Are You Aware of These Myths About Soft Skills?

Nowadays, most people believe how important soft skills are but what may still stop us from developing them is perhaps the mindset that "we are too late". The truth is it’s never too late to build your soft skills. These are the three most common myths about soft skills development, and this is why they are just plain wrong.

Myth 1: Some people are born with soft skills

Have you ever encountered a situation where you work with someone who's always confident and knew just what to say to anyone they met, be it clients or partners? Do you always feel your tongue is tied whenever you speak to anyone new or senior? You probably wished you were born with their skills.

But the reality is that most of these people have experienced the same thing you've been through. The only difference is that everyone faces adversities at different levels, and some overcame these challenges at a younger age. It's easier to say that someone was born with these soft skills. Some people would use it as an excuse for why they don't have or couldn't develop the same soft skills. In reality, those who are skilled learned their soft skills earlier than us.

People aren't born with soft skills, they just learned them earlier.

Myth 2: You have to be an extravert to be good at soft skills.   

This one is a popular myth. Of course, extraverts talk a lot, but that does not mean they are better at soft skills than introverts. An introvert can learn soft skills to network, self-promote, and negotiate to survive in the professional world. If you're an introvert, you'd know that you can still work on your communication skills and still not become an extrovert. It may be harder, but it's far from impossible.

Even if an introvert has better soft skills, it does not mean they have changed into an extravert. They just learned to "activate" their soft skills when they need to for their career. If they can do it, so can you!

Myth 3: “I am too old to learn new skills” or "I'm too set in my ways to learn new skills" 

If you are reading this article, it means that you already don’t believe this myth. What this myth really means is:

• “I have not experienced enough issues with my career to want to change and go out of my comfort zone.”
• “I prefer my comfort zone.  I don’t want to embarrass myself.”
• “I don't think I can do it, so I rather not try.”

Nobody is too old to learn. If this were true, then we wouldn’t have 70 years old bodybuilders, marathon runners, or ballet dancers. You can grow your soft skills at any age. It’s never too late to make a change for the better for yourself and your career. 

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Source: Be My Career Coach

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