Five Soft Skills to Incorporate Into Your Interview Answers
When preparing for job interviews, you likely focus your energy on practicing answers that are related to your skills and job history. These are important, but they are not the only factors that you want to focus on during an interview. Today, employers are looking for more than just experience. They want people with the right soft skills to succeed. Here are five soft skills to start incorporating into your interview answers to show you are a top candidate.
Communication
Today, nearly every job in every industry requires effective communication skills. During your interview, you will want to showcase that you have good interpersonal communication skills and that you are able to clearly state your ideas both verbally and in writing. You do this by showing, rather than telling. Turn in well-written application documents and during your interview, be direct and concise in your answers and ask thoughtful questions.
Time Management
Employers need people who can get their work done on time without a lot of hand-holding. Talk about your strategies for time management, the ways you deal with roadblocks or potential distractions and the ways in which you organize and even delegate tasks.
Adaptability and Flexibility
The only thing you can count on in today’s business world is that things will change. No matter how much you prepare, your projects – and often even your workday – will not go off as planned. Employers want to hire people who adapt to change quickly. Discuss a time you had to face a change and adjust your approach/style/attitude to get things done. Focus on the ways in which your flexibility and adaptability contributed to the success of a project.
Positivity
No one wants to work with a Debbie Downer. Positivity is an important quality – even during times when it’s extremely difficult to find the good in a situation. Show the interviewer that you are someone with a positive attitude by remaining upbeat throughout the interview and talking about times you demonstrated positivity, even when it was extremely hard to do so.
Teamwork
To be successful in today’s workforce, you have to be an effective team player. Because the workforce is so diverse, you’ll be working with people from different backgrounds and perspectives and it is important to be able to listen to people’s opinions and work without conflict. The only way for a team to succeed is when everyone is pulling in the same direction, show highlight stories that showcase your ability to work effectively as a team member.
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