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Social emotional intelligence is a key factor in getting a job, according to the 2024 LinkedIn Global Talent Trends survey. Nearly 70% of US executives said they will prioritize hiring candidates with so-called “soft skills.”

What exactly are these vital skills? The job site Indeed describes them as skills that allow individuals to relate to others, like confidence, conflict resolution, empathy, verbal communication, emotional self-regulation, and perseverance.

Those are so valuable – and so many people need help to build them – that the social emotional learning market size is projected to grow to more than $5B by 2029. That’s a lot of coaching and consulting focused on helping us all improve!

If this capability is so important for hiring, how and where does it fit into job readiness for neurodiverse people?

An Integrated Approach to Social Emotional Intelligence

At Franklin Capstone, building social emotional skills is woven into every program, from academics to vocational rehabilitation. Capstone, part of Franklin Center, is designed to help young adults ages 18-28 with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and other neurodiversities live their most independent, productive, and self-actualized lives.

A key part of that future independence is the ability to interact safely and productively with other people. In other words, building and improving social emotional skills. 

Joey Benning, a Franklin Capstone Community Engagement Coach, works with participants to help them develop and practice those skills in a variety of settings, from the classroom to the workplace.

“Soft skills can be interpreted as ‘nice to have’ skills instead of fundamental skills,” said Benning. “They include the ability to process your emotions, maintain healthy relationships, and interact with individuals in multiple settings. They’re short words that encompass a whole range of skills we need on a daily basis.”

Whether you’re neurodiverse or neurotypical, you use those kinds of skills on a regular basis to interact with co-workers or buy a new phone or even go out to lunch with a friend. They’re actually far from “soft” – they’re fundamental to successful human interaction.

“Social-emotional skills are fluid,” said Jordan Morrison, a social worker at Franklin Capstone. “Think of verbal and nonverbal communication and how that changes throughout the course of a day. How you interact with your family, your roommates, your co-workers, your boss – those often require a different approach and can also be situational, too. It’s always nuanced, which is why we provide such a variety of contexts for Capstone participants, from volunteering to bowling to touring a manufacturing facility. You can’t be prepared for independence if you’re only comfortable in one kind of setting or familiar with one kind of situation.”

The Path to Independence: Knowing Yourself and Upholding Dignity for All

Even though social emotional skills help you relate better with others, the way to improve is through knowing yourself. Again, this is true for neurotypical as well as neurodiverse people. Think of what can throw you off balance. A negative email from your boss? A change in schedule? A new assignment you don’t really want to do? 

When confronted with those “triggers,” we need to know how to get ourselves back into a frame of mind where we can function appropriately. It could be taking a walk, working on something else for a while, or listening to music. Each person needs to identify their own triggers as well as how to resolve them.

It can be harder for those who are neurodiverse to remain calm or get back to being calm after something happens. Referred to as dysregulation, meaning difficulty controlling or regulating emotional responses to external situations, it’s one of the core skills participants work on. 

For example, on one of the Capstone community outings, the group visited a fitness center. Some loud construction was going on right next door.  One of the participants, who is sensory sensitive, had the confidence to self-advocate by asking the construction crew how much longer the work would be going on. Instead of immediately leaving or getting upset, they were able to identify a trigger and plan a way around it.

“We prepare participants for job readiness by helping them learn how to be comfortable with themselves and how to safely interact with others,” said Benning. “The focus isn’t always on how to interact with other people, it starts with being curious, being yourself. From critical thinking to active listening to social cues to agency, we focus on how to be a good citizen and a good employee, all while being true to yourself. It can be draining/challenging to mask consistently, while at the same time there is an importance to being situationally aware.”

Setting Goals and Breaking Them Down

While the role of Community Engagement Coach is focused on social emotional skills and community interactions, the role of social worker takes those skills and interactions and connects them to jobs and other goals.

“We meet with participants one on one to set goals,” said Morrison, “and then we break the goals down into achievable steps and show them how the skills they’re working on can relate to their goals. We give them a space to reflect on what they want to get out of the program and connect their classes to their goals as well as their social opportunities. We help them see the connections and the building blocks, using person-centered planning and mindsets.” 

The holistic approach at Capstone integrates the community engagement coaching with the one-on-one coaching from social workers like Morrison to help participants apply for jobs, as well as to advance in jobs they already have (you can read an example here).

While the team at Capstone is preparing participants for independence, what can employers do to help?

“The more open-minded we can be about how different approaches can do a job, the better,” said Morrison. “Closed-mindedness closes a lot of doors for people. Everybody needs help in different ways. If someone is neurodiverse it might mean they need something done a little differently. It doesn’t mean they can’t do the job.”

Franklin Capstone offers a range of programs to prepare neurodiverse 18-28 year-olds for successful independence. Now in its fifth year, it is a fully accredited vocational rehabilitation provider as well as an academic resource. 

CTA link: Schedule a conversation  We’d be happy to talk about how Capstone can help you or your young adult build skills for successful independence.