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Skillsto Pay the BillsMastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success
Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace SuccessAbout the Cover ArtistBrandon Pursley is a senior at Madison County (FL) High School, a member of the Madison County HighSchool/High Tech program and one of over 100 young people who participated in the ODEP Soft SkillsPilot project (the preliminary “testing” environment for the creation of this publication). During a SoftSkills Pilot site visit, the writers of this curriculum had the great fortune to meet Brandon and talk withhim about his dreams for the future. Brandon mentioned he was an artist, specializing in portraits, andshowed our team some of his artwork. When Brandon was asked if he would have any interest indesigning a cover design for these materials, he jumped at the chance.Brandon has a true passion for art, and wishes to build and enhance his talent by attending art schoolupon graduation. Although he hasn’t had any formal training other than his art classes in high school,he is well known by his peers and throughout the community as a very talented artist. He devotes all ofhis spare time drawing portraits of friends, relatives, children, and other subjects. Each portrait’s eyeshave a way of speaking to you, revealing the person’s personality while captivating the full attention ofthe viewer.Because of his dedication to art Brandon is always in the process of beginning a new portrait or justcompleting one.It was our team’s great fortune to meet Brandon during the Soft Skills pilot project.In Their Own WordsSkills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success is a true collaboration betweengovernment and the youth it serves. In fact, the original manuscript is much different, in both form andcontent, than it appears today. More than 100 young people provided honest (and sometimes brutal) feedbackto the design and content of this publication.Page 139 recounts a number of comments offered during the piloting of these materials.3
Skills to Pay the BillsAcknowledgementsThe Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) would like to thank all of theindividuals, organizations, and agencies who contributed to the creation of this project. Without yourcommitment, this soft skills curriculum would not have been possible.To Day Al-Mohamed, Rhonda Basha, Rachel Dorman, Nehemiah Green, Michael Huberman, Laura Ibanez,Jennifer Kemp, Kristen Schiavone, Maria Town, and Taryn Williams, thank you for your long hours anddedication to this project - from the initial concept all the way to the final design and dissemination.To Lucy Baney, Lee Bruno, Dr. Christine Casey, Christina Morfeld, and Leslie Walker-Hirsch for recognizingthe potential impact of this project and taking the first steps towards turning an idea into somethingtangible.Thank you to Katherine DiGiovanni, Lisa Stern, and Carolyn Veneri for your creativity and passion. Youdesigned and built a tool that will help young people find good jobs and careers (and have some funalong the way).Thank you to Patricia Bravo, Scott Emerick, Sylvia Thomas, Sangeeta Tyagi, and Monica Zeno-Martin ofYouthBuild USA for allowing YBUSA programs the opportunity to preview and offer feedback to thesematerials.Special thanks is warranted for the generous assistance of the seven youth programs and youth programfacilitators who took a chance and pilot-tested these materials with their youth participants. Withoutyour spirit and willingness to take on the hard work of helping to test out this curriculum, it would notreflect the breadth and depth it does today. Thank you to: FSW, Inc. WorkSkills, Bridgeport, CT: Pam McRae, Program Coordinator; Rita Renzoni, Instructor High School/High Tech (HS/HT), FL: Sally Ash, Assistant Director of the Able Trust's FL HS/HT &DMD. Madison County (FL) HS/HT: Mary Coody, Program Director, with Mike Radel, Assistant ProgramDirector, and Jean James, Program Assistant. The Alachua County HS/HT Program of North CentralFlorida CIL: Amy Tharpe, Program Director, with Stephanie Weeks and Mellissa Merrill, HS/HTProject Coordinators KentuckianaWorks Youth Center, Louisville, KY: Lorena Lasky, Project Director; Dallas Thornton,Career Planner; Virginia Dever, Career Planner; Fanta Hamlin, Career Planner; Emilia Manuola, LeadInstructor Massachusetts Migrant Education Program (MMEP), Wilmington and Boston, MA: Emily Hoffman,Regional Director; Mellisa Brandt, Instructor; Karen Hart, Instructor; Jeuris Taveras, CommunityLiaison Project SEARCH, Washington, DC: Lisa Haynes, Instructor, U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices; John Eldridge, Job Coach; Dierdre Williams, Program Manager; Carolyn Price, Job Coach;Linda Mahler, Instructor, U.S. Department of Education4
Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success Ready to Achieve Mentoring Program (RAMP), Denver, CO: Jamie Youngblood, ProgramCoordinator; Erin Ellis, Mentor WorkSource/YouthSource, Renton, WA: Jennifer Hill, Youth Program Manager; Kiana Davis,Instructor; Victoria West, InstructorFinally, and most importantly, ODEP is especially grateful to the dedicated group of more than 100young adults who were willing to share their valuable insights for this curriculum. You are ALLoutstanding and we wish you the best in your future career.The following list of young adults (and/or their guardians) consented to have their names displayed inthis publication:Jessica AlexisAsia LuevanoSonya WallaceKeisha BillingtonAlaycia McIntyreEbony WilsonAndrea BrightJessica McNeilBrittany StevensonAndrea CasillasChavario McQuayBreana SweattRayalshia DanielsMargarita MenchacaIvan BennettShionte DavisLaShondra NeelyCurtis MabryQarquasia DavisCassandra NewsteadKayla StillWhitney DavisJontae OwensKwamaine HouseLillie EcholsGiselle PadillaAlexandria WeidmeyerWendy GalvisBrandon PursleyPatricia PierceJuan GonzalezShontaye RobinsonChelsy WickersonJ’Laan HendricksSarah RudolphTroy BookerPatrick HenyardRaeMisha SierraTyrone HunterKyendra JacksonSierra SonzaMichael FrancisJamari JonesAllie SpicknallBrittany PrueMiosotis JuarbeBertha TolosaJustine ThomasAaron LawJasmine TurnerRachael WashingtonOther Contributors include:Maureen Andrew, Chris Arnette, John Benson, Kevin Bradley, Susan Brennan, Bridget Brown, LarryBuynak, Dale G. Caldwell, Julie Chamberlain, Rebecca Cokley, Barbara Conner, Marc Fagan, LoriGolden, Gary Goosman, Col. Robert Gordon, Allison Herman Paul, Jennifer Hill, Mitch Holmes, LoisKenneally, Grady Kickul, Zakiya Mabery, Jessie MacKinnon, Jessica Mattis, Marci McGinnis, JoannaMikulski, Kim E. Moss, Dennis Nathanson, Harry Orlick, Peggy Post, Anneka Rogers, Deborah Russell,Dawn Stanyon, Matthew P. Stevens, Diane Thames, Betsy Valnes, and John Whitcomb.5
Skills to Pay the BillsTable of ContentsIntroduction. 7Activity Layout. 8Through the Lens of Universal Design for Learning. 10Tips for Improving Access for Youth with Disabilities. 11Communication. 171. What’s Your Point?. 192. Flipping the Switch. 233. Oh, Puh-leeeeeze!. 264. Listen Hear!!. 305. Quit Talkin’! I Know What To Do!. 32Enthusiasm & Attitude. 356. Never Underestimate the Power of a PMA (Positive Mental Attitude). 367. Life is Full of Hard Knocks. 388. A Super Ball and a Raw Egg. 449. Believe it or Not: Your Attitude and Enthusiasm Just Might Get You the Job. 4610. Translating Features to Benefits. 53Teamwork. 5611. There is no “I” in Team. 5812. I’ll Give you Some of Mine if You Give me Some of Yours. 6113. The Good, the Bad, and the Reasonable. 6614. How Many Shapes Does it Take? . 6815. Teamwork on the Job. 72Networking. 7716. An Introduction to Networking. 7817. You Expect me to do WHAT? Talk to People?. 8118. Using Social Media to Network. 8619. Text vs. Email: Does it Really Matter?. 8920. It’s a Small World. 95Problem Solving & Critical Thinking. 9821. Praise, Criticism, or Feedback? . 9922. Workplace Ethics. 10223. Problem Solving on a Team. 10624. Perception vs. Reality. 10825. Tell Me About a Time When. 111Professionalism. 11426. Professionalism in Today’s Workforce. 11627. Professional Work Attitudes. 11928. Teamwork: An Essential Element of Professionalism. 12229. Is It Considered “Professional” to Have Friends in the Workplace?. 12630. Self Reflection: Professional Problem Solving at its Best. 129A Word about Social Networking. 134Additional Resources for Youth with Disabilities. 137In Their Own Words. 1396
Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace SuccessIntroductionAccording to the 2007 Every Promise, Every Child: Turning Failure into Action report, a large percentageof young people preparing to enter the workforce over the next two decades are significantly lacking inthe “soft” or applied skills — such as teamwork, decision-making, and communication — that will helpthem become effective employees and managers. In addition, in a Job Outlook 2008 survey conductedby the National Association of Colleges & Employers (NACE), the top characteristics looked for in newhires by 276 employer respondents were all soft skills: communication ability, a strong work ethic,initiative, interpersonal skills, and teamwork. Lastly, the Indiana Business Research Center (IBRC) foundthat while credentials (degrees and certificates) are important, it is the development of soft skills (thosethat are more social than technical) that is critical to developing a strong, vibrant workforce.Interestingly, research also suggests that soft skills are not just important for first-time employees.According to a poll released in June 2008 by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM),many workplace soft skills have become more important for the experienced professional. These skillsinclude critical thinking/problem solving, leadership, professionalism/work ethic, teamwork/collaboration,and adaptability/flexibility.According to the National Collaborative for Workforce and Disability for Youth (NCWD/Youth), thedevelopment of soft skills is identified as a critical component for success in activities such as civicparticipation and youth leadership in addition to school- and work-based learning experiences. TheGuideposts for Success, developed by NCWD/Youth in collaboration with its funding agency, the U.S.Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), clearly indicate the need for allyouth to have exposure to training focusing on job seeking and workplace basic skills.To further explore this important issue, ODEP convened a group of distinguished U.S. businesses in2007. During the discussion, participating companies identified the following competencies as key tothe success of young workers: Communication; Networking; Enthusiasm and Attitude; Teamwork;Problem Solving and Critical Thinking; and Professionalism. It was at this meeting that the leaders atODEP thought materials should be made available to youth service professionals to assist them as theyprepare all youth, including youth with disabili
Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success 3 About the Cover Artist Brandon Pursley is a senior at Madison County (FL) High School, a member of the Madison County High
