
You're Smart. So What?: Examining the Importance of Soft Skills - csdrane
http://blog.chrisdrane.com/?p=49
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AtlanteanTec
Thank you for this post. This actually resonated with me personally, because I
felt like you were describing me in high school. I knew I was smart, I could
ace tests easily without studying - and I didnt see the point in trying. And
like you have said, I did not know anything about soft skills. No one ever
talks about things like this.

I feel like there is a disparity between the curriculum in schools and the
skills necessary to be prepared for "the real world" and by-in-large a lot of
this knowledge is just assumed. Everything from learning HOW to study (and not
just what you need to study to pass tests) to real world "skills" like
balancing a budget. But hey, if you've taken the mandatory economics class,
you know what bear and bull markets are so you should be set for life. Ah, but
I digress.

Anyway, I for one, would love to read this your book. However, I cant see very
many teenagers looking in the self-help section to pick up a book that will
help them. While I completely agree that teenagers need to be made aware of,
what I would call, "life lessons", a self help book might not be the best
approach to getting the material out there.

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stg
Sorry for the diversion, but what is/was it like to be able to ace a test
without really studying for it?

The only emotion I can ever recall feeling when staring down at an exam is
abject fear as every fact I knew drained out of my head.

I was always a relatively bright kid, but never super smart. When I worked
hard, I got top grades and when I slacked, I didn't. At some point I stopped
working hard and drifted through education, getting a mediocre degree on the
way (on the upside, I have great soft skills).

From discussions with other gifted people, I get the impression that most of
them worked really, really hard, even if they didn't realise it. But I have
heard the odd person who maintains it all came naturally. Is this you?

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adeaver
> Sorry for the diversion, but what is/was it like to be able to ace a test
> without really studying for it?

Fairly anti-climatic. For someone that it comes easy too there is no real
emotion or sense of accomplishment.

It would be like trying to explain the color green to someone that was born
blind.

~~~
AtlanteanTec
> Fairly anti-climatic. For someone that it comes easy too there is no real
> emotion or sense of accomplishment.

I completely agree with this statement. Personally, I felt like I didnt put in
as much effort into my highschool work because I knew that I could easily pick
up whatever I missed in class or homework and if I knew I could do it there
was no real drive for me to try harder. And this goes back to the original
article.

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jstanley
"With the exception of the STEM fields, I would argue that soft skills
actually are more important than how smart you are."

So you're saying "apart from fields where you have to be smart, it doesn't
matter if you're smart"?

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mathattack
Take software development as an example. Half the battle is knowing what needs
to be built, half the battle is knowing how to build it. The former aspect
takes a lot of people skills. If it's a big project, the latter takes it too.

I would guess that building bridges is similar.

The best doctors have people skills too. "Bedside manner"

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RyJones
The third half is being able to explain / budget / justify / sell your
approach. That might be subsumed in your second half, not sure.

~~~
mathattack
It wasn't, but it should have been.

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seanccox
If the thesis is, 'people need soft skills to get and succeed at their jobs',
then wouldn't the article serve that thesis by articulating how one could
obtain those skills? Instead, we have a citation of Kanye West, and as a
result, the tone of the article is fairly anti-intellectual.

For high school students looking to develop soft skills:
[http://bit.ly/1b60sBm](http://bit.ly/1b60sBm)
[http://bit.ly/13Rjiay](http://bit.ly/13Rjiay)
[http://abt.cm/14nWouk](http://abt.cm/14nWouk)

~~~
gadders
Also "How to Win Friends and Influence People" and:

[http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advisor/6-habits-of-
remarkabl...](http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advisor/6-habits-of-remarkably-
likeable-people-185252090.html)

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contrarain
I found the quoted verse at the top so wrong, I had to create a throwaway to
comment.

You're so smart, you're studying, you're 52, and when you die, you'll have
nothing to clutch in your grave but your degrees.

Being 52 and in school is fucking awesome. You're old, you're not doing it
because it's making you money. You're doing it for the pursuit of knowledge.
You're doing it to learn from the fruits of labor of all that have come before
you. You might make another discovery. You might not. But at this point,
uncovering new things for its own sake is just fucking awesome.

But, says Kanye, but, says the rich and famous role model of yours: I'm
smooth, I hustle, and when I die, I'm hugging my platinums in my grave. Maybe
I'll even have a statue of me on my tombstone.

Maybe there's a subtext that I'm not getting. Maybe this is an alcoholic 52
year old who decided on a whim that he's gonna get smarter and somehow that's
going to make him rich, and that's what West is talking about. But that's not
what you're quoting. What you're quoting is a reflecting of your
acknowledgement of that belief.

You're smart. Soft skills are important. Know what, I'm smart too, and I have
soft skills, and I find the mentality conveyed in those verses pure, culture-
destroying _toxic_. Maybe you're after hustle... But hustle is not "soft
skills".

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thatswrong0
> The number one way to ace an interview is to get the other person to like
> you.

Anecdotal evidence: I'm a college student and got my software engineering
internship this summer because, according to the recruiter, I was better at
communicating and more personable than the other candidates. Among people in
my major (CS), I would say I'm pretty average in terms of intellect, so I
actively work at these sorts of 'soft' skills to give myself some advantage.

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sieisteinmodel
Makes it sound as if those things were mutually exclusive. They are not.

I don't like the attitude of this article. Good soft skills will not
compensate lack of smartness. This might not appear in a job interview
(although good interviewers will notice), but it definately will later on.

Thus: also read books.

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mcherm
> Good soft skills will not compensate lack of smartness.

Sure they will. I work with quite a few people who have been very successful
in their careers on the basis of their soft skills, and who are (how do I put
this) "not notably smart" in classical book-learning skills.

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ekm2
Most people who ace tests without studying are usually just good auditory
learners.In a school situation where classroom attendance is mandatory,they
excel because it hones their style.Visual learners,the bookworms on the other
hand ,endure the classes until after school when they can start taking in
knowledge the best way they know how:by reading.

The first group always assumes they are smarter, which is not necessarily
true.High IQ people belong to both groups.

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candybar
The problem with articles like this is that it inspires precisely the wrong
reaction. The best way to develop "soft skills" of the sort that matter is to
stop caring about developing "soft skills" and to be genuine and be in touch
with who they are internally. Don't worry about presenting yourself - care
about who you are inside and seek to present it genuinely. Social fluence
comes naturally when you stop pretending.

~~~
RougeFemme
Well. . .depends on what you include in "soft skills". The approach you
describe works for some soft skills, but not all. For example, I don't think
you can really be taught to be naturally empathetic. Some people may seem more
empathetic because they are better at reading people, etc. But I don't think
you can teach empathy. You can teach some skills that fall under the umbrella
of communication - and I would call them soft skills. Effective facilitation
of discussions. . .recognizing when you need to re-word what you're saying on
the fly - and then doing it. . .looking for the value in differing
opinions/approaches,even if you don't always find it. . .those are soft
skills. Some people are naturally good in those areas; others need to be
taught. Some may never be "good" or "best", but they can improve.

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UK-Al05
The word "Soft Skill" is so undefinable, it is often used to attack people you
simply don't like.

