Soft Skills
Listening
Leadership
Communication
Confidence
Time management
Networking
Negotiation
Critical Thinking
Persuasion
Impromptu Speaking
Teamwork
Appreciation
Business Sense

Soft Skills
Leadership
Communication
Networking
Negotiation
Critical Thinking
Impromptu Speaking

Future Blue U – Soft Skills
Dec 2nd, 2009
Agenda
10:05 - Introduction - Annie Cheng
10:10 Soft Skills are Sexy - Sean Kennedy
10:20 Take the Lead - Nita Maheswaren
10:30 Powerful Communications - Jonathan Wray
10:45 Negotiation - Hania Abd-El-Razik
11:05 - Break
11:15 Networking Tips and Ideas - Wolfgang Krause
11:25 Speaking Off the Cuff - Jeremy Tio
11:40 - Next Step: Cultivating Soft Skills - Adil Sardar
11:50 - Final Exam: Table Topics Exercise - Jeremy Tio
12:00 - Q&A and Wrap-up
12:15 - Lunch

soft skills are sexy
Sean Kennedy

Soft Skills
Leadership
Communication
Networking
Negotiation
Critical Thinking
Impromptu Speaking

have you heard?
knowledge = work / money

Soft Skills
Leadership
Communication
Networking
Negotiation
Critical Thinking
Impromptu Speaking

me, myself, and – you

success

soft skills work money = work / knowledge

Soft Skills
Leadership
Communication
Networking
Negotiation
Critical Thinking
Impromptu Speaking

work

boldly go

Soft Skills
Leadership
Communication
Networking
Negotiation
Critical Thinking
Impromptu Speaking

Take the Lead – You won’t regret it!
Nita Maheswaren

The Big picture
Photo courtesy oldbookillustrations.com

Powerful Communications
Jonathan Wray

Powerful Communication is:
• Clear
• Compelling
• Memorable

Beginnings and endings
• Start strong
– Ask a question
– Tell a story
• Finish strong
– Summarize
– Call to action

Use clear and expressive words
Avoid jargon and buzz words
• value added
• synergy
• take this offline
• raise the bar
• state-of-the-art solutions
• cutting edge
• mission-critical
• think outside the box
• bandwith
• leading edge
• seamless

Use clear and expressive words

Use clear and expressive words
Prefer conversational words
Stuffy/Complex utilize modification dialogue interlock initiate facilitate ascertain
Simple use change talk meet begin ease/simplify learn

Use clear and expressive words
Express action through strong verbs
Verb
Assess
Investigate
Compare
Consider
Noun
Assessment
Investigation
Comparison
Consideration
We need to perform an assessment of our plan.
We need to assess our plan.

Famous quote turned into gobbledygook
At some unspecified point in time, this speaker assures his certain reversion to this place.

Communications impact
The following factors influence an audience’s understanding during a face-to-face presentation:
• Body Language 55%
• Tone of voice 38%
• Words 7%

Gestures, body language and vocal variety
• Use body language to convey the right message
• Vary the tone, volume and speed of your speaking
• Try to avoid uhms and ahs
• Smile

Visuals
• Avoid PowerPoint eye charts
• Don’t read to your charts
• You should be the primary visual

Be a story teller
• Use stories to explain complex topics
• Base stories on:
– Personal experience
– Customer references or testimonials

Negotiation
Hania Abd-El-Razik

|nə·gō sh ē
· ā sh ən| noun (also negotiations) discussion aimed at reaching an agreement a worldwide ban is currently under
negotiation | negotiations between unions and employers.
(Oxford Dictionary)

Know yourself



Motivations
Your leverage
Your strengths and weaknesses

Know the other party



Motivations
Their leverage
Communication style

Ask questions


Excellent communication tool
Types of questions
• Closed
• Open

Listening
• Make sure you actually listen to what the person is saying
• try to understand the total message being sent

Negotiation goal: win-win

Both parties should feel positive about the negotiation when it's over

Example: negotiating a salary
• Your motivations
• Your leverage
• Know your employer
• Ask!

Nuts & Bolts
• Do
 Listen carefully & ask questions
 Pay attention to non-verbal cues
 Focus on your strong points
 Be willing to concede good points
 Remain calm & friendly at all times
 Wait for a counter-offer
 Use logic & facts to back up your case
• Don’t
 Interrupt
 Daydream or become distracted
 Dilute your argument with weak points
 Argue every point
 Ridicule, insult, or humiliate
 Negotiate against yourself
 Be too emotional

References & Resources
• Winning Negotiations that Preserve Relationships, Harvard Business School Press
• Women Don’t Ask, Linda Babcock & Sara Laschever
• How to Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie
• Negotiation Skills, IBM Learning Centre
• http://www.negotiations.com/articles/10-college-grad-interview-negootiation-rules/
• http://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/ActiveListening.htm
• http://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/NegotiationSkills.htm
• http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_88.htm
• http://www.lifehack.org/articles/money/how-to-ask-for-and-get-a-raise.html
• http://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/how-to-win-arguments-dos-donts-and-sneakytactics.html
• http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifehack/the-rules-of-salary-negotiation.html
• Say Hello to a Good Buy , The Cosby Show
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ctrrvz2rc-Y
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibr7L7qJ4Xw&NR=1

Break: 10 Minutes

Future Blue U – Soft Skills
Dec 2nd, 2009
Agenda
10:05 - Introduction - Annie Cheng
10:10 Soft Skills are Sexy - Sean Kennedy
10:20 Take the Lead - Nita Maheswaren
10:30 Powerful Communications - Jonathan Wray
10:45 Negotiation - Hania Abd-El-Razik
11:05 - Break
11:15 Networking Tips and Ideas - Wolfgang Krause
11:25 Speaking Off the Cuff - Jeremy Tio
11:40 - Next Step: Cultivating Soft Skills - Adil Sardar
11:50 - Final Exam: Table Topics Exercise - Jeremy Tio
12:00 - Q&A and Wrap-up
12:15 - Lunch

Why Am I Here?
– Networking tips
Wolfgang Krause

Why am I here?
....not because of “You”!

What is it ?
http://jpsblog.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/LuckyOliver-1696379-blog-networking.jpg

Wow!!! (1)
• At least 60% of all jobs are found by networking http://jobsearch.about.com/cs/networking/a/networking.htm
• You know how everyone says that "80% of the jobs available never get advertised?
http://www.rileyguide.com/network.html

Wow!!! (2) Wow!!!
...I would suggest you taking this opportunity to talk to Hui immediately TODAY...

Prerequisite

Personal connection
• Lunch, coffee, …
...

Mentoring
• Get a mentor
Validate YOUR career choice

Activities

Don't
Networking isn't a process of making coldcalls to people you don't know http://www.rileyguide.com/network.html

Why I am not leaving the lab…
Mentor/manager
A friend of him, who became my manager
Our Senior manager
One CAS manager in
Toronto
My Boss in
California Manager in California
My Professor
Me

…and now…

…

COMMUNICATING OFF THE CUFF: content, context, conclusion
Jeremy Tio

Has this ever happened to you ?!?!?!

Has this ever happened to you ?!?!

STEP 1: BUY TIME ! TO THINK OF
CONTENT

STEP 1: HOW TO BUY TIME
• A: Acknowledge/Appreciate the question or statement
• P: Pause (up to a minute)
• R: Repeat/Rephrase the question or
Request more information.

EXERCISE 1: BUYING TIME
- Partner 1: ask a question.
- Partner 2: Buy time so Partner 1 is talking… so Partner 2 can think of content
- Sample questions incase you can’t come up with your own:
What projects have you been working on?
Why is it taking so long?

STEP 2: USE A

STEP 2: using a
• RULE OF 3 examples:
• - There are 3 reasons why.
• - There are 3 milestones.
• - There are 3 perspectives
-THEN LIST ..and embellish with contents.

EXERCISE 2: USING A
• Partner 2: Ask a question
• Partner 1: Explain with a 3 point context.
• Examples:
• - One approach. Opposite. Trade off.
• - Specific case, more general case, macroscopic case
• - past status, present status, future status

STEP 3: clear

Step 3: clear CONCLUSION
SUMMARIZE AND TIE TO BENEFIT OF YOUR AUDIENCE
• CONTENT- OPENING – BUY TIME!
• CONTEXT- BODY – USE A 3 POINT TEMPLATE!
• CONCLUSION – MAKE A CLEAR IMPACT STATEMENT!

EXERCISE 3: CONCLUSION
• PARTNER 1: Ask a difficult question.
• PARTNER 2: Apply -> buying time, using a context and conclusion statement
• THEN SWITCH

SAMPLE QUESTIONS FROM AN
INTEREST INTERVIEW
• What are your achievements/challenges during your internship?
• What are you looking for in your future work experience?
• Why do you think you would be a good match for our team?

Summary in 3 steps

REFERENCES
Spicer, Keith. Thinking on your feet. Toronto:
Thinking on your feet international, 1985.

Next Step:
Cultivating Soft Skills
Adil Sardar

Arnold Story

2 hour session

Contents
• Goal setting
• Follow through:
– Commitment
– Consistency
– Continuous

Goal Setting (1)
• Psychology professor Dr. Gail Matthews
Dominican University of California
• Written goals outperformed unwritten.

Goal Setting (2)
Specific
Measurable
Action-Oriented
Realistic
Time and Resource Constrained

“The discipline of writing something down is the first step towards making it happen”
Lee Iacocca former Chrysler CEO former Ford president

Follow Through
• 3 C’s

Follow Through: C1
• Commitment
– Make the decision to cultivate a soft skill
– Understand the time investment for success

Follow Through: C2
Consistency
“Agreement without contradiction”

Follow Through: C3
• Continuous
– Soft skills incrementally improves through constant practice
M.C. Escher, Waterfall (1961 )

Toastmasters International
• International Organization with over
230,000 members in 92 countries
• Focused on improving communication and leadership soft skills of their members
• Most universities have their own local chapters
• Chapters usually meet weekly

IBM Toronto Lab Toastmasters
When: Meets weekly, every Wednesday
From: 12-1pm
Where: Z4-029
Guests are always welcomed.

Summary
• Goal setting
• Follow through:
– Commitment
– Consistency
– Continuous

Future Blue U Final Exam
- Table Topics Exercise
Jeremy Tio

Q & A
Sean Kenney, Nita Maheswaren,
Jonathan Wray, Hania Abd-El-Razik,
Wolfgang Krause, Jeremy Tio,
Adil Sardar

Future Blue U – Soft Skills
Dec 2nd, 2009
Agenda
10:05 - Introduction - Annie Cheng
10:10 Soft Skills are Sexy - Sean Kennedy
10:20 Take the Lead - Nita Maheswaren
10:30 Powerful Communications - Jonathan Wray
10:45 Negotiation - Hania Abd-El-Razik
11:05 - Break
11:15 Networking Tips and Ideas - Wolfgang Krause
11:25 Speaking Off the Cuff - Jeremy Tio
11:40 - Next Step: Cultivating Soft Skills - Adil Sardar
11:50 - Final Exam: Table Topics Exercise - Jeremy Tio
12:00 - Q&A and Wrap-up
12:15 - Lunch