When you’re training for a new profession, there’s often a lot of emphasis on technical skills. No one wants a computer programmer who doesn’t know how to code, an accountant won’t get very far if they can’t help you file taxes, and a holistic nutritionist needs to understand the impacts of food on health. And while these are undoubtedly important, here at the Edison Institute of Nutrition we also understand developing good soft skills will be critical to your success as you pursue a career as a holistic nutritionistt. Keep reading to learn more about why soft skills are important, and the ones we feel are most important for anyone wanting a career in holistic nutrition.
What Are Soft Skills?
Soft skills are sometimes referred to as “personality skills”. They impact the way you work, and how you interact with peers and clients alike. Some examples include communication and listening skills, time management, and problem-solving skills. You might also find them referred to as “transferrable skills” since they’re easier to transfer from career to career. As an example: if you worked as a bank teller in your previous career, your people skills will transfer quite nicely to your new career as a holistic nutritionist. Your ability to navigate the computer systems of your bank? Not so much. Many skills are a mix of hard and soft as well. If you take our business of wellness consulting for example, you’ll learn how to run your holistic nutrition practice as a business. You will gain valuable insight on running a business in general as well, which would easily be transferrable to another career.
Important Soft Skills For Holistic Nutrition
When it comes to soft skills, there are probably some areas where you’re already strong, and others which you may need to work on. Let’s have a look at why these are important for holistic nutritionists.
1. Before All, Empathy
In any healthcare related role, empathy is incredibly important. You will potentially see clients going through a large range of experiences and situations. Some will be facing stress or anxiety about whatever health issues they’re seeing you about. This is especially true if you take our Certified Holistic Cancer Practitioner course – after all, few health concerns can produce as much anxiety as cancer. Showing empathy can go a long way to develop trusting relationships with your clients, which will reflect in how well you’re able to help them. Empathy can actually be quite disarming as well, especially in the case of dealing with difficult clients.
2. Clear Communication Skills
We hear a lot about how communication skills are important, but for those in health care, this is especially the case. Your ability to clearly communicate with your clients will affect their ability to understand their condition and subsequently follow through with your recommendations.
3. Detail Oriented Outlook
In any profession, paying careful attention to detail is important. As a holistic nutritionist, listening carefully to the details of what your clients are going through will be important in working with them to help develop plans which will adequately address their concerns.
4. Time Management Skills
Working as a holistic nutritionist there are a lot of tasks you’ll need to juggle. For instance, you may only have a certain amount of time when you see a client for an appointment, and within the allotted time you’ll need to ensure you are getting all of the information you need in order to make adequate recommendations. When you’re not seeing clients you may have any number of things competing for your time, including: • Preparing client protocols • Follow up calls • Filing paperwork • Billing • Meetings with co-workers or allied practitioners • Setting up appointments with new clients • Reading the latest research to keep up with news and studies • Attending continuing education programs Mastering time management will go a long way to limit stress and ensure each task gets the time needed to do it properly.
5. A Strong Work Ethic
Healthcare can be a very taxing field. Your clients trust you to help them improve their health and lives, and it can often be unpredictable. Work ethic includes facets such as professionalism, positive attitude, behaviour, and punctuality. Valuing these things shows those around you that you take your work seriously.
6. Realizing You Don’t Know Everything
Sometimes it can be hard to admit you don’t know the answer to a question. However, admitting when you are uncertain, don’t know something, or have made a mistake is important. Admitting when you don’t know something and taking the time to look up the answer will not only help you learn; it will allow you to offer even better care moving forward.
7. Self Confidence
While admitting when there is something you don’t know is important, so is having confidence in the skills you do possess. Having confidence when working with clients will help them to in turn feel confidence about the treatments you offer and may even affect outcomes. It’s easy to feel a lack of confidence in one’s own abilities sometimes, but it’s important to fight against that imposter syndrome and recognize your own worth.
8. Flexibility
It’s rare for two days to look the same when working in any sort of healthcare setting. One day might go just as planned, whereas the next brings cancelled appointments, no-shows, and demanding clients who want to monopolize your time, even though you are trying to stick to the time allotted for the appointment. Being able to be flexible and learning to roll with the punches can help save yourself from stress and keep moving forward.
9. Ability To Manage Stress
People who work in health care have been shown to be at higher risk of burnout than other professions. Learning how to handle pressure, and developing techniques for managing your stress is important, because if you can’t take care of your own health then it can be hard to help others manage their own health issues. Some important factors for stress management include getting enough sleep, having adequate social support, eating well, and exercising.
10. A Positive Mindset
Working in healthcare you often see illness and disease. As a holistic nutritionist, people may come to you seeking dietary ways to deal with chronic conditions. It can be easy to get worn down, especially if you’re seeing cases of people who will never fully recover from their diseases. Staying positive, and knowing you’re doing your best to help them is important, otherwise things may start to seem helpless.
Contact Edison Institute Of Nutrition Today
Are you considering a career as a holistic nutritionist? Maybe you read this list of soft skills and recognize them in yourself and think you might be a good fit for this profession. If so, contact us at the Edison Institute of Nutrition to learn more about our programs today.
