5 SOFT SKILLS your team needs (at work and in our escape rooms)

More and more often we're hearing about these soft skills, but what are they and why are they so important?

Soft skills are particular non-technical abilities that we "naturally" have but can also be learned and improved. They help us interact effectively and harmoniously with other people.

Here we have 5 examples of soft skills that always come up in our escape rooms, showing how important it is to enhance these abilities when you work in a team of different people with different personalities.

As hosts and facilitators, we often note that the best teams share their thoughts and ideas with the group instead of staying silent and trying to solve the enigmas by themselves.

Of course this is easier when the team members already know each other and have a high level of familiarity, but this is the number one skill that you need not just at work, but in life!

Listening is still part of the communication skills but while it's obviously important to listen to your teammates' ideas, remember to pay attention when your hosts are speaking: they give you hints, instructions on how to solve the enigmas, interesting historical facts and sometimes incredibly bad jokes!

Some enigmas will split the team. Half of the people would like to go for a certain solution, while the other half think they have a better idea. It's up to your team to work together and find the best way to go on. Try to be as democratic as possible: maybe you could decide by raising hands, flip a coin, or maybe one of you could be held responsible for the final answer and get the penalty if they're wrong! Don't worry, we won't ask you to do push-ups!

As we grow up, we tend to trust our logic instead of our imagination.

In our escape rooms we always put at least one enigma that can be solved using lateral thinking: this is usually where teams of adults get stuck the longest while kids or young students do their best.

Don't be afraid to let your mind wander in different ways!

You don't always have to be the leader and you don't always have to be the follower!

When you work or play in a team it's important to know when to use your best skills to carry the team and when to let others do the job.

If you feel the need to always be the leader you probably think the others are not good enough (and we know that's not right!), but if you always follow you won't get your chance to shine and prove your greatness (and we know you're great!)

These are only 5 examples of soft skills that you could test and improve during our experiences.

Our hosts and facilitators know how to moderate the session and bring out the best in your team.

You might be surprised at how amazing your team members can be in these type of situations!