I know that my own career success owes more to the development of non-technical skills than it does to my knowledge and application of tax law.

How do we gain our technical skills? No one is born a great auditor, lawyer, tax adviser or whatever. We learn by working alongside experienced colleagues, by studying to pass relevant exams and by our experiences in practice.

Why then should anyone imagine that the other key skills of a profitable professional can just be left to ‘common sense’?

Some people assume that all of the important non-technical skills can be developed merely by working alongside experienced colleagues and by our experiences in practice. No formal training is necessary. Older partners didn’t have such training. Anyone who needs training or support in ‘soft’ skills is not worthy of becoming a full equity partner.

It won’t surprise regular readers of this blog that I do not agree with these views or with another similarly flawed attitude one encounters all too often: Practice makes perfect. No it doesn’t. ‘Practice’ makes ‘permanent’. If you develop bad driving habits and practice driving, you won’t become a better driver. You will merely reinforce your bad driving habits.

I have long been a believer in the importance of developing key personal skills. My research helped me to identify and categorise 12 key non-technical skills that ambitious professionals need to some degree or another if they are to be profitable partners and contribute to their firm’s success. You will find a summary of these 12 key skills on the Ambitious Professionals page of this blog.