Assistant Professor
Sofia Menezes
"Who do you think you are?":
Human skills are on the way
Bio
Sofia Menezes is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Administration and Leadership, Military Academy, Portugal.
She holds a PhD in History, Defence and International Relations and she is currently finishing a Masters in Science on Emotions.
She is Section Coordinator in the Master Leadership, People and Organizations, Erasmus Coordinator, and is Scientific Coordinator in two Strategic Partnership Projects: MGS - Military Gender Studies; and HELPSec - Hybridisation of specialised English learning for security professionals, under the umbrella of the Erasmus+ Programme.
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Sofia is also engaged in other projects in the fields of Gender Mainstreaming and Emotional Intelligence. She gives training in Communication and Development of Soft Skills. During her free time, she is also a playwright, actress, and stage director.
Abstract
Keywords: Human skills; self-awareness; growth mindset; communication
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Twenty-five years of teaching and training in the fields of languages, communication, and drama (acting and directing) constitute a solid ground for reaching some conclusions regarding the use of human skills in terms of interpersonal relations and their effect on personal and professional life.
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Human skills refer to the competencies we use to engage, connect and bond with others and comprehend though are not limited to communication; body-language awareness; empathy; self-awareness, and growth mindset. The human being is a social animal who communicates via verbal and non-verbal information.
Nowadays, as for verbal information, people read headlines, watch abridged videos; and have short conversations interrupted by the infinite daily tasks.
As for non-verbal information, it is being reduced to mouse-clicking movements and misinterpreted emojis in never-ending online meetings. Listening is an ability that is becoming out of fashion, as we insist on holding up the shield of Lack of Time.
Not only the ability to listen to others but, most essentially, the ability to listen to ourselves, leading to poorer quality relations both at professional and personal levels.
To better manage our daily lives and be able to foster good quality relations at work, therefore, improving individual and team results, a thorough knowledge about human skills is crucial.
Some of the ways we can develop these skills and how we can apply them to our everyday lives will be presented during this talk.