Have Power Skills Replaced Soft Skills?

Are power skills really the new soft skills?
 
I don’t know about you, but life seems to be moving at the speed of light. Trying to keep up with all the new trends and new vocabulary can be tiring. I know this is true for me and I read trend updates as part of my daily work. 
 
I recently came upon this new idea while reading an article titled “Let’s Stop Talking About Soft Skills: They’re Power Skills”. 1
 
Looking back at the people I have seen come and go along my career path, abrupt changes rarely emerged due to lack of technical skills. Rather, the change was due to how they functioned during their day to-day interactions with others, or perhaps their ability to problem solve.
 
We have been calling “soft skills” soft for years and with a new shift to calling them power skills we can finally place emphasis on behaviors skills that are important at all levels in the workplace.
 
Numerous studies are confirming that technical skills although important are not as important as having good behavior skills for the workplace. 2
 
A few examples of a power skills are

1. Creative problem solving
2. Conflict resolution
3. Time management
4. Organization skills
5. Goal setting and getting things done

 
The Stanford Research Institute International and the Carnegie Mellon Foundation found that 75% of long-term job success depends upon soft skills mastery and only 25% on technical skills. 2
 
The impact of not having good power skills is found on both sides of the table with employees being successful at work and the employers happy that they invested time and money to support the bottom line.
 
The takeaway for an individual or an employer can be that leveraging these skills to support common goals is more important than ever with the changes in automation and artificial intelligence. Power skills can be one of the keys we all need to unlock our individual potential at home and at work.
 
At NLC we have various Power skill courses to help you become powerful today. Visit our web page for more information - click here.  
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1. Joshbersin. “Let's Stop Talking About Soft Skills: They're PowerSkills.” JOSH BERSIN, May 31, 2020. https://joshbersin.com/2019/10/lets-stop-talking-about-soft-skills-theyre-power-skills/.
2. Conley, Quincy. “Your Guide To The Future Of Augmented Reality In Corporate Training.” EdgePoint Learning, April 3, 2019. https://www.edgepointlearning.com/blog/future-of-augmented-reality/.