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Why Soft Skills Are Essential for Nigerian Job Seekers

Paredaim Plus
How Soft Skills Can Give You an Edge in Nigeria's Job Market

As competition in the labor market intensifies, having mere technical skills can never get a person his or her desired job or enable him or her to thrive in the workplace. For participants in Nigeria’s booming sectors as technology, oil and gas and financial services, it is not enough to have academic degrees or technical competencies. More and more employers are looking for individuals who can express themselves verbally, deal with change and work in groups. These are qualities that are now commonly labelled as ‘soft skills, ‘and these have proven to be real game-changers in the Nigerian employment market.

In a recent study conducted by Jobberman in 2022, it emerged that the majority of employers in Nigeria today place a higher premium on soft skills than technical skills at 60 per cent. Also, LinkedIn’s Global Talent Trends report shows that 92% of recruiters regard soft skills to be as important as hard skills that help a candidate succeed. One can merely assume how much more challenging it is to foster soft skills in professionals in an uncertain economic environment such as Nigeria.

In this particular post, the things to be resolved include the relevance of soft skills in the Nigerian context, how these skills can be enhanced, and practical methods of marketing the skills during an interview and in the course of working.

 

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What Are Soft Skills?

Soft skills are also known as transferable skills and include the behavioral side of the working process and behavior in general. Soft skills, therefore, are different from the skills that are clearly defined and easily quantifiable, such as coding, accounting or data analysis skills. Some of these skills are; communication skills, emotional skills, time management skills, problem-solving skills, and flexibility skills.

In Nigeria for instance, the competition in the labour market is very high and any extra positive quality that separates an individual from other qualified individuals is very useful. Most of these skills are important when it comes to interacting with people in the workplace or even different organizations.

 

Why Are Soft Skills Crucial in Nigeria's Job Market?

1. Bridging the Skills Gap

Lack of job remains a nightmare to many as the National Bureau of Statistics revealed that the unemployment rate in Nigeria is over 33% in 2021. This is a big problem because most fresh graduates display exceptional academic performance but lack interpersonal skills that can enable him or her to cope with the modern-day working world. Employers are in search of people who can not only execute the required job but also bring about the best in your interaction with other people in organizations and the company at large.

 

2. Driving Career Success

Personal attributes define how far one can go in his or her career notwithstanding academic or work accomplishment. For example, leadership and emotional intelligence of an employee are significant predictors in managerial positions. Those, who develop the skills highlighted, are more prepared for the corresponding challenges at the workplace, to influence people and build effective working relationships.

 

3. Enhancing Workplace Productivity

Businesses benefit from the people skills, as well as inter and intrapersonal communications and problem-solving skills that are displayed within the organization. Collective ideas are usually more productive than an individual, and, therefore, clear comprehension of proposals, as well as effective conflict-solving, will create favorable conditions for an increase in productivity.

 

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Soft Skills That Nigerian Jobs Can’t Do Without

To stand out in Nigeria’s job market, focus on developing these key soft skills:

 

1. Communication Skills

Most managers underline that they need good oral and written communication skills to succeed at work. Most employers wish to hire Nigerian professionals who can enunciate ideas well, understand others, and convince others using information.

 

2. Emotional Intelligence (EI)

EI as a process includes emotional self-awareness and self-regulation in addition to the ability to comprehend the emotions of others. High EI results in improvement in relationships, teams, and leadership.

 

3. Adaptability

The Nigerian economy is dynamic. It is a flexibility that opens opportunities to evolve for new changes and complexities, accept technological advancement, and flexibility in various workplaces.

 

4. Problem-Solving Skills

Managers expect well-equipped and capable professionals to analyze problems, and come up with efficient techniques of addressing challenges. Single-handedly problem-solving skills reflect creativity, thinking abilities and determination.

 

5. Time Management

In Nigeria, fast fast-growing industries efficiency has been a key factor that demands time management, commitment, and work schedules. The proper use of time indicates reliability and productivity at the workplace.

 

6. Collaboration and Teamwork

Most jobs require an individual to work in a team. Group cooperation and collective efforts are vital to the realization of organizational objectives.

 

7. Leadership Skills

Management is not synonymous with leadership. Or, a leader is somebody who assumes responsibility, motivates people and has the power to make the right decisions.

 

How to Develop and Improve Soft Skills in Nigeria

Developing soft skills is not a passive process and therefore must be done deliberately. Here’s how Nigerian professionals can enhance their soft skills:

 

1. Seek Training Opportunities

Take soft skills training in Nigeria classes from other professionals, and companies such as Jobberman, and Lagos Business School, and also find online classes from Coursera and even Udemy. These courses include interpersonal communication, managing organizational dynamics, and self and team management.

 

2. Practice Active Listening

If speaking, it’s acceptable to talk and express oneself without interrupting or altering the content to be discussed. This enhances your interpersonal skills as far as strengthening wonderful relationships is concerned.

 

3. Join Professional Networks

Peer and professional networks offer a variety of outlooks to consider, so networking with other people also enhances interpersonal abilities.

 

4. Elect Yourself to Leadership Positions

Offer to lead projects in a community organisation or a professional association. This in a way strengthens your confidence as well as the ability to decide the future.

 

5. Embrace Feedback

Acknowledging that criticism is an extremely useful tool for the positive development of any organism, constructive criticism has its definitely pros. Resume your manager and other experienced employees to know about your weaknesses in the workplace.

 

6. Read and Learn

It’s easiest to learn soft skills from books and some popular books that help in this regard include, Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry and How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie.

 

How to Showcase Soft Skills During Job Interviews

It is extremely important to show your soft skills in job interviews to ensure that you can perform them in case of a job offer. Here’s how to make an impact:

1. Highlight Specific Examples: Explain instances that show how you include soft skills in causing the organization or team to benefit, for example, when managing a conflict or when working on a successful project.

2. Use STAR Technique: Organize your answers under four sections namely S-T-A-R for every role that you’ve held to demonstrate your problem-solving and leadership capabilities.

3. Demonstrate Confidence: Enter and leave the room with confidence when speaking to your superiors show professionalism walk tall, look them in the eye and enunciate.

4. Ask Thoughtful Questions: You build good rapport with your interviewer by expressing your interest in the position and the firm, and by posing thoughtful questions.

 

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Soft Skills in the Workplace: Practical Applications

It is important to also understand soft skills are critical even after getting hired in an organization. Here’s how to apply them in the workplace:

- Communication: Communicate with your team telling them about the progress being made and what issues might arise. Learn how to use email, meetings, or instant messaging properly.

- Collaboration: Work collaboratively on group assignments and help others around them as far as developing a good working relationship is concerned.

- Problem-Solving: Do not wait for challenges to come and then scream, instead identify them early and then look for creative solutions.

- Time Management: As they work on projects that need to be completed they should make use of organizational tools such as calendars and to-do lists.

 

Conclusion

Soft skills are now mandatory for any employee in Nigeria and have become imperative as far as employment is concerned. Where technical resources are easily procurable, interpersonal or soft skills such as interpersonal communication, personality, and flexibility make a global difference. These transferable skills will enhance the employment prospects of Nigeria’s professionals, their performance in assignments and organizational effectiveness.

One should dedicate time and money to the development of the soft skill set Nigeria trained and practiced the skills and looked for more opportunities to apply them. The instant you turn up for an interview or are already on the job, the employers will notice these skills in you. With the kind of economy Nigeria is developing today, professionals who place a big emphasis on soft skills will then have the capacity to manage any arising and emerging problems and innovations.