If you want to be successful then you must have great people skills. Great people skills are rooted in being able to effectively communicate with all people; not just communicating with the ones who you think can get you somewhere. Unfortunately, this is how some people think. They think that knowing and communicating with the right people can put them where they want to be. However, this kind of thinking makes you a fake and a user of people. There is nothing genuine in this kind of thinking, and eventually you could possibly be found out. That could well be the end of your success! It’s much better to build a strong foundation of effective people skills as that can allow you to become successful in whichever area you choose, and even to change direction if you choose. Great people skills are transferable!

Success is based, first and foremost, on being honest with yourself. It is virtually impossible to achieve success if you are not honest with yourself. Ask any successful person. You must be genuine, and it begins with you. Being genuine is about knowing who you are and knowing your verbal and non-verbal behaviors. Once you achieve this knowledge, then you will be have the confidence to be genuine with everyone you come into contact with.

Being genuine with yourself demands that you understand yourself. And here’s the really great thing: once you understand yourself you can more easily understand others, and understanding others is a key component to any success. People’s personalities differ between each and every individual. But there are similarities too! It is the discovery of those similarities that will lead you into a more complete understanding of any one particular person. Similarities are the door to the specifics, and therefore, to understanding each individual more intimately. By understanding yourself you understand people and this will, without a doubt, bring you success.

Another part of having great people skills is the ability to express your thoughts, along with your feelings, clearly. Many people have difficulty in expressing themselves. This difficulty sometimes has to do with fears, specifically the fear of being judged differently. This fact, alone, hits directly at self-confidence.

The self-confident person is secure with themselves and, therefore, is able to express themselves effectively without fear of what other people might think. Moreover, when you express yourself effectively people will be inclined to express themselves more effectively with you. This exchange builds confident relationships with family, friends, co-workers and acquaintances. These are the soil in which to grow your success.

Let’s talk more about self-confidence as it relates to people skills and success. Successful people, without any doubt, are self-confident. Self-confidence is a behavior and is demonstrated, not only verbally, but non-verbally as well. Successful people interact confidently, their body language expresses confidence, and their words are of confidence. They know themselves and are secure with themselves.

Success, related to people skills, also requires feedback. Successful people know something about feedback. First, they know that they don’t know everything, as it is impossible for any one human being to know everything. The successful person asks for feedback in conversations, whenever appropriate. Secondly, people will always give feedback, in their body language if not in their words. If you want to be successful, you should try to mold yourself based upon the feedback you get from these verbal and non-verbal skills.

Related to feedback is the knowledge that no man is an island. The successful person knows that they can’t exist alone and, therefore, can’t achieve success without help. They know that life is a collaborative effort, needing everyone one of us to make it all happen. Successful person clearly understands this fact and bring this knowledge into every one of their relations, with all people.

Author's Bio: 

Peter Murphy is a peak performance expert. He recently produced a very popular free report: 10 Simple Steps to Developing Communication Confidence. This report reveals the secret strategies all high achievers use to communicate with charm and impact. Apply now because it is available for a limited time only at: http://www.howtotalkwithconfidence.com/blog