said the same. 

Source: https://www.campaignasia.com/

Out of those who said social media had a positive impact on their mental health, almost 7 in 10 said this was because it helped them connect with family and friends.

Source: https://www.campaignasia.com/

The influx of negative stories (61%) on social platforms is also the biggest reason Gen Z in APAC cite for believing social media access has negatively affected them. Additionally, of those who feel negatively, close to half (48%) across APAC say the lack of real connection with friends and loved ones has in fact worsened their mental health and wellbeing.

It is important that we understand how the pandemic is negatively affecting them and what opportunities exist for better communication and support. It is concerning that despite Gen Zs suffering increased mental health and wellbeing pressures during Covid-19, they still struggle to talk about these issues.

There are a few strategies that can help decrease anxiety and build emotional resilience in young people. For starters, giving young people outlets to talk about issues that are troubling them is important. It’s also crucial to remember that we are in the midst of a global pandemic, and we all may need more flexibility, space or support than usual.

Seek support if necessary

Stress on teenagers can be harmful to their health and wellbeing if it seems as though they have been enduring it for a long time. If your child has been showing signs of stress, we advise to look for professional or support groups. Have a chat with a family doctor, or consider giving your child an opportunity to talk things over with a counsellor. 

Is your workplace often the center of conflict? Workplace conflict is unavoidable and more often, many workplace conflicts can seriously undermine organisations culture, employee relationships and overall quality of work. 

According to research from occupational health provider Health Assured, nearly 9 out of 10 (86%) workers regularly vent their anger and frustration at their co-workers. Conflict in the workplace caused by anger and frustration is more common than most people might think.

CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) found that “under half of employees (44%) experiencing conflict report that the conflict or difficult relationship has so far been fully or largely resolved.”