I’m going to let you in on a little secret – the best soft skills training programs don’t teach listening skills.
Wait a second – that can’t be right! After all, aren’t soft skills all about building emotional intelligence, learning how to connect with others, and – above all – learning how to listen?
At first glance, listening might seem like a great skill your employees and leadership should master. But learning to listen means nothing in and of itself. When people listen to each other, they’re simply creating a space for others to talk and be heard. That’s helpful, but the act of listening doesn’t create real change.
What creates real change is understanding and empathy. If I listen to you and hear you, but I don’t truly understand where you’re coming from and empathize with your point of view, there’s no way we can connect. And if we can’t connect, we can’t affect positive change – not even with the best soft skills training programs in the world.
In order to make soft skills work for your organization, the program you choose has to dig deeper. Listening can’t be an end goal in and of itself, because listening alone can’t facilitate change. Instead, choose a soft skills training program that is focused on deepening understanding and empathy between employees and leadership.
Mike Hourigan is a soft skills training speaker and trainer for established companies, organizations and events throughout the United States and Europe. To find out how Mike can help your company master soft skills, call Mike at 1-888-PRO-KEYNOTE or fill out the form below.