PIETER TWINE: Soft skills are key to our survival

SA is today characterised by so much need. We need jobs, we need educators, we need infrastructure and we need opportunity. So much of this need is based on skills.

We need engineers to help maintain and build infrastructure to keep the lights on, water flowing and road and rail operating. We need more teachers to teach more pupils — particularly in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics space — so that we can produce more of the kind of skilled people we need to build our country and make the most of our resources.

We need more scientists, mathematicians and innovators to grow our economy and more experts to improve systems and processes to remove bottlenecks in service delivery. 

On the face of it, the beneficiaries who receive financial support from card swipes by MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet supporters teach these kinds of hard skills. We support programmes that upskill teachers, give children access to books, feed families, build classrooms, provide drinking water, teach people how to run small businesses, provide support for those with mental health challenges, and thousands more interventions. In reality, the hard skills and soft skills go hand in hand and are part of every process, because the latter exponentially amplifies the effectiveness of the former. 

A mathematician who cannot communicate the solution they have identified will not see that solution succeed. An engineer without compassion cannot properly understand the challenges people face, and so cannot design solutions to their problems. A teacher who does not listen cannot meet the needs of a child struggling at school because of difficulties at home.

When our beneficiaries upskill teachers they improve their ability to communicate, understand and identify and solve problems. When a programme teaches a child to read and gives them access to a library, it opens them up to a world of learning with stories that teach them the value of teamwork, kindness, hope and empathy, and open their eyes to the world that exists beyond the boundaries of their village, town or city.

The programmes also inspire a culture of education and sharing — people who have been given an opportunity to lift themselves out of a situation are motivated to want to help extend the same opportunity to others. It’s ubuntu in action, and we are proud to play a small role in supporting organisations that spread not only material resources and knowledge but also inspire those whose lives they touch every day to be more than they ever imagined they could be. 

We are continually told South Africans are resilient, and it is true that we are often more resilient than any country should be reasonably expected to be. But that is a skill we have had to learn to cope with adversity in both our history and our daily lives. Resilience isn’t a “hardening”, it is not turning a blind eye to the effects of a problem on others as we try to solve it for ourselves. It also doesn’t mean acceptance — we are inspired to question, identify and solve challenges because we need solutions. Passivity isn’t a skill. 

Teaching someone how to turn their idea into a small business also isn’t about rands and cents — it’s researching a market, figuring out how to source the materials and information they need, negotiating with suppliers, marketing what they do and delivering it to customers in a way that sustains their business and provides a revenue stream for them and their family.

Providing safe spaces for people with mental health challenges gives them room to explore their own minds under the guidance of professionals, work through the difficulties if they can and emerge on the other side with coping mechanisms they can use whenever they face difficulties — and they can identify challenges in others and help them get the help they need. They can also go on to function in self-sustaining ways in society and contribute economically and in myriad other ways. 

Building support networks is essential in SA when need forces communities to turn inward to sustain themselves. That’s a hard skill to teach — but an essential one to learn. It requires communicating, networking, leading, problem-solving, co-operating and conflict resolution. It breeds innovation and inspires empathy. 

These soft skills are self-perpetuating — it’s easier to teach someone kindness than it is to teach them accounting, and it’s easier to grasp perseverance when you see it in action. They don’t require funding, they require caring, which costs someone nothing more than the will and time it will take to be an example to others.

In a country where true leadership is rare, those who share their skills, knowledge and time for the betterment of others are the bedrock of society. 

• Twine is GM of MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet.