This is the eighteenth installment in our 25 week series exploring the 25 competencies, or soft skills, that our assessments measure. Each week we’ll give you the definition of that competency, explain its value, and give you tips to help you develop it. This week: Appreciating Others.
Appreciating Others, as the name would suggest, is all about focus on others, specifically identifying with and caring about others. Those who are skilled at Appreciating Others are great at making people feel truly seen and heard. They take the time to get know people on a deeper level and really connect with them.
Those skilled in Appreciating Others can connect with all different kinds of people because they work to understand and bond with each person as an individual. They appreciate the unique perspectives and talents that each human brings. They build relationships well because people are more likely to trust them. When you truly care about someone they can tell, and they can also tell when you’re not being sincere.
Appreciating Others is an extremely important skill to have in any leadership role. As we mentioned in last week’s blog, people will not follow someone that they don’t believe in and that they don’t think has their best interest at heart. People can see right through your BS if you are just trying to use them for your own ends. Taking the time to stop and get to know each individual and to truly appreciate what they bring to the group will build a great team and great loyalty.
If you’d like to start developing your ability to appreciate others, you can take more time to casually associate with people. Ask them how their weekend was. What kinds of activities do they do outside of work? What are their favorite parts of their job? Taking the time to build these more informal connections will help you get to know the person as a whole and therefore have a better understanding of who they are as an individual. You will be surprised what you learn about others when you stop to ask, and actually listen to their answers.
If you would like to learn more ways to develop your Appreciating Others skills, download our Appreciating Others Rx Suite here.
