How to take inventory of your skills

The skills you hold are incredibly valuable; they help you find a new job and they enable you to thrive at a job. To be able to access the full power of your skills, you’ll need to be able to identify them first.

There are two types of skills: hard skills and soft skills. In order to give any employer a full picture of your strengths, you’ll have to be aware of both these types of skills and what qualities of yours they both describe.

What are 'hard skills'?

Hard skills can be obtained through training and various online tools and certificate programs. Hard skills, demonstrate your ability to perform your job successfully day-to-day.

In order to figure out what your hard skills are, take a look through your work history and identify the daily tasks you had to complete in your past employment. Did you operate a cash register in your last job? That is an example of a hard skill that you should be adding to your inventory!

Examples of hard skills

Here are some prompts to help you identify what your hard skills are:

• Machinery you can operate
• Physical tasks that you have the ability to perform at work
• Languages you can speak
• Computer programs you know how to use
• Writing and communication skills you’re excellent at
• Mathematics skills you’ve used at work before
• Certifications you have earned that support your career

What are 'soft skills'?

Soft skills are more about your personal qualities or traits. These skills can describe something you’ve always been good at, or they can be the type of skill you’ve had to learn in order to become more successful in your job, while not being a part of your daily required tasks.

These skills can be hard to define, however, if you’ve received praise from friends or coworkers about your personal qualities, that can inform how you build your list of soft skills. Has a coworker ever complimented you for being a good listener? You should add “Listening” to your inventory of soft skills.

Examples of soft skills

Click here for the Traits feature on Jobcase. The Jobcase Trait selector will help you define and easily select what soft skills best describe you. Want a preview of what this looks like? Feel free to check out mine, below!

How to use both hard and soft skills to get hired

Now that you have a list of hard and soft skills that will give an employer a complete picture of what you’re capable of, here's how you can use it!

• Add your skills to your resume and Jobcase profile
• When you fill out application forms, add them in where you’re prompted
• If you’re in an interview, work your skills into the conversation

All of these methods ensure that an employer can appreciate all it is that you can do and see you as a highly skilled candidate!

Your skills make you unique. In the comments below, describe a skill that sets you apart from other applicants.