The isolation of the pandemic took its toll on college students’ interpersonal skills, and employers are finding they must help new-hires gain these workplace essentials. A recent Wall Street Journal article noted that recent graduates, who primarily communicate via social media, need to improve not just oral communication skills but also to effectively use e-mail. This assignment is geared to tackle both challenges.
Your Task. For this exercise, first read this post from Indeed.com and choose three of the areas listed in the article that you’d like to improve. Then, in an e-mail to your instructor, describe how you plan to work on attaining these skills.
Sample Student E-mail
Dear Prof. XYZ:
After reading the Indeed.com post about interpersonal skills, I have decided I need to improve in the following three areas:
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- Teamwork. In the past, I have not been the best team player. I prefer to do things on my own so I can control the final product. However, after reading about the importance of collaboration, I better understand the need to work well in groups. This semester, I plan to improve my teamwork skills by not pushing my own agenda and respecting others’ input.
- Flexibility. I’ve realized that I tend to be inflexible; I’ve always wanted to do things my own way. I now realize being able to change course is important in business, and that I’ll have to change my mindset to be a more valuable, productive employee.
- Patience. Wow, this one really hit home. I’m extremely impatient, especially when I know I can get something done faster than those around me. To become more patient, I have signed up for yoga, which I’m told is good for people like me who just want to get things done as quickly as possible.
Now that I’m close to entering the business world, I can see how some of my personality traits could work against me. I’m glad to be aware of these liabilities before I seek a job.
Sincerely,
Student Name