Transferable Skills are the Key to Changing Careers

Transferable Skills are the Key to Changing CareersTransferable Skills are the Key to Changing CareersTransferable Skills are the Key to Changing CareersIf youre considering changing careers, the most important things to identify are your transferable skills.Transferable skills, also known as core competencies, are skills you already have in your arsenal those youve acquired from past positions that are transferable to a different type of career, industry or work environment.Transferable skills arent just limited to abilities youve gained in past work experiences, either. They are skills that have been developed in a variety of way, such as academic experience, volunteer work or even in hobbies, clubs, community organizations and much more. Identifying and recognizing transferable skills on a resume is a key component to any job-search strategy.In general, skills, which are the building blocks of any position and career, can be divided into three different areasSkills Dealing with T hingsJust as it sounds, these are the types of skills youve developed when working with a variety of items. Examples include following instructions, driving or operating vehicles, and constructing, repairing, using or working with items such as office equipment, computers, software, tools, instruments, machinery, vehicles, heavy equipment, materials, supplies, buildings, furniture, jewelry, clothing, food, animals and plants.Skills Dealing with Data or InformationDo you have great attention to detail or are you skilled at working with numbers? If so, then you likely have transferable skills with information and/or data. Examples of these skills include analyzing data or facts, investigating, planning, researching, developing policies or procedures, keeping records, organizing information, creating, designing, programming, compiling data, calculating, computing, editing, filing, copying, prioritizing and classifying types of information or data.Skills Working with PeopleExamples of t hese soft skills include interacting with types of people such as customers, vendors, patients, students, faculty, coworkers and colleagues. Examples of these interactions include consulting, negotiating, selling, serving, informing, entertaining, counseling, interviewing, coordinating, motivating or training.If youre unsure which of your skills are considered transferrable skills, there are a few things you can do. First, look at job descriptions for the careers youre interested in to see what skills are considered desirable by employers in your target field. In addition, conductinformational interviews with people who work in industries that interest you. Once they have a good understanding of your work experience and job skills, theyll be able to provide insight into which roles in their field may be relevant to you, and which of your skills are transferrable and valued by a prospective employer in their field.Transferable skills are the most important skills to think about when youre applying for a new position or embarking on a journey to change careers. Once youve determined what transferable skills you have and which youd like to utilize in a new position, youre one step closer to writing the perfect resume.Need help with your resume?Get a free critique today.

Behavioral Interview Tips and Techniques

Behavioral Interview Tips and TechniquesBehavioral Interview Tips and TechniquesHave a story for every skill.The fruchtwein accurate predictor of future performance is past performance in a similar situation.This statement is the premise behind behavioral bewerbungsinterviewing, an interviewing technique created in the 1970s by industrial psychologists. This style of interview is becoming popular with employers, and it can be a challenging experience.Youre likely to face the technique on job interviews and you should be prepared to confront it the right way.Traditional interviewing calls upon the candidate to state opinions Tell me about yourself. What are your strengths and weaknesses? Why do you want to work for this company? By contrast, behavioral interviewing requires job candidates to relate stories about how they handled challenges related to the skill sets the company requires for the position.For example, if a job requires strong communication and team-building skills, an in terviewer might ask candidates to recount past experiences where they explained new plans that brought a team together. Behavioral interview questions often start with phrases like, Tell me about a time when or Describe a situation in which or Give me an example ofWhile your skills and experiences could be a perfect match for the position, you could lose out if you cant validate them with relevant anecdotes.So how do you prepare for a behavioral interview?First, youll want to put yourself in the shoes of the employer and imagine what the ideal candidate for the position would answer from the interviewers perspective.Then, take the time to review thoroughly the job description and research the company and its culture. Look for cues about skills necessary for the job and valued by the organization. Next, think about the sorts of behavioral questions an interviewer might ask to determine those skills.Here are a few examples of skill sets and some behaviorally focused interview questio ns aimed at surfacing them.Decision Making and Problem SolvingDescribe a situation in which you used good judgment and logic to solve a problem.Give me an example of a time when you had to be quick in coming to a decision.LeadershipHave you ever had trouble getting others to agree with your ideas ? How did you deal with the situation, and were you successful?Describe the most challenging group from which youve had to gain cooperation.MotivationTell me about a time when you went above and beyond the call of duty.Give me an example of a situation in which you positively influenced the actions of others.CommunicationDescribe a situation in which you were able to communicate with another individual who did not personally like you (or vice versa).Describe a time you had to use written communication to convey an important argument or idea.Interpersonal SkillsGive me examples of what youve done in the past to nurture teamwork.Give an example of an unpopular decision youve made, what the re sult welches and how you managed it.Planning and OrganizationWhen scheduling your time, what method do you use to decide which items are priorities?Describe how youve handled a sudden interruption to your schedule.Once youve determined which behavioral-based questions you might be asked during an interview, look back on your past experiences and develop stories to answer those questions. Your stories should be detailed yet succinct, and they should always include the following three elementsA description of a specific, real-life situation or challenge you encountered.A description of the specific tasks and actions you took to overcome that challenge.A summary of the results of those actions. (Try to quantify these results whenever possible.)Here is a sample answer to a behavioral interview question that incorporates each of these elements.Question Give an example of a goal you reached, and tell me how you achieved it.Answer Due to cuts in funding to our adult continuing education pr ogram, we faced the daunting goal of drastically reducing our promotional budget without sacrificing our media presence in the community. As program director, I researched alternatives to the effective, yet costly, course brochure, which was produced and distributed biannually to about 60,000 residents of our service region. I was able to negotiate with two local newspapers to produce and distribute a new course brochure that increased distribution by 33 percent, to 80,000 residents, and decreased costs by 50 percent.Familiarizing yourself with the behavioral interview style, crafting and practicing your stories and doing some homework on the position you seek will ensure that you wont be caught off guard should you encounter a behavioral interview.

Career Resume Objective Statements to Catch Attention

Career Resume Objective Statements to Catch AttentionCareer Resume Objective Statements to Catch AttentionProfessional resume writers have abandoned the objective statement for an executive summary, but young professionals still rely on them and many amateur resume writers still insist.Time was, you would use the prime real estate atop your resume to declare your objective, to tell prospective employers how you wanted to obtain a fleck at a well-established organization with a stable environment where you could maximize your management skills and effectively utilize your experience to blah, blah, blah.Resume objective statements were all about what you wanted, not about what you could do for a prospective employer.And that is precisely why your old-fashioned, objective-topped resume will make many professional resume writers shudder. Professional resume writers have replaced these messages with Executive Summary sections that sum up what skills the applicant brings the employer.Ama nda Collins, chief of staff at The Grammar Doctors, explains the attitude adjustment Objectives disappeared years ago when resumes switched from applicant-oriented to employer-oriented. They need to instead share the WIIFM Factor Whats in it for me? from the employers prospective.But the objective statement has not entirely disappeared. Young professionals, with little to include in an executive summary, still rely on them and many amateur resume writers still insist on them. If youre in the latter group, the best advice is to make the transition to an executive summary, say professional resume writers and human resources (HR) executives. But if you are still a young professional, and still rely on the objective statement to introduce yourself to employers, there are best practices to follow. Ladders spoke to hiring managers and certified professional resume writers to determine the best way to structure this pithy alternative to an executive summary. Heres what they had to say.Be clear, and be what they needIn a nutshell, a worthwhile objective statement mustBe crystal-clear about your career directionsttte yourself as someone who wants to do exactly what the employer is offeringBe tailored to fit the job for which youre applying.Jillian Zavitz is the programs manager for TalktoCanada.com, an online English language-training course based in Canada, where she is responsible for hiring. She said that she does in fact see objective statements that catch her eye because they point to a candidate whos exactly what I am looking for, which, in her case, is somebody with experience related to teaching and specific to the job offer.Here are some examples of objective statements that have crossed her desk, some of which are spot-on and some of which are from the school of me-me-me resume writingBad objective statementsCareer employment or contract (twelve months).My Goal is to find employment that will help me begin paying off my student loans.ESL Teaching position w ith Talk to Canada.To obtain a challenging position where my education, skills and experiences can be highly utilized and later be applicable for growth and possible advancement.Good objective statementsfleck of ONLINE ENGLISH TEACHER with MarcMedias TalktoCanada, where I can apply my education, teaching experience and native linguistic skills to the delivery of quality language instruction.English-Language Trainer/Tutor of ESL or standard English. To assist, encourage and motivate students of every age to demonstrate and improve their verbal and written skills.Be relevantChristine Richardson, director of the career-services office at Cazenovia College in Cazenovia, N.Y., said that employment objectives can serve as the glue that pulls together the content of the resume and gives the document finesse. However, theyre a waste of space unless they highlight relevant information that speaks directly to employers needs, she said.Richardson provided objective examples from new college gr aduates with limited experience that are too general to make an impact.Too generalTo obtain a position that will enable me to use my educational background and transferable skills to manage and create new opportunities in international trade and networking.A full time position in the Human Resources Training Department.A position in the Business and Marketing Administration field.To obtain a position which will enable me to utilize my education and experience in the fashion industry.Fall Internship.More specific, but still needs workRichardson cited this next objective as being appropriately specific. Its from a sports-management graduate whose goal was to manage an athletic facility.Service Manager, interest in ensuring facility is well equipped and advocating for best guest and member experience.However, as written, it is unclear about the industry this job seeker is pursuing. And in the job seekers mind this was a very clear position title to list, but this title would probably h ave multiple meanings in multiple industries.She rewrote the objective this wayAthletic Facility Management Team Member PositionThat version might work, but Richardson said she still believes that other headings can be more useful on a resume, since objectives seldom highlight skills and experience and generally serve the job seeker more than the employer.The upshot If you really want to use an objective statement, make sure its about the employer, not just about you. Mention your skills and experiences. If youre not getting interviews, consider graduating to an executive summary and a summary of qualifications and/or career highlights, the standard for a vermodern resume.