What can career investment look like, other than additional degrees, certificates, or engineering knowledge? Technical prowess certainly serves as a career investment. But let’s not forget other investments that can set you up as a well-rounded employee, increasing your chances of success!
The Bigger Picture
While you probably earned a formal education by now, you can compound various add-ons in the form of degrees or certifications. This is all fine and dandy — adding external accolades to your portfolio is one simple way to invest in a career.
However, a list of earned accomplishments is simply one portion of a bigger, complex picture that creates your value. The bigger picture is that it takes more than engineering knowledge or external add-ons to balance the investments you make in your career.
For example, can you efficiently manage personality conflict, regulate your emotions, or set healthy boundaries in the workplace? These are the kinds of soft skills that go hand-in-hand with technical knowledge to create a well-balanced employee.
You can think of career investment as an accumulation of two dimensions. One dimension includes engineering skills and other technical knowledge. The second dimension includes the “soft,” or people skills, including interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence.
Components of the two dimensions will contribute to the way you manage day-to-day obstacles, both human and technical. Read on to discover how you can start enhancing your human skills to continue investing in your career.
What Are People Skills and How Do You Execute Them?
Here are a few topics that are often as impactful as engineering capabilities in the workplace. In addition, a series of suggestion questions can help you contemplate each topic.
Soft Skills
As defined by indeed.com, “Soft skills are interpersonal and behavioral skills that help you work well with other people.”
Practice your soft skills by answering:
- If I put myself in others’ shoes, can I understand how their viewpoint differs from mine?
- Instead of focusing on flaws, what can I do to help my colleague shine?
- Should I follow others’ poor habits, or am I willing to do the work and rise above?
Emotional Intelligence
As defined by psychologytoday.com, “Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others.”
Practice your emotional intelligence by answering:
- What does it look like for me to accept and process some of the terrible emotions I experience, such as embarrassment or regret? How might I grow into a new version of myself once I get to the other side of this process?
- To what extent do others’ opinions of me matter, and is this something I’d like to change?
- To what extent does my own opinion of me matter? Should it matter the most?
Communication Skills
Every job requires human interaction — whether supervisor, colleague, or client. Strong communication skills can help facilitate these interactions, enabling you to perform your job more efficiently. Clear communication avoids wasting time and minimizes information disconnect. Communication includes written, spoken, and body language.
Practice your communication skills by answering:
- As I proofread my writing, how many words can I eliminate without losing my messaging?
- Do I need to work on expanding my vocabulary for more precise language?
- What can I articulate in a clearer way so that nobody is left with questions?
Another Practical Career Investment? Awareness!
Awareness leads to context. When you are aware of context, you make better-informed decisions — a great way to invest in your career!
Here are two aspects of awareness that will arm you with more context for better decision-making:
Self-awareness
As defined by positivepsychology.com, “Self-awareness is the ability to see yourself clearly and objectively through reflection and introspection.”
Practice self-awareness by answering:
- If others are making comments about my work, how might they be correct? How do I want to respond?
- Am I noticing common denominators in the way people act around me? Any common feedback or criticisms?
- Do I consciously make decisions that can trigger me (for example, too much coffee, not enough sleep, etc.)?
Situational Awareness
As defined by psychologytoday.com, it is the “ability to ‘identify, process, and comprehend critical elements of information about what is happening…knowing what is going on around you…’”
Practice situational awareness by answering:
- Before I make a decision, what do I know for sure to be objectively true? What are the possible false beliefs I’m holding onto?
- How can a negative situation work for me instead of against me?
- What can I do to help?
In conclusion, career investment includes a balance of both hard and soft skills to create a well-rounded employee.
As you continue to invest in your own career, how can you work toward better equilibrium?
About the Author Gina Covarrubias
Certified Life Coach, B.S. Aeronautical & Astronautical Engineering (Purdue University), M.S. Mechanical Engineering (University of Utah).
Gina is founder of Deliberate Doing, an exclusive STEM professional development service dedicated to helping engineers optimize their careers. She is the authority on establishing a purposeful career with her book, Career Purpose: When Work Isn’t Working for You. Whether speaking or coaching, she offers practical guidance for early and mid-level engineers.
Gina’s distinctive background blends life coaching expertise with 12+ years engineering/technology experience in the government, academic and corporate environments, all within the aerospace sector.
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