As a nurse, it’s important to build clinical skills with training, CE, and certifications. But that’s not all! To truly excel, you need soft skills like communication, teamwork, and adaptability. Here’s what you should know, and a look at the top soft skills for nurses to pursue.
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What are Nursing Soft Skills?
Nursing soft skills are abstract abilities that can’t really be measured. They describe how you relate to other people, solve problems, or adapt to new situations. In other words, soft skills describe your attitude, emotional intelligence, and social skills.
What’s the difference between soft skills and hard skills?
Hard skills, on the other hand, are the technical abilities you’ve actually been taught, whether in school, on-the-job training, or another setting. They describe how you're able to actually do the tasks of a clinical job, like assessing a patient’s condition, taking vitals, or using certain medical equipment or technology.
That’s not to say that you can’t be taught soft skills, though! There are even classes dedicated to some of them. But they’re more often learned through experience, and as something you choose to do, rather than a job requirement.
Why is it important to have soft skills?
Even though they may not always be job requirements, soft skills can almost always help your career. For instance, employers like to know you can communicate well or work effectively with a team. It also shows that you’re making an effort to improve yourself, both personally and professionally.
More and more, though, soft skills actually are required for some nursing careers. For instance, many jobs for resource pool RNs do want you to be skilled in communication and adaptability. And that means soft skills are more than just something extra — they may actually decide whether you land your next job.
Top 5 Soft Skills for Nurses
Although there are many soft skills you can develop as a nurse, some clearly stand out from others. Here are the ones that employers usually value the most.
#1: Communication
How well you’re able to do your job often depends on how well you can communicate with others. And, although communication is often included in your healthcare training, it’s still a soft skill that isn’t really measured in hard terms.
What’s it mean? For patients and families, you must be able to communicate important clinical info in a way they understand, plainly and with no jargon. On top of that, you must do so in a way that’s reassuring and builds trust, even when you're talking to something who's in a strained emotional state.
When it comes to other nurses, clinicians, and members of the care team, you must be able to communicate vital info about clinical treatment quickly, clearly, and succinctly. And that includes written as well as verbal communication!
Related skills: The most important complementary skill to communication is active listening — that means really hearing what others are saying, especially patients, and knowing how to interpret non-verbal cues, too.
#2: Teamwork & collaboration
Working well with others is important for the safety and successful treatment of patients, and for keeping errors to a minimum. It also helps employers maintain a positive, productive workplace — a top priority as they work to reduce turnover.
What’s it mean? Keeping a positive attitude is essential; so is having empathy for fellow workers. It means focusing on your job and its outcome more than any personal feelings you may have towards co-workers. And one way to develop that is to be willing to help others when they need it, and to accept their help in return!
Related skills: Empathy, conflict resolution, active listening, professionalism.
#3: Leadership
Even if you’re not planning on becoming a manager, leadership skills can almost always help you land a job. After all, leaders can solve problems, delegate tasks, and supervise others to make sure standards are always upheld, no matter how busy it gets.
What’s it mean? In addition to problem solving and delegation, leadership skills mean being able to work effectively on your own when a supervisor is out, and assess a situation and take prompt action when seconds count.
Related skills: Professionalism, autonomy, critical thinking, problem solving, conflict resolution, delegation, organization, prioritization.
#4: Adaptability & flexibility
Being able to quickly adjust to new situations, no matter what department you work in, is an essential nursing skill. It's not as easy as it may look, but focusing on adaptability and flexibility is a great way to stand out from other job applicants.
What’s it mean? Nursing is an unpredictable, fast-changing job, so it’s a must to be able to adjust priorities and meet new ones at a moment’s notice. It also means being able to adapt to larger changes, like new tech, equipment, workflows, or shift changes — all of which you can expect to have to deal with anyway
Related skills: Patience, resilience, prioritization, organization, time management, problem solving, willingness to learn.
#5: Time management
The ability to tackle all of your duties in the most efficient way possible, time management helps things run more smoothly. It also gives you confidence and helps you manage stress and even take on new responsibilities that may be asked of you — another bonus in the eyes of any employer.
What’s it mean? Effective time management requires prioritization, or knowing what’s most important at any given time. You should also be able to tell what can be done in a specific timeframe — for instance, if you have 20 minutes between tasks, knowing what fits best in that slot, even if it isn’t a top priority.
Related skills: Planning, organization, prioritization, multi-tasking, patience, stress management, scheduling, leadership, communication, delegation, goal-setting.
Put Your Nursing Soft Skills to Work with a New Job
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