When you think of skills for your resume, do you immediately think of skills like your ability to use Adobe Photoshop or your coding skills? These are known as hard skills that are learned through formal education or training programs that are required for the job you’re applying for. However, soft skills are just as important in the job application process, and employers want to know your traits and attributes that will impact your position in the company.
Your first point of contact with your employer is your resume, and communicating who you are and how you function within a company and with other colleagues is important. The best way to show off your “soft skills,” is not by writing a series of keywords like “timely,” “organized,” and “hard-working,” it’s through telling your story. You might now be asking, “When making my first resume, how do I effectively communicate soft skills then?”
1. Communicate your soft skills in a story (in your summary)
When we say “story,” we don’t mean an entire summary of your life, stories from where you worked in the past, or paragraphs of information that will likely get ignored. Showcasing soft skills in a story means deliberately showing what skills can effectively apply to different aspects of the job. Think – how has your tenacity allowed a certain project to come to fruition and end in a high conversion rate? Make sure you include some facts and figures that illustrate what you did. In your summary, you can include one or two sentences that speak to your soft skills, without overwhelming the reader.
Important! Know your industry and your job title. This will allow you to pinpoint what soft skills and qualities an employer may look for when hiring someone for your position. If you’re looking at a managerial position at an office, your employer will likely look for someone who has strong leadership skills, a positive attitude, is adaptable, has the great problem-solving ability, and of course, top-notch communication skills. Use these and make sure you include examples of these skills at play.
Remember that your resume will be read by a human being, and so you should communicate to one!
2. Create a resume using a resume builder
A job resume is a one-page summary that will give employers an insight into your job history, education, and most importantly, who you are. Putting together a resume can be tricky, but starting with a resume builder can be a smart way to get started. Resume builders can help you make your first resume online and give you a great platform to get started. ResumeBuilderPro is a professional and reliable resume builder, which provides a host of HR-approved resume templates, relevant suggestions, pre-written customizable text, and industry-specific content, all for free.
Using this method, you’re more likely to remember to include all the important aspects of a perfect resume, including your contact information, education, hard, and soft skills, qualifications, and a clean and organized design. Getting the basics done and finding a suitable template can allow you time to focus on writing your story.
Realizing what effective resume writing is and answering the question “how to put a resume together”, involves many components. It involves researching proper tips for writing a resume, asking for help with resume writing, and especially when doing a resume for the first time, professional advice. Creating one that hones in on soft skills as well as hard skills is smart because it allows recruiters to see that you’re well-rounded – a core quality employers look for.
Dos
When сreating first resume, remember resume best practices when it comes to inclusion of soft skills. Make sure you include all the basics of a traditional resume, but let your story stand out. Be sure to spell check, edit, and make adjustments at the end.
Don’ts
Don’t include unnecessary information or filler text that won’t help whoever is reading your resume. Make sure everything on your resume has value. Don’t include irrelevant job history, activities you did at school, or your high school education if you’re not a fresh graduate. Don’t list soft skills as a list of buzzwords.
3. Know what the in-demand soft skills are
The job world and job industries are ever-changing, so it’s important to do your due diligence and look at what skills employers are looking for to give you an advantage over your competition.
LinkedIn: Top 5 Soft Skills Companies Looked for in 2020
- Creativity
- Persuasion
- Collaboration
- Adaptability
- Emotional Intelligence
According to LinkedIn, these were the most important soft skills in 2020 that apply to all roles. In order for candidates to succeed, those hiring determined some interesting soft skills that many don’t often speak to in their resumes. Emotional intelligence and persuasion are two buzzwords that aren’t very popular on resumes, not in comparison to creativity or adaptability.
Emotional intelligence, according to Daniel Goleman, concerns self-regulation, self-awareness, empathy, social skills, motivation, and more. Although it is less concrete and screenable than something like your coding skills, recruiters can test your emotional intelligence through interactions, targeted questions, personality assessments, or other tests. Like hard skills, it is still something that you can improve on. It’s as simple as learning effective ways to communicate, considering your co-workers, or even reading books.
Conclusion
With these tips in mind when showcasing soft skills on your resume, you’re bound for success! These tips help you illustrate who you are on paper, not just for what you can do, but what you can bring to the table with your personality and work ethic.
