After 15 years in tech, I've hired over 200 engineers, and the ones who fail aren't the ones lacking technical chops—it's the ones who can't communicate or work in a team. Soft skills like active listening and conflict resolution often decide project success more than coding speed. Yet we still prioritize hard skills in interviews and education, treating soft skills as optional extras. Shouldn't we weigh soft skills as heavily as technical ability when hiring and promoting?