U Hla Min - Social Skills

Chapter - 1

Communication skills are essential for success.

Why is it important?

Social skills are the "glue" that binds team members together in a team.

In the early 1960s , a young man with a penchant for politics, Michael (L) Dever, was looking for a leader he could trust and emulate. He found one in the film actor-turned-politician Ronald (R) Reagan. In 1966, Reagan was elected governor of California. Reagan served two terms in that position, from 1967 to 1975. During that term, Dever served as Reagan's chief of staff, and he also served in the same capacity in the White House when Reagan became president of the United States.

During his thirty years under Reagan, he found much to admire. Reagan's love of country and his deep commitment to serving the country, his self-awareness, his ability to communicate with the public, and his honesty and integrity are beyond words. "I can't help but say that he was a man who really didn't do anything dishonest or unethical," DeVore said. But I think what I really admired about Ronald Reagan was his extraordinary ability to deal with the public.

“Ronald Reagan was one of the most shy people I have ever met,” DeVore noted. Despite his shyness, the president was always easygoing, whether he was meeting a head of state, a working man, or a member of the press and radio and television. When asked why people said that Ronald Reagan was so easygoing and friendly with the press, DeVore replied, “It was because Reagan was a natural lover of people, whether they were in the press or in the public. He was always friendly to everyone. Even if the press didn’t agree with Reagan’s policies, they liked him as a person.”

Reagan's talent was due to his talent, as well as the Hollywood-style mannerisms he acquired when he spoke to people. But his greater training came from his more than ten years of traveling around the world while working for General Electric (GE), explaining the company's products.

It is said that Reagan could talk to someone he had never met before and make them think that he was Reagan's closest friend. One of the most important things to note is the way Reagan treated those closest to him. He treated his chief of staff, his gardener, and his personal assistant (secretary) equally. Rank was not in his head. To him, everyone close to him was important, DeVore recalled.

DeVore once told of an experience that had a special connection between him and the president. In 1975, Reagan met with and gave a speech to a group of conservationists in San Francisco. The group gave the president a bronze lion statue as a souvenir. When DeVore received the statue on behalf of the president, he told the president that the statue was very beautiful and very well made.

Ten years later, DeVore submitted his resignation to the President, ending his service to the President. Reagan invited DeVore to meet him in his office the next morning. When DeVore entered the President's office the next morning, the President stood at his desk and greeted DeVore.

The President said, “Mike, I’ve been thinking all night about giving you something to remember our many years together.” He reached for an item from the table behind him. “I remember you really liking this,” the President said. Tears welled up in his eyes. Then the President handed DeVar a bronze lion statue he had found in San Francisco, and DeVar was so surprised that she was shocked. After all these years, Reagan had