WASHINGTON. We’ve all heard the well-known real estate adage about what’s important for homeowners and investors. “Location, location, location.” So when it comes to what’s important for most people, I think “Relationship, relationship, relationship.” In order to maximize and enjoy relationships to the fullest, you want to have – or develop – good interpersonal skills.
Excellent relationships involve excellent interpersonal skills
Almost all aspects of our lives involve communication. This includes having excellent people skills – such as the ability to collaborate and to maintain good interpersonal abilities. In addition, communication also includes additional helpful traits like self-confidence and positive thinking. All these are highly desirable.
Good interpersonal skills are vital. That’s particularly true in the workplace. There, we typically interact with many different types of people.
Additional important interpersonal skills are listening, understanding and using body language. This also holds true when it comes to gestures and other elements of non-verbal communications.
Moreover, having a positive attitude, and showing respect and appreciation for the other individual are both highly valuable to fostering good relationships.
Interpersonal skills: Integral to our relationships
Our interpersonal skills are integral to our relationships in both personal and professional connections. Having good interpersonal skills leads to a better understanding of others. We regularly use those skills when we interact with others.
Anyone can develop strong interpersonal skills. It’s similar to developing muscles in our arms or legs to make them stronger. Likewise, it’s also true that interpersonal skills can be built. For some it may come more naturally than for others. But the reality is that anyone, with practice, can develop these skills. And doing so can lead to building more effective relationships.
In the workplace interpersonal skills are the foundation of trust. In addition, they are key factors in successful individual and organizational performance. Results gained as a result of developing successful interpersonal skills contribute to better performance, effective problem solving, and providing help in decision-making.
Three core competencies
A local organization in our area, Management Concepts, offers a course on Interpersonal Skills. The course teaches competencies that are essential for developing effective relationships with others.
Three competencies support the course’s foundation.
- Awareness of self;
- Awareness of others; and
- Maximizing Relationships.
Awareness of self: This involves understanding your own communication skills and how they have an impact on others. As you deepen your self-awareness you’ll be able to make new choices about how to communicate more effectively.
Awareness of others: This competency includes careful listening, skillful questioning, and keen observation of nonverbal cues to ensure understanding. By being aware of others, you can structure your communications to be more effective with many different types of people.
Maximizing Relationships: Gaining and maintaining relationships involves refining your interpersonal skills over time to develop satisfying connections with others. Excellent relational abilities also enable you to deal with conflicts and breakdowns that inevitably occur.
Personal effectiveness is the goal
We know that growth in even one of these key areas can allow your personal effectiveness to break forth and flourish. Who wouldn’t want that?
In my next article, I’ll dive deeper into the realm of interpersonal skills. That’s because they are absolutely essential for any individual to thrive.
Stay tuned!
For more Information Contact:
Susan Commander Samakow, PCC, CPCC
Certified Business, Life & Career Coach and Author,
Focusing on Confidence & Resilience Strategies and Transition
Certified Mediator
301-706-7226 & 703-574-0039
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