Have you ever wondered what constitutes the secret sauce of career success and growth? How do you multiply your salary and increase your worth in your industry and job market?
You may think that the world's most successful people within their domains achieve their attainments because of factors such as always knowing the right people at the right time, being part of the elite, or having access to high-quality education. But while this may be partially true, there is only a small percentage of people who fulfil this criteria. It is indeed possible to experience career fulfilment and success at any stage of your career journey, and significantly boost your take-home salary, even without access to these well-esteemed privileges.
Preeminent professionals within their industries have demonstrated that soft skills—also known as power skills—are the tickets to career fortune. While all soft skills are needed in some way or another, there are three in particular that stand out, to which well-known business leaders, thought leaders, and other leading industry figures have attributed their success:
1. Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
One fascinating example of emotional intelligence at work in the workplace, from a leadership and management perspective, is that displayed by the rather controversial billionaire business mogul Elon Musk, who, in 2017, was reported by Electrek to have emailed his employees:
"No words can express how much I care about your safety and wellbeing. It breaks my heart when someone is injured building cars and trying their best to make Tesla successful. Going forward, I’ve asked that every injury be reported directly to me, without exception. I’m meeting with the safety team every week and would like to meet every injured person as soon as they are well, so that I can understand from them exactly what we need to do to make it better."
Musk here demonstrated what it means to actually show that you care about your employees, through your actions and taking responsibility. He also displayed a growth mindset, by seeking to personally figure out what was going wrong so that he could implement the right changes.
At another time, Musk wrote that "everyone will have equal access to parking, eating the same tables, and there will be no management offices. I am convinced that managers should work at the forefront, in the same work environment as the entire team. Even though I run the company myself, I still do not have my own office and often moved my workplace to the most challenging area in the factory and slept on the factory floor when there was a real crisis. Managers should always take care of their team before they take care of themselves—the supervisor is there to serve his team—not the other way round."
From these internal communications, Musk's approach embodies what it is to have EQ—understanding and managing one's own emotions, and being sensitive to the needs and emotions of others. This quality will make you more likeable and approachable, and increases your career opportunities.
2. Communication Skills
One of the most essential skills you need to get noticed as an exceptional pro in your field of work—thus boosting your salary—is that of communication. When you can relate well to others, are able to deliver insights in a clear and concise manner, actively listen and take on feedback, and maintain transparency in your communication style, these actions go a long way towards building trust and furthering your career.
Joel Gascoigne, co-founder and CEO at Buffer, is well-known for his transparent approach towards leading his team, right from the very beginning. He maintained openness in communication and experimented with allowing all employees to be able to view email threads and company financial data, in addition to maintaining salary transparency.
Transparency in communication is a trademark of exceptional leadership and can open multiple doors for you to land a promotion, within your current employer and externally as well.
3. Focus
The average worker gets distracted 60 times in a work day and loses over 23 minutes of focus on average, for each distraction, according to Zippia. How do you measure up? Do you maintain strict focus, not only in your work day, but for achieving your professional goals? Goal-oriented individuals are driven and self-motivated, and perform exceptionally well in various roles, such as in sales for example, in which this directly translates to making more money through commission.
Learning the power of focus in setting priorities and achieving one's goals is what enables you to be resilient in spite of facing challenges. This core quality is what set Canva founder and CEO Melanie Perkins, apart from the rest. After facing hundreds of rejections before securing her first investment and being in the minority 2% of VC-backed women founders, Canva eventually was born and grew to become one of the most profitable unicorn start-ups.
How willing are you to put in the discipline, tenacity, and focus to achieve remarkable results in your career? Through focusing on developing your EQ, improving your communication skills, and sharpening your focus, you can accomplish the unthinkable and dramatically increase your value in the job and industry market—leading to pay raises, promotions, and more business opportunities.