Written by Catherine Adenle
Do you know the skills you have? It’s vital that you know your skills, they are your prime selling points. If you are reading this, you probably know that having the right set of skills that employers are looking for is vital. Your skills are the prime selling points that will get you any job that you desire.
Even if the jobs of your choice require specific technical or scientific expertise, for you to be successful, you will need to audit, document and demonstrate that you have the skills. You have to also show motivation for the job with the personal and transferable skills needed to succeed.
To know your skills, you should think of what you see as your prime selling points. You may have already gained many of the skills that employers are looking for through part-time or voluntary work, projects at college or university, leisure interests and family responsibilities for example.
People who often overlook the skills they have developed through apparently unrelated or unpaid activities are missing out. For instance, look at the conversation below and think about your own experiences.
When James was asked about the skills he gained in his last job, he answered,
“My last job was only a job in a small computer shop.”
“What did you do?”
“I was just a sales assistant.”
“For how long?”
“I was there for 3 years.”
“You must have gained a range of skills. Now tell us about the skills.”
James looked a bit lost.
Now, if you were James, what skills would you have mentioned straightaway? If you were James, would you know your skills, your prime selling points of discussion when you sit across the table speaking to a potential employer?
Well, James gained these skills and maybe more:
So, what can you offer to employers? What are your Prime Selling Points (PSPs)? It’s important to audit and analyze your skills After you know your skills, you still have to relate them to the role that you are applying for.
Relating skills to opportunities
How do you know the skills to highlight as your prime selling points when compiling your CV, covering letter or application?
Do you have employability appeal?
Employability appeal is a combination of educational achievement, personal attributes, generic skills and experience. It can’t be measured in real terms, but it’s about how attractive you are as a prospective employee.
What are Employers looking for in a potential employee?
A successful applicant must be aware of his/her transferable skills and, more importantly, is able to provide evidence of having used them. To know your skills as your prime selling points, spend some time researching an organization, identifying and understanding the skill set they require through reading their job profile and it could well tip the balance in your favour!
What are Transferable Skills?
These are skills you develop in any working situation, be it a part-time job, casual work, voluntary work, vacation work or an internship.
Remember that working with customers and other employees will provide evidence of communication skills, problem-solving and sometimes leadership.
You will have evidence of the ability to adhere to working practices such as timekeeping, attendance and meeting deadlines. If your work experience has been in a commercial environment you will surely have developed commercial awareness, regardless of the capacity in which you worked.
Your self -reliance and self-awareness will have been enhanced as you are more aware of the tasks you like to do and are good at.
Transferable skills can be identified in many situations, but ‘real’ work experience is probably the most fruitful area in which to find evidence.
Popular Transferable Skills that Employers seek
The 10 transferable skills that are particularly popular with most employers are:
Additionally, depending on the role that you are applying for, some companies or employers like to see that applicants have some commercial awareness.
Once you have thought about your skills and how they will demonstrate your abilities to potential employers, you will need to work out how to market yourself effectively.
See Are You a Job Seeker? 6 Tips to Getting Hired!
Presenting the evidence of your skills
Your principal concern should be to present proof of the skills and qualities that the employer is seeking. This could be in the form of achievements, responsibilities during work experience or voluntary activities, involvement in societies, or management of any activities.
The key is to equal the evidence in your application with what the employer wants. Recruiters want to read about the skills and qualities that are of interest to them and their selection criteria.
When examining your past involvements more closely, perhaps consider these questions:
Although it’s important to be concise on your CV, simply listing your skills or your prime selling points is not enough. Prepare pieces of evidence because employers can’t simply take your word for it. To help you to do this, think STAR –
S – Situation
T – Task
A – Action
R – Result
See Know How to Answer Common Job Interview Questions
Now that you know your skills as they are your prime selling points, what can you add? Let’s hear from you. Leave your comment below.
