The Hard Truth About Soft Skills

Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They'd Learned Sooner

by Peggy Klaus

Number of pages: 208

Publisher: Harper Business

BBB Library: Personal Success

ISBN: 9780061284144



About the Author

The author of two best-selling books: BRAG! The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn Without Blowing It and The Hard Truth About Soft Skills: Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They’d Learned Sooner, Peggy provides customized, cutting edge leadership and communication programs on a multitude of “soft skill” topics such as executive presence, branding, self promotion, political savvy and networking. Her one-on-one executive coaching offers a uniquely individualized framework for professional development, while her keynotes allow audiences to experience her concepts in a highly energized, impactful and often hilarious message.

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Editorial Review

When it comes to soft skills, most people think they are all about those warm-and-fuzzy people skills. Yes, it's true people skills are a part of the equation, but that's just for starters. While hard skills refer to the technical ability and factual knowledge needed to do the job, soft skills allow you to more effectively use your technical abilities and knowledge. Soft skills encompass personal and social, communication, and self-management behaviors. They cover a wide spectrum of abilities and traits. They complement the hard ones and are essential for success in the rough-and-tumble workplace. You can have all the technical expertise in the world, but if you can't sell your ideas, get along with others, or turn your work in time, you'll be going nowhere fast.  

Book Reviews

“In The Hard Truth About Soft Skills Klaus distills 54 important workplace lessons based on stories of struggles and triumphs she has collected from thousands of hours coaching, training and interviewing people from the C-suite on down the corporate ladder. Readers will not only walk away with a much better understanding and awareness of soft skills and how they are woven throughout their careers, but also gain practical insights, strategies, tools, and techniques for learning or improving a particular soft skills area.” – Peggy klaus

“Klaus has organized her book into eight chapters, each covering an area in which soft skills play an especially significant role: career management, getting the job done, communication, handling critics, office politics, self-promotion, dealing with differences, and leadership.” — American Management Association

“The volume is recommended for those who are in need of a more personable approach to rising up professionally.”— Publishers Weekly

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Wisdom to Share

One way of finding your life's work is to get to know yourself really, really well.

There's no such thing as work-life balance, only trade-offs.

A major part of knowing yourself is making sure the career you create makes sense with the rest of your life.

Your Procrastination is Trying to Tell You Something.

People put things off when they don't have the facts, finances, manpower, or some combination thereof to get the job done.

One of the most important first steps in improving your time management skills is to get organized.

Your procrastination might be telling you that you are feeling bored or unchallenged and it's time to try something new.

We decide each and every moment of the day whether to see the glass as half empty or half full.

Realize that a positive attitude is one of the most valuable assets you can possess. It creates far-reaching ripples both internally and externally, affecting everything around you.

Resist feeding negativity with complaining, blaming, and gossiping.