Your interpersonal skills, or people skills, help you do your job more effectively and efficiently. Some interpersonal skills are part of your personality. For example, you may be naturally good at listening to others or resolving conflict. Other interpersonal skills you can develop over time, such as building a strong work ethic or refining your communication skills.

Interpersonal skills are so important in the workplace, according to Flori Needle, a writer at HubSpot, because they allow you to interact with others. You wouldn’t get much accomplished if you didn’t know how to engage with colleagues and clients.

Needle asserts that some of the most important interpersonal skills today include empathy, leadership and collaboration. By showing empathy, you can better build rapport with others. Leadership skills help you rise to various occasions, even if you don’t lead a team of people. And collaboration skills are useful in any workplace. You have to be able to see different sides and get along with others.

Is there an interpersonal skill you want to work on? In this issue of Promotional Consultant Today, we share Needle’s tips for improving your interpersonal skills.

Identify how you want to improve. Needle says this is an important step when you want to develop your interpersonal skills. You may have an idea of where you’re falling short. However, instead of guessing on what you need to improve, try asking your boss or colleagues. They work with you often and can provide helpful feedback. Needle says if you work in customer-facing roles, you could also consider sending customer feedback surveys or monitoring NPS scores.

Tap into various resources. With a few minutes of research, you can find a variety of books, podcasts and online courses that can teach you what you want to know. Depending on how much time you have, you can quickly brush up on your interpersonal skills or invest in a course that can teach you something totally new.

Learn from feedback. If your boss or co-workers share their thoughts on how you could improve, make sure to honestly contemplate their suggestions and form a plan on how you can take action. If a colleague says they feel like you don’t listen to them, Needle recommends striving to practice active listening.

Practice your skills. To develop your interpersonal skills, give yourself plenty of opportunities to work on them. If you want to strengthen your leadership skills, ask to take the lead on projects. If you want to improve your spoken communication skills, speak up more often during your team meetings. Needle says you can then ask for feedback from your peers to gauge how you are doing.

Your interpersonal skills can help set you apart, boost your social interactions and give you an advantage in the workplace. Think about the skills you want to learn or finesse. Then, seek feedback from those who work closest with you. Leverage the resources available to you and practice your skills. Remember that learning and growing is an ongoing endeavor—embrace it.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers

Source: Flori Needle is a junior staff writer at HubSpot.