If you’re on the job market, you’ve probably heard about the importance of “soft-skills.” In today’s day and age, they can be the difference between you landing the job or getting yet another turn down. So hone in on these five soft skills to impress next time you put yourself out there.
1. Work Ethic
This should be a no-brainer, but companies want to hire employees who will work hard – period. To highlight this on your resume, emphasize major projects and how you were involved from beginning to end. Include any “outside the job description” tasks you tackled. Also, mention any volunteer opportunities or personal development you’ve done outside the office. Managers love someone who can take initiative!
2. Dependability
If a manager has been burned by an employee once, they’ve been burned a thousand times. Companies look for people who will stick around for awhile and be someone they can rely on. To demonstrate your dependability during an interview, mention times where you went above and beyond what was asked of you.
3. Positivity
Positivity is contagious and employers want to create a team full of people who constantly build each other up. The best opportunities to highlight your positivity are when an interviewer asks you to share a time you were challenged, asks why you’re leaving your current position, or how your coworkers would describe you. Always keep your tone positive, and even if your current position is making you miserable, don’t give in and complain!
4. Self-Motivation
Are you the type of person to jump right into a project and get your hands dirty? Managers are always looking for employees who take initiative and don’t need to be micro-managed. You can bring this up during your interview by explaining a time when you set your own goals and then went after them. Whether they were achieved or not, share how you either celebrated or strategized how to do better next time.
5. Teamwork
With companies putting such an emphasis on creating a strong company culture lately, it’s absolutely essential that you show them you can get along with a team! No matter if you’re a leader or more of a collaborative employee, explain in detail how you have worked on teams before. Be sure to include what was most essential to the teams’ success – things such as communication, honesty, and enthusiasm.
