The development of a developer’s career largely depends on working in a team, building relationships with colleagues, and quickly and correctly understanding customers. It is necessary not only to develop a product but also to be able to present it and defend your decisions. In my opinion, one of the most important soft skills is stress resistance – this is a skill that will help keep an IT specialist many nerves. There is much stress in the work of a developer: the code does not work for no apparent reason, colleagues do not understand what you want from them, and customers demand the impossible (Zuo et al., 2018). It is essential to remain calm in any situation. A good developer knows how to give feedback and not get personal – even if you have to repeat the same comments several times a day. A separate reserve of patience is required when it is necessary to explain technical subtleties to colleagues or clients who know nothing about programming. In this case, it is better to immediately spend a few hours explaining everything in detail to save time on repetition. Resilience contributes to better communication, negotiation, and teamwork, also soft critical skills. It is possible to achieve it, including with the help of the techniques of another essential soft skill – time management.
Soft skills can improve my profession beyond my immediate professional activity scope. Firstly, any job is preceded by an interview, where many conclusions are already made about the applicant’s ability to communicate. Secondly, the atmosphere in the team directly affects job satisfaction, regardless of operational success and wages. Comfortable working conditions and a healthy environment in the team’s communication are more important for health than the presence of high wages at the same time as burnout.
Teamwork in the development of IT solutions is essential since there are practically no specialists in every area of potential development. While part of the team is busy with the backend the other with the frontend, there must be consistent interaction between these parts so that the project works clearly for both the team and the client. In some instances, compromises are necessary, time is needed, and only if the entire team members have soft skills will the project constantly move forward at a comfortable pace for everyone.
Reference
Zuo, J., Zhao, X., Nguyen, Q. B. M., Ma, T., & Gao, S. (2018). Soft skills of construction project management professionals and project success factors: A structural equation model. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 25(3), 425-442. Web.