So, you went to college and got the degree, now what? You’re probably already applying to jobs, and you know you got the technical knowhow but here’s the kicker, so do all your peers! Creating a resume is hard enough, but knowing what skills employers are really looking for is even harder. Putting these 5 skills on your resume will guarantee your resume stays at the top of employer’s minds!
Soft skills are what set you apart from your peers, having the right skills means you’re more likely to get the job.
Soft skills are always of particular importance to employers because they are more difficult to teach and because most college students have limited experience to highlight job-based skills. Because of that, soft skills can often take priority in the deciding factor between candidates with similar experience. Proper soft skills also lead to higher job success, according to research conducted by Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation and Stanford Research Center, 85% of job success comes from having well‐developed soft and people skills, and only 15% of job success comes from hard skills. So, lets dive in to the top skills you need to highlight on your resume.
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Entrepreneurial Skills
You might be thinking, what does entrepreneurship have to do with a job search? Well, you may be surprised to know that entrepreneurship encompasses many soft skills in 1, multiple of which are in high demand. These can be broken down into 3 main skills
Creative/Critical Thinking
Creative thinking is all about thinking outside the box. Do you come up with innovative ideas to problems or have a wild imagination? Then there is a good chance that you are a creative thinker! Creative thinkers can use their thinking to come up with great solutions to business problems. Critical thinking is all about being able to deeply comprehend information and make decisions without being told what to do. If you are a great decision maker, chances are you are also probably great at critical thinking!
Problem Solving
Problem solving is exactly what it says, solving problems. Are you able to take your skills above and solve a business’s pain points? If your great at solving problems and implementing those solutions than chances are you’re great at problem solving.
Communication
Communication is key in all businesses. There is a good chance that in today’s world you probably can’t go a single day without needing to communicate with someone. With teamwork and collaboration more prevalent in the workplace today, being able to communicate and doing it effectively are valuable skills to any organization, even in industries where communication was often scarce.
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is all about understanding and controlling your emotions when around others and being able to understand others’ emotions relatively easily.
Understanding Your emotion
Understanding your emotion is all about being self-aware. Whether it’s removing yourself from the situation, hiding your emotions, or matching the emotions of others it’s important to be cognizant of yourself which will assist you in interactions with others and with potential customers or business clientele
Understanding Others Emotion
Understanding other’s emotions is all about reading the room. Is everyone mad, sad, angry, happy? Is your coworker having a bad day and you can easily tell? Then there’s a good chance you likely have high emotional intelligence if the above to 2 points really resonate with you!
Being Better at Networking
If you believe that you have high emotional intelligence than that is great. The real test is how well you can use this skill to grow and expand your network. Do you find that you have great networking skills because you can read the room? Then you likely have strong emotional intelligence skills!
Technical Skills
Technical skills are in huge demand right now, particularly when dealing with computers and mobile applications. Many businesses are looking for candidates that know their way around technology.
Being Able to Use a Computer
Being able to use and function around a computer, phone, or connected device is super important these days. Most tasks that were handled via pen and paper in the past are all dealt with electronically. If you know your way around a computer, chances are you have strong technical skills.
Using Modern Technology to Share Information
Being able to share information electronically is super important in todays connected world. Whether it’s an email, a text message, or maybe even through social media, being able to communicate electronically with people is a skill that is in high demand from employers.
Telecommuting
Since the aftermath of Covid-19 took over, a whole new form of work has taken place. Telecommuting has become a hugely popular form of work and being familiar with platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams and knowing how to complete tasks on your computer are all skills that are in extremely high demand by employers big and small.
Adaptability
Employers are always looking for adaptable employees, from resilient employees to employees with schedules flexible for business needs, sometimes businesses need abnormal things from their employees but still within reason. If you as an employee are flexible than you are more likely to get hired!
Being Flexible with Time Demands
Businesses these days have very flexible time demands. Sometimes businesses may need you to work varying shifts ranging from day, night, overnight, etc. and being willing to work these shifts can make you a very attractive candidate.
Ability to Thrive in Multiple Roles
Do you consider yourself a one size fits all approach to an employer’s recruitment? Do you have a broad set of skills and technical experience? Then chances are you can thrive in multiple roles, something that employers which want employees to grow within their company are on the lookout for.
Adapting For Organizational Issues (Covid-19 And Supply Shortages)
Covid-19 threw a wrench into everyone’s plans, especially employers. Having to work from home, work with masks, or just flip roles completely due to labor shortages, employers are looking for adaptable employees that can overcome these sorts of hurdles. If any of these points sound like you, add adaptability to your skillset!
Data Analysis
Data analysis is all about being able to analyze data that comes in many forms and process it efficiently and effectively into useful information to your employer. This skill is in high demand because data is coming from everywhere these days whether its internet ads or salespeople interactions, you need to be able to understand what is being said and relay that to your employer
Data Is Everywhere
Thanks to the connected world we live in, data is bombarding us everywhere we go. Whether it’s from surfing the internet for solutions to organizational problems, to daily emails, to organizational trends, all this data needs to be processed constantly to make sense of all of it.
Why Is Data Analysis Important to Employers
As mentioned above, every organization tends to have problems. Being able to find solutions to these issues is a key skill set that employers are looking for. To effectively find solutions, employers often require their employees to do lots of research and even conduct research of their own. For this reason, it’s important to know how to analyze data which of course leads me to my next point…
Analyzing Data Efficiently and Effectively
To not waste an organizations funds, you should know how to analyze the data presented to you efficiently and effectively. This means that you should be quickly and thoroughly able to analyze multiple types of data (such as electronic or in person communication), understand the important bits of information conveyed, and effectively communicate your findings to your employer in an organized way that make sense. In other words, you should be capable of processing data into quality information. If this sounds like you than you are likely to be a pro at data analysis!
Now you’ll have the skills to ace your next job search, so, go add those skills to your resume and crush your next interview, but before you leave…
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