Developing your interpersonal skills is one of the essential things to do in order to grow in your personal and professional life. These skills are often referred to as soft skills and come in handy in your day-to-day lives.
But what exactly are these skills? Interpersonal skills are nothing but your skills and abilities in effectively handling and communicating with others individually or in group settings. But this doesn’t simply mean having strong communication skills only.
It also means having a strong personality that’s reflected in your body language, your receptiveness to feedback, your attitude as a team player, etc., amongst many other such skills.
Having strong interpersonal skills can help you portray yourself as a confident individual and make you stand out from your competitors. So let’s look at 4 ways to develop these skills.
1. Acknowledge
If you really want to develop interpersonal skills, you have to have a positive attitude towards others. And this positivity should reflect in your day-to-day activities. One way of portraying that is to acknowledge other’s expertise, hard work, and efforts.
If you see someone doing great work, go ahead and appreciate them for what they are doing. Sometimes, you might not have the same amount of expertise on a subject as one of your colleagues have. Don’t hesitate to recognize it whenever you get a chance. You should also appreciate your coworkers for the things they do to make the workplace the way it is.
It might seem like an insignificant thing to do. But not everyone has the ability to appreciate others. And by doing that, you can instantly make your personality a more pleasing one and become a more likable person.
2. Take Responsibility
One of the most important traits that a person with a strong personality should have is trustworthiness. And you can easily develop that by starting to take responsibility and accountability. When you do that, people start trusting you, and they will bank on you.
It’s okay to make mistakes. So if you know that something has resulted because of your fault, don’t back out. Instead, accept it. Doing that will remove complications, reduce tensions and decrease conflict at the workplace. And more than that, it will increase dependability too.
3. Listen Actively
Active listening is a very important skill, and not everyone has it. To develop interpersonal skills, you have to be a good communicator. And a good communicator is always an active listener. It helps build relationships, understand other’s perspectives better.
When you actively listen to what others are saying, it’s easier for you to understand their needs and requirements. And not just that, it also helps remove misunderstandings and misconceptions. So you have lesser conflicts and miscommunications.
4. Identify Your Strengths and Weaknesses
Developing your interpersonal skills can be a lot easier if you know what your strengths and weaknesses are. Ask your trusted friends, relatives, and colleagues for feedback on what they see as your strengths or weaknesses.
Once you identify them, start building on your strengths. Sometimes you might be tempted to ignore your strengths since you are already good at them. But instead of neglecting them, work on them to improve them further.
Similarly, identify your weaknesses and figure out ways to develop them. If you think joining a course can help you upgrade them, then do it without any hesitation. Remember your goal and stay focused. You’ll definitely master what you were once weak at.
So these are some of the ways to build and develop your interpersonal skills. Developing any habit can take time. But this doesn’t mean that you’ll be disappointed and will give up. Remember, success comes to those who persist. So keep trying.