Soft Skills - Ask a Wharton MBA
Develop Soft Skills – Work Smart & Live More
It was 11 a.m., and I was sitting at my client’s office shaking. I had already taken four Advils, but my shoulders, arms, and hands were still screaming in pain. I was trying to finish a PowerPoint deck with one of my senior clients sitting just two seats away when I suddenly started crying. I couldn’t stop. ...
I cried almost every day last week. Not on purpose. I wasn’t sitting around thinking about sad things or trying to work myself up. It would just happen. I would wake up anxious, think of something in the afternoon, or have a small interaction with my daughter that normally would have irritated me, and suddenly I would need to go into my room and cry. ...
I recently had the chance to coach someone who was preparing for a job interview. Before we talked, I reviewed both her résumé and the job description. On paper, she was a strong match. Her experience lined up well with what the company was looking for, and the person who referred her to me spoke very highly of her work. ...
“I am not good enough yet.” That has been an inner voice of mine for about 40 years. I probably started saying this to myself when I was a kid. Whenever I came home with test scores, my mom would congratulate me but my dad would focus on the points I missed. Even if I got 97 out of 100, most of our conversation would be about what happened to those three points and how I could avoid missing them next time. ...
Have you ever walked out of a presentation you led thinking, “That was such a waste of time. I spent hours preparing, yet somehow what I had been asked to prepare wasn’t even what the senior leader wanted to discuss. Worst of all, I walked away with feedback that I needed to become a better presenter.” ...
For the past few months, I’ve been struggling with what to write. Not because I have nothing to say. But because I want what I write to be both true to where I am today and genuinely helpful to you.
Fifteen years ago, I started Be My Career Coach with a simple goal: to help people build better careers. I never imagined thousands of readers would come along for the journey. Many of you have been reading Be My Career Coach for years. Some of you have written to tell me an article helped you negotiate a promotion, navigate a difficult boss, become a better leader, or simply feel less alone at work. ...
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about how it’s possible to feel two completely opposite emotions at the same time. As the parent of an 18-year-old entering adulthood, I’ve discovered that pride and heartbreak can exist side by side.
My daughter turned 18 in May and graduated from high school. She is standing at the edge of adulthood—excited for college, independence, and the life waiting ahead of her. ...