The Hard Truth About Soft Skills: Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They'd Learned Sooner Paperback – January 22, 2008

Helpful information in re: working with people and building skills!

Loved the book. Needed a primer on how to navigate the corporate world after a recent promotion. I have been surviving on profit from my own business for years, but it wasn’t ever really enough to do save. So I used what I learned there to get into my role with this company and was moved up pretty fast. I just found myself really unprepared especially around office politics, maybe because before I worked directly under the owners, there wasn’t layers of managers etc to work through, maybe the occasional long time employee that wasn’t going anywhere, a worker that was great for a cheap fix but the work was never quite right, stuff like that. I know a lot of people in the reviews didn’t like all the anecdotes - I loved them. They are very applicable and I’ve already encountered some of the exact scenarios and frankly, under the self promotion section, I started seeing why maybe my own business just wasn’t taking off into the next bracket like I wanted and had worked so, so crushingly hard to achieve. And I’m not done yet but to the point, it’s been a great book for me. I am positive it will be on my desk for quite a while, so I can go back and read the advice when I face these situations and it all becomes a no brainer. Five stars, thanks Peggy!

It is a fast easy read, but I appreciated how it was broken down into small chunks so that I could start/stop and come back to. I sent a copy to a young adult that had just discovered the concepts of hard vs. soft skills.

The Hard Truth About Soft Skills: Workplace Lessons Smart People Wish They'd Learned Sooner"One of the greatest pearls of wisdom, I ever received from my Mom, was "People are like computers, everything depends on which buttons you press." Finally, Peggy Klaus has given us the manual on the most important skills you'll ever need; people skills! With "The Hard Truth about Soft Skills," she hits a bulls eye each time, zeroing in on the key to masterful communication in the workplace. And she does it with such power and playfulness, that you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing you can do it to! As a coach, I refer "The Hard Truth About Soft Skills" to all my clients who are climbing up the corporate and entrepreneurial ladder and want to make each step from rung to rung with greater ease and impact. - Lois Barth, coach/speaker, "Luscious Living With Lois"

So heres the issue. This book is great if your inexperienced in working in office type enviroments or navigating the professional world but it doesnt really address many naunced or gentle ways to navigate the working world. So for instance its great giving you the assumptions lots of managers and corporate types have if youre too young to know it, but it also comes with the assumption that they have a right to these ideas.So if youre like most younger people gen z or a baby millennial this will giver you an idea of baby boomers idea of the work place for those in upper management expect.Lot of the time its about your expected behaviors and what you need to do, not absolving you of responsibility, but very little of "how do i deal with a boss that pawns off half thier work load on others and looks bad because they actually do a terrible job and the work they turn in is other peoples" or dealing with terrible cowrokers that push boundaries by contacting you during vacation.Basically its more "hard truths about how older professionals expect a lot with very little effort on thier part". It doesnt really address the down sides of a professional life or dealing with them. This is more about carrer managment and learning basic skills, which is great if you dont know that, but terrible for people trying to navigate the rest of the professional world.Basically there is a lot of good advice here but a ton of it is for the business and not the worker, like you reading the book, who may hate your job and think this older way of thinking is mostly for people who most of thier day isnt work as much meetings about the next meeting, with 20 minutes of actual content.So plenty of upsides in atleast knowing what your older boss is thinking, which is valuable, but not great for the subtle part of your career.

I really liked the book, it sheds light on important things that i had not thought about earlier, it made me realize how i could have handled them likeva charm

First this book is very well organizedThe examples are relatable and did not turn me off like so many other authors who use high profile examples that I can't relate to. I enjoyed and learned from the whole book. It was worth reading every page.

I recommend this book for those who are just starting their careers. If you don't know already, soft skills are critical to anyone's career success. Without it, your opportunities will be limited.The book is about career management more than just soft skills.This book goes over all the how to manage your career. The author justifiably emphasize that it is everyone's responsibility to keep his/her skills updated. The company will not do that for you.Some of the soft skills covered are basic such as communication and listening, and how to deal with politics, your boss, and your enemies. I wouldn't say there are breakthrough ideas in this book. But just a good solid coverage of the basics.Pros:1)Good coverage on how to manage your career.2)Good coverage on how to manage your boss, allies, enemies, and most important of all, yourself.3)Good coverage of in-and-out of corporate politics such as Do's and Don'ts.Cons:1)Basic coverage and doesn't cater to the those who are more advanced in their careers.2)The book has lot of breadth but not necessarily great depth.3)you can't really learn soft skills by reading a book. You need to apply the concepts in this book on a regular basis, and that's when the real learning happens.