Soft skills are essential within the world of work. Being able to communicate effectivly, manage your time, working within a team etc… are skills every employer expects.

The role of creative professional is to be a problem solver. Finding solutions to the problem, outlined in the brief, is an essential. Once and idea can been developed it needs to be communicated in a clear and concise manner.

Part of this process is correctly interpreting the brief which the client has given you. Often there is only one opportunity to gain all the required information for the project. Gathering the correct information during this session will make for a better understanding of the problem and inevitably a more suitable solution.

This normally happens in the form of a pitch or presentation. Presenting in a well formed and structured manner, whilst sticking to a set time limit, will ensure that the client gains all the relevant information about your design.

This goes hand-in-hand with time management. Making the most of your time will help ensure that deadlines are met and, where possible, with time to spare for any last minute changes / amendments.

Currently I feel I have all of these skills but not at a level required for full time employment. Over the remaining duration of the course I need to work on these skills in order to be properly prepared for the workplace.

In particular my communication and presentation skills need to be improved. Conveying my ideas in a way that can be understood by someone with little or no technical knowledge is essential.

Although my time management skills have improved a great deal during the course I need to continue to improve them. Doing this will allow me to get more work done in a shorter amount of time which will give me more time to carry out research.