Re:How do you build emotional and social skills for work?
by blaser-waffle on Wednesday April 22, 2020 @09:58AM
(#22945593)
The obvious softball answers are to talk to professionals (psychs, therapists, etc.), and possible to watch some videos on youtube/udemy/lynda/etc. about communication skills and interactions. I've used them before, and they're useful -- even if just reminders of common-sense stuff.
In the broader sense, there is no way to get good at something without doing it. My old boss used to use the "rock tumbler" analogy, in that a rock tumbler makes rocks smooth by rubbing them against each other a lot. If you want to be a smooth operator in a social sense, then you need to be around people and "rubbing up against them" in a social sense quite a bit. Most of the truly slick, very social people I know interact with others constantly, and have done so in many contexts since they were young. Older manager types have tact and grace because there were years when they didn't...
In the broader sense, there is no way to get good at something without doing it. My old boss used to use the "rock tumbler" analogy, in that a rock tumbler makes rocks smooth by rubbing them against each other a lot. If you want to be a smooth operator in a social sense, then you need to be around people and "rubbing up against them" in a social sense quite a bit. Most of the truly slick, very social people I know interact with others constantly, and have done so in many contexts since they were young. Older manager types have tact and grace because there were years when they didn't...