In this groundbreaking book, the author advocates that many relational collapses are the result of ineptitude rather than ill will. That is, they are the result of a lack of skills rather than a lack of goodwill. As this book puts it, many of societys relational problems may be competency related. This might be good news since competencies can be learned. The purpose of this book is to take a careful look at how such competencies can be developed. Beginning with the view that if such competencies can be learned, they must first be defined and have standards set for them, it asks the question, Can competency standards be designed for soft skills? It is argued that the answer is yes. Locating itself in the workplace context (where adults often spend most of their lives), but relevant to life in general, this book shows how theoretically sound competency standards can be developed for selected soft skills. This is done by adapting a methodology used to specify workplace competency standards. The book also notes a number of practical and ideological issues that must be considered at implementation. This book shows how standards for three such skills have been developed and provided with a preliminary workplace validation. The skills selected are related to interpersonal skills and are derived from the framework of emotional intelligence competencies popularised by Goleman. This is an important book for those in business studies.