Soft skills take time to master, but once we hone them, we become unstoppable.  I asked Ask AI for top soft skills that we can learn to earn a quarter million a year.  Ask AI provided an extensive list, so I will break it into a few I do very well and two I bomb at.  That way, I can give some insights where I’m strongest and help us learn together where I’m weakest.  And, incidentally, I searched Bing’s AI for soft skills courses at AU, and came up with a dream program.  With that said, here are some soft skills that can help us earn a quarter million a year:

Lifelong, continuous learning: I’ve adopted the attitude that education should be constant—even when working full-time.  Last week, I finished a course on behavioral change management, and in two weeks, I start another course on digital marketing.  But I’m going stir-crazy in the meantime, as not having a class to attend after work feels like having nothing to do.  That’s the mindset we enter when we continuously pursue lifelong learning.  In other words, we feel empty when not tackling learning opportunities alongside our other responsibilities.  And that love of learning will drive us closer to a quarter million annual salary.

Resilience: The easiest way to adopt resilience is through a positive mindset.  And a positive mindset requires us to be loving toward everyone.  And it requires taking full responsibility for anything that goes wrong, not in a self-blame way, but in a growth mindset mode.  Additionally, we should do at least four hours of exercise each week and eat very healthily to contribute to resilience.  Spirituality is also an effective means of building resilience, especially regarding stress management.  That’s because the more wisdom we have, the calmer we face life’s obstacles, perceiving those obstacles as opportunities and less like burdens.

Problem-Solving: I used to analyze complex situations by asking loved ones what to do.  And then I followed their advice.  But I have since learned problem-solving models from ViAGO, although other models exist, such as competitive analysis and other business-centric models.  I like the ViAGO models because they can easily be applied to analyzing personal and professional problems.  The company teaches us problem-solving skills to achieve our dreams and goals.  And the models always seem to lead to solutions for me.

Those were some soft skills I’m competent at and could contribute some insight for you.  Now for the soft skills I bomb at:

Conflict Resolution: I cave under conflict.  I dislike conflict so much that I will happily acquiesce at its first sign.  There are various conflict styles.  Some people collaborate, others compete, some compromise, and others avoid.  I have this belief that conflict resolution courses are too harsh and egocentric, so I avoid them altogether.  But I want a conflict-resolution style based on self-sacrifice for the welfare of others.  Or better still, I’d like to find purely win-win scenarios that offer many options for conflict resolution.

Collaboration: I like to work independently, without a team, while collaborating with an employer or supervisor.  Working strictly alone is too lonely and demotivating, while working with a group can be stressful.  However, I do love being in a collaborative online classroom environment, such as one through Zoom.  I’m not fond of in-person classroom environments, which some of us as AU students might identify with.  However, there are principles and strategies for collaboration, so seeking resources that teach collaborative skills will be of value.  Ask AI lists ways to collaborate, including setting clear goals and roles, fostering open communication and trust, setting clear expectations, and avoiding a dominant speaker.  That sounds easy to achieve in theory.  But if we need to be more practical with collaboration, we may require training.

Taking online surveys and tests is a good starting point for figuring out where we stand with these soft skills.  But AU students have an even more exciting option that I aim to try next year.  It’s the PowerED™ Professional Development Courses.  Some of the leadership Professional Development courses even incorporate AI for practice scenarios.  And four leadership courses come bundled into a certificate.  And there are two separate leadership certificates, both which look much better than the ones offered at my local university.  And what better way to streamline into a quarter million-dollar salary than to have leadership skills?  Bon voyage, my wealth-seeking friends!  Your quarter million salary is approaching full sail!