This paper emphasizes the need for a change in the conceptualization of soft skills training as it is practiced today in finishing schools and subsequently proposes an alternative approach rooted in a deeper personal sense of the trainer. In this view, conventional recruitment components like Group Discussions (GDs) and interviews need to be redefined. They should be seen not merely as the process of elimination or acceptance of one's competence, but have a deeper meaning wherein a candidate displays his true inner potential. Aligning with this the author suggests a paradigm shift in the role of soft skill trainers both in the domains of personal comprehension and classroom instruction.

The word `Soft Skills' has been hovering round as a buzzword among business and academic community for quite sometime. Though not with substantiating results, the term created a hype particularly in the modern corporate training spectrum. There is an increasing realization that to be successful in academics, to be competitive at workplace and to lead a harmonious social life, soft skills component imbibed during the student days plays a vital role. Traditional spoken English coaching centers and personality development centers have revamped themselves as Language Labs and paved the way for advocating the so called "Soft Skills Training" with a view to impart only the basic skills to gain entry to the selection process of different employers. Group Discussions (GDs) and interviews by virtue of their traditional popularity and utility as selection tools occupy a major chunk of the soft skill training and the customers of such programs are predominantly fresh graduates and professional graduates who want to polish their communication skills. This is especially true with modern independent finishing schools and finishing schools associated with professional colleges. So generally in the perception of students, soft skills as it is practiced now in majority of the coaching centers and colleges has shrunk to mere peripheral tips for navigating and managing the selection process. Consequently, the meaning of GD and interviews has also been diluted a lot just to mean wearing a mask akin to Halloween masks to impress others but without any substance behind them.

Soft Skills Journal, Group Discussions, GDs, Human Resource Management, HRM, Psychometric Tests, Transaction Analysis Modules, HR Challenges, Soft Skills Training, Self Management, Instructional Strategies.