Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children

by Roberta Michnick Golinkoff

When you review the business and social science literatures, you find a plethora of terms that fall under the definition of “soft skills.” Among them are adaptability, autonomy, communication skills, creativity, cultural sensitivity, empathy, higher order thinking skills, integrity, planfulness, positive attitude, professionalism, resilience, self-control, self-motivation, social skills, teamwork skills, responsibility, leadership, learning to learn skills, persuasiveness, organization, initiative, character, goal orientation, and so forth. No one would deny that these skills are important, and we all know them when we see them. Despite the fact that these are seen as key factors for success in the workplace, in school, and beyond, we are still fixated on the hard skills.