Stand Out: 5 key skills to advance your career

by Debra Stevens

We’re online and communicating all day, but with less and less impact. We need to build on what makes us human. Skills such as listening, socialising and storytelling have been lost in the world of digital and are needed more than ever, both personally and professionally. These soft skills give you the advantage in a changing world, allowing you freedom, flexibility and the ability to collaborate with others. Stand Out will get you ahead of the curve and give you the tools you need to rediscover your human skills so you can pursue your passions, achieve your goals and thrive in your career. 'Don't be left behind, this book is a must-read!'
Kosta Christofi, Head of Leadership and Management Development, Reed in Partnership

Genres: Self Help

216 pages, Paperback

Published March 19, 2021

Reviews

[Rosie Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stand Out is a non-fiction self-help book. It asks us to consider what individual attributes might be needed in a future when the world becomes even more technologically advanced.


A robot or AI intelligence may be very efficient, but cannot replace the finer aspects of listening skills and empathy, at least not yet. Author Debra Stevens focuses mainly on the workplaces of the future with a five week programme to help the reader recognise the type of human they are and the strengths and weaknesses of their communication techniques.

I thought that the advice could also be used outside of the workplace, and I was interested in improving my own areas of weakness. The more time that we spend behind a keyboard, the less time we take to have human contact with others. I was able to adapt some of the exercises as I currently have a very small number of people that I interact with at work.

There are five short exercises to complete each week and the book is set out in easy-to-read chunks with a ‘fitness’ theme that runs through each of the masterclasses. I especially liked the book layout with diagrams, highlighted areas, quotes and top tips; it kept my interest, but also made it quick to read in smaller sessions.


I thought that the book made some very useful points and presented them in a way that lots of readers could understand and therefore might implement so that they can brush up on their communication methods.

[Ayushi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Take-Aways
•To stand out in the automated workplace of the future, you’ll need uniquely human skills.
•You can recover and hone the ability to engage with people.
•Listening represents a foundational skill – one you can improve.
•Begin to build empathy by developing your awareness of emotions and perspectives.
•Become a better collaborator by boosting your skills in giving feedback, managing conflict, running meetings and other components of collaboration.
•Whatever your role or industry, you need to develop the ability to influence people.
•To develop your skill set, first adopt a growth mind-set.
•Take responsibility for your own learning and development.

[I Read, Therefore I Blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Debra Stevens is a trainer, coach and speaker with over 26 years’ experience. This is an interesting self-help book aimed at helping you take on the growing impact robots and artificial intelligence in the workplace by building up the 5 “human” skills that AI cannot replicate: engagement, listening, empathy, collaboration and inspiration by actually providing a 4 week course to develop each skill rather than referring you to a website.