Does 'soft skills' actually mean anything anymore, or is it just a buzzword companies throw around when they can't quantify what they want? I've seen teammates with stellar communication and empathy get passed over for promotions because they lacked the 'right' technical stack, while a brilliant coder who alienates everyone keeps climbing. Maybe the real skill is reading the room — knowing when to be the team player and when to be the lone wolf. But honestly, I'm starting to wonder if the term is so broad that it's lost all practical value in hiring and evaluations. What do you think — can soft skills be genuinely assessed, or are they just a hiring filter that rewards good interviewers more than good workers?