I really enjoyed this articled by Robert Stevenson. Please share with others…..Angela

Chipping Away At Success

Michelangelo made incredible statues by chipping away at giant blocks of marble. He envisioned the finished piece before ever raising his mallet and kept chipping away until his masterpiece was completed. Every day you need to chip away at becoming better. If you intend to be successful, creating your own masterpiece, you don’t do it overnight.

For over 20 years, I have been a professional speaker and have addressed the top companies in the world on numerous issues that would help their people perform at a higher level. In preparing for over 2,500 programs, not once have I had anyone tell me their people were lacking in the hard skills, technical knowledge or the book sense they needed to succeed in their industry. Instead, I have always been asked to address subjects that have to deal with what is referred to as soft skills.

Unlike hard skills, which are about someone’s skill and ability to perform a task, soft skills are more broadly applicable to successfully running an enterprise. Soft skills are the behavioral competencies people possess. Also known as people skills or interpersonal skills, they include talents such as strategic thinking, communication skills, team building, leadership and management skills, negotiation skills, conflict resolution, personal effectiveness, productive and inventive problem solving, along with selling skills, to name just a few. Top executives understand that a person’s soft skills are an important part of their individual contribution to the success of the organization.

The mistake I see people and companies making is that they get consumed with dealing with everything else and not taking a few minutes each day to develop soft skills. You don’t create these soft skills overnight. Keep in mind Michelangelo’s method of creation; small chips carved away to uncover the beauty that was always there in his mind. Every day on a personal or corporate basis, make sure some sort of “Chipping Away” is taking place.

Don’t let a day go by that you or your people have not gained

“A Small Chip” of knowledge, skill or talent.

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