Among the coronavirus’s many effects is a boom (突然风靡的时期) in remote workers, who try to get accustomed to a work-from-home lifestyle. Matt Mullenweg, CEO of a software company, said that “it might offer an opportunity for many companies to finally build a culture that allows long-overdue work flexibility.” 【小题1】

Research shows that remote workers gain in productivity. A study led by the Stanford professor Nicholas Bloom examined remote workers at a Chinese travel agency. 【小题2】 But research also shows that they often miss in creativity thinking. Steve Jobs believed that Apple employees’ best work came from accidentally bumping into other people. 【小题3】 Mr. Jobs said, “You run into someone, you ask what they’re doing, you say ‘Wow,’ and soon you’re cooking up all sorts of ideas.”

【小题4】 That’s a good thing if you’re a boss looking to squeeze extra efficiency out of your employees, but less ideal if you’re someone trying to achieve some work-life balance. Mr. Bock, who was previously Google’s top human resources officer, said that for most people, balancing office work with remote work is good. 【小题5】 It’s enough to participate in office culture, with some time reserved for deep, focused work.

All across America, students are anxiously finishing their “What I Want To Be …” college application essays, advised to focus on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) by experts and parents who insist that’s the only way to become workforce ready. But two recent studies of workplace success contradict the traditional wisdom about “hard skills”.

Google originally set its hiring systems to sort for computer science students with top grades from top science universities. In 2013, Google decided to test its hiring theory by quickly dealing with large amounts hiring, firing, and promotion data collected since the company’s establishment.

Project Oxygen shocked everyone by concluding that, among the eight most important qualities of Google’s top employees, STEM capability comes in dead last. The seven top characteristics of success at Google are all soft skills: being a good coach; communicating and listening well; possessing comprehension into others; being supportive of one’s colleagues; being a good critical thinker and problem solver; and being able to make connections across complex ideas.

Those characteristics sound more like what one gains as an English or theater major than as a programmer. Could it be that top Google employees were succeeding despite their technical training, not because of it? After bringing in more experts to dive even deeper into the data, the company enlarged its previous hiring practices to include humanities majors, artists, and even the MBAs (Master of Business Adminstration).

Project Aristotle, a study released by Google this past spring, further supports the importance of soft skills even in high-tech environments. Project Aristotle analyzes data on inventive and productive teams. Google takes pride in its A-teams, assembled with top scientists, each with the most specialized knowledge and able to throw down one creative idea after another. Its data analysis revealed, however, that the company’s most important and productive new ideas come from B-teams comprised of employees who don’t always have to be the smartest people in the room.

Project Aristotle shows that the best teams at Google exhibit a range of soft skills: equality, generosity, curiosity toward the ideas of your teammates, understanding, and emotional intelligence. And topping the list: emotional safety. To succeed, each and every team member must feel confident speaking up and making mistakes. They must know they are being heard.

STEM skills are vital to the world we live in today, but technology alone, as Steve Jobs famously insisted, is not enough. We desperately need those who are educated to the human, cultural, and social as well as the computational.

Journalism (新闻业) is a fast-paced industry, requiring reporters to get the facts about newsworthy events and to write about them before a deadline (截止日期). It takes some skills to do this. At the same time, news reporters must follow strict requirements and have a deep understanding of news writing.

Know what you’re going to write about. Newsworthy events can happen anytime and anywhere. So reporters need to develop a good nose for news.

Get all the facts and look at the details. Be sure to look at a story from different angle (角度). Even if you are covering a popular story or topic that others are writing about, look for an angle that will make this one yours.

Check facts to avoid mistakes. Sources may also make mistakes and some may even deceive you. It’s wise to get in touch with other sources. In a shooting incident, for example, getting the facts from the police and from both the criminal (罪犯) and victim isn’t enough. You should also interview other witnesses who may give more information about the incident. Interviewing people and getting a firsthand source on your topic can be valuable.

Start writing the news. When it comes to the body of the article, the main information should be given in the leading statement. It is often a short one, including the basics of what happened, where and when it took place, who was involved and why it’s newsworthy. These details are the main point that informs the reader. Other information about the story follows. This form allows editors to cut off the last paragraphs if there’re space limits.

Check your article for mistakes. If time permits, leave the article for a moment and then read through it again with a fresh eye. Newspaper publications usually have someone check for mistakes but keep in mind that you’re the first line of defense. Grammar mistakes are embarrassing (令人尴尬的), and some mistakes may result in a lawsuit(诉讼).