had a boss like this!<\/a> <\/p>\n![\"Many](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/angry-guy-on-phone-UHNUVSFLYFCQ3IA7MOTLLUTLJ4.jpg\")
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Many of us have suffered a boss who reached that position via their technical, rather than people, skills. (Source: istock.com)<\/p>\n
I\u2019d often marvel with my HR colleagues at the unicorns we\u2019d discover who were both technically competent with a large dose of soft skills to boot. They were few and far between but made such great leaders.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re not really soft skills of course, despite the tag, which actually came from the military. The technical skills often related to weaponry and tanks, so were called hard skills; and so the complementary skills which were not related to tanks and weapons were simply referred to as “soft”. I\u2019ve always found this term ironic as it can imply soft is worth less and that they\u2019re not valuable skills, yet in reality they\u2019re the most in demand and also the hardest to learn. <\/p>\n
![\"All](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/nurse-comforts-old-woman-EKXNF2CDNJD7HP3HMZUPAZ7HEY.jpg\")
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All kinds of very hard work requires excellent soft skills. (Source: istock.com)<\/p>\n
I prefer to call them “human skills”. Aso referred to as people skills, interpersonal skills or emotional intelligence (EQ) and, according to the research, they\u2019re a better predicter of success than intellect or IQ alone. We\u2019re talking about self awareness, emotional regulation, the ability to read a room, communication and motivation as well as the social skills to build effective relationships and manage conflict. It\u2019s the resilience required to adapt to change and manage uncertainty (essentially in this current era). <\/p>\n
Soft skills aren’t just about what you do for a job; they’re about how you do it.<\/p>\n
In my view we\u2019ve tended to over-invest in technical skills and academic qualifications. The people skills are often thought about last, if taught at all. Most of us don\u2019t get formal leadership training until we move up the ranks and land in a leadership role.<\/p>\n
It might be true that your technical skills get you in the door, human skills drive career growth, influence, and team effectiveness. This is now, more true than ever.<\/p>\n
Enter artificial intelligence<\/p>\n
With the evolution of AI, well and truly positioned to take on a great percentage of the technical skills, it makes sense we focus on the human skills to futureproof our careers. As technology becomes more powerful, the skills that make us uniquely human become more valuable.<\/p>\n
![\"AI](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ai-assistant-X2AWTSLONJF6ZMI3LEYDR23KO4.jpg\")
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AI can do a lot of technical work better than humans can. (Source: istock.com)<\/p>\n
When we think of the challenges we\u2019re facing right now, and the skills required to lead the way it\u2019s the people skills and EQ, those human skills that help us navigate the future. Add to that the way our demographics in the workplace are changing and these are the same skills we rely on to understand difference, build unity not division and to adapt to different styles that are not our own.<\/p>\n
As jobs become more scarce we\u2019ll likely need to prove ourselves in this space, gone are the days where we could just rely on being technically qualified. The world is changing, it makes sense that we need to evolve with it, so invest in these critical components of the future of work and the human point of difference you\u2019ll bring to a future workplace.<\/p>\n
Top tips to futureproof your career with human skills<\/p>\n
\u2022 Seek feedback actively \u2013 Ask colleagues, mentors, or managers how you come across in meetings, emails, and teamwork. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Practice active listening \u2013 Focus fully on the speaker, ask clarifying questions, and respond thoughtfully. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Reflect regularly \u2013 Take time to think about your learnings, decisions, and interactions. Journaling can help. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Develop empathy \u2013 Make an effort to understand colleagues\u2019 perspectives and experiences; read widely or engage in cross-functional work. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Improve communication \u2013 Work on clarity, tone, body language, and tailoring your message to your audience. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Manage stress and resilience \u2013 Soft skills include self-regulation; mindfulness, breaks, and pacing yourself matter. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Learn to influence without authority \u2013 Build trust, credibility, and persuasion skills, not just directives. <\/p>\n
\u2022 Invest in continuous learning \u2013 Soft skills evolve; courses, coaching, and mentorship help refine them over time.<\/p>\n
Whatever we call them, it\u2019s clear that human skills are no longer \u201cnice to have\u201d but essential for the future of work, our own resilience, and navigating change. <\/p>\n
With a background in HR, Jess Stuart is now a Waiheke-based career coach and the author of several books including: Burnout to Brilliance and I Love Mondays.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What we once called ‘soft skills’ are now the skills that will keep you employed. Jess Stuart explains.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":488889,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,2114,384,40,38,41,39,1297,35933],"class_list":["post-488888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-opinion","tag-people","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-wellbeing","tag-work-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/488888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=488888"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/488888\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/488889"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=488888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=488888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=488888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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