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#CareerAdvice : #ResumeWriting – 6 Ways to Make the Skills Section Shine on a #Resume …Here are a Few More Tips on How to Make the #SkillsSection on your Resume Truly Shine.

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For many resume writers, the “skills section” presents a unique quagmire. On the one hand, you want to showcase as many skills as you can to show your competence. On the other hand, you don’t want to make it look like you’re padding your resume, and you definitely don’t want to list skills that you’re only half-competent at.

Resume writer Anish Majumdar recommends building your skills section by writing out the skills you need at your current job, and then reviewing your list and circling skills that correlate with your target position. “Finally, underline those circled skills which can be proven on your resume. These are the ones you need to focus on,” writes Majumdar.

Once you’ve done that, here are a few more tips on how to make the skills section on your resume truly shine:

1. Give it all you’ve got

Don’t be shy about layering on your skills – both hard and soft skills. Just because you’re a software engineer doesn’t mean you don’t need to showcase your communication, cross-sector collaboration, and time management abilities. In fact, listing those skills alongside your competency with Java and Python will make you stand out from the crowd. Layering your resume with skills can serve to give recruiters a well-rounded, multi-faceted image of you.

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2. Only include the good stuff

That being said, you need to make sure you’re not putting skills on your resume merely to bulk it up. Certain skills, like knowing how to use Microsoft Word or email, are too basic to distinguish you from other candidates. These competencies are obvious to recruiters, and should not be placed on your resume. If the answer to the question “can every other applicant to the job write that they have this skill?” is yes, you might want to reconsider taking up precious resume real estate with the skill.

 

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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3. Bulk your skills up

No, this doesn’t mean by padding your resume with skills you don’t have! If there are certain skills that you find would be helpful to have for the jobs you’re applying to, but you don’t currently have, it might be time to take a class or do a training on these skills. It also might be a question of brushing up certain skills, so that you can show them off, like upgrading your “intermediate proficiency” in Spanish to “professional working proficiency”. Investing time and money in these skills now can have big payoffs in the future.

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4. Be straightforward

The skills section of your resume is not the place to sugarcoat. What you see as a rose-colored picture of a certain skill might simply be seen as a fib by a recruiter. Let’s take the Spanish example again. Suppose you say you have “professional working proficiency”, when you really just spent a semester abroad in Spain when you were in college 10 years ago, and haven’t practiced the language since. A portion of your job interview is conducted in Spanish – yikes! Or even worse, you get the job, and your first assignment is to interface with an Argentinian client – completely in Spanish. Chances are you won’t be at the job for much longer. Even little resume fibs can cause big trouble.

5. Showcase your transferable skills

Especially if you’re transitioning careers, showing off your transferable skills is critical to fleshing out the skills section of your resume. Transferable skillsinclude things like leadership, analytics, communication through writing, public speaking, mathematical reasoning, or organizing meetings. These type of skills can give you the boost you need in showcasing your experience.

Ask a Resume Writer: How Do I Showcase Transferable Skills?

6. Back yourself up

Soft skills like “coordination with sub-contractors” can sound intangible and airy – which is why you shouldn’t be afraid to back yourself up with a few examples and numbers. “Coordinated weekly with 12 subcontractors to drive a project slated to take 6 months to a 3-month completion time” packs more of a punch, and lets whoever’s reading your resume visualize better your abilities.

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Your #Career : 3 Ways To Develop #TransferrableSkills In Your Current #Job …This Google #Recruiter Shares How he Leveraged his #Skills to #ChangeCareers , from #Sales to #Recruiting .

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My first job out of college was in sales. Today I’m a recruiting manager at a global tech company in Silicon Valley. I’m also a podcaster. The one thing that connects the dots of my career trajectory and every job move in between: transferrable skills.

At the point that I decided sales wasn’t for me, I reflected on what I enjoyed (helping people), what I wanted to do next (HR), and what would be the stepping stone role to help me get there. It turned out that recruiting at a staffing agency was a good middle ground. Recruiting meant I’d sell companies to candidates and candidates to companies. I’d help job seekers take the next step in their careers while ensuring hiring managers had access to great people.

But before I landed a job as a recruiter at Google, I teased out the skills I needed to highlight in my resume and interviews–skills like the ability to build relationships, persuade others, and provide a high level of customer service. All skills that continue to prove key to this day, even as a podcaster. Here are a few ways you can identify and leverage transferrable skills to help you secure your next opportunity.

Related:This Is How To Land Your First-Ever Management Role 

TRACK YOUR TASKS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

One of the biggest challenges I had for years was recalling everything I accomplished when it came time for performance review season. I’d sit there wracking my brain in hopes of recovering all I’d done over the past 6 to 12 months so I could write a stellar self-evaluation. Then one day I decided to start a project and task log that I’d update throughout the year. Recalling the details of projects became much easier.

This log also helped me identify skills and themes that’d be transferrable if and when I decided to make a move. It was easier to update my resume and speak to these skills during interviews because everything was already written down. Instead of searching for examples, I was picking from a list I’d already created.

I also encourage you to include projects, tools, and accomplishments from your extracurriculars, especially if you hold a role in a club, organization, or have a side project. Skills picked up outside the office can be just as valuable. For example, producing and releasing podcast episodes has required me to create workflows to get tasks done. Since I’ve documented them, a new team member can be dropped in and become productive right away. Creating and improving processes to drive efficiency is a key skill that’s transferrable to a wide range of jobs. It also speaks to problem-solving, as you’re usually identifying something that isn’t working well and then fixing it.

Podcasting has also provided me public speaking opportunities that have in turn made me a better presenter at work. I’ve learned the importance of storytelling, which is just as valuable when talking about data as it is when you’re trying to motivate a team to overcome a major hurdle.

Related:Here’s What To Do When Common Career Advice Doesn’t Work For You 

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FSC LinkedIn Network:   www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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LEVERAGE LINKEDIN AS YOUR CAREER CONSULTANT

LinkedIn is great for networking, but it’s also a great way to research what skills and experiences you need beyond what you find in job descriptions. For example, when searching for new positions, I’ve made it a habit to look up various versions of the job title and find people already in the role. Their career history and current responsibilities give me a blueprint for my resume and LinkedIn profile. I can create a list of the common themes across profiles and cross-reference my log to find relevant examples.

BE PROACTIVE ABOUT YOUR NEXT STEP AND NEW SKILLS

Even if you’re happy in your current position, you should consistently revisit what’s next in your career and if you have the skills to get there. After doing role research, you’ll sometimes realize you don’t have everything in the job description or all the skills you saw in other profiles. That’s okay. When you’re moving into something new–even if it’s within your field–there will be gaps. Your goal is to minimize these gaps by picking up news skills that can be transferred to your next job.

Maybe you realize the next target role requires in-depth quantitative analysis skills, which you don’t get to flex in your current position. You could survey what’s happening around the company and ask to be involved in a project that gives you more exposure to Excel or the opportunity to track and report on key metrics. Maybe you do the weekly or monthly team reporting in collaboration with your manager.

Related:Changing Careers? Here’s Exactly What To Put On Your Resume

Perhaps there’s someone whose spreadsheet abilities make you wonder what you’ve been doing all your life? Compliment them on the great work they’ve done and ask if they can show you some of the basics. Nearly a year ago, I asked a respected program manager to show me how she keeps various projects and deadlines organized. With her help, I ended up developing a project tracker that’s helped me manage large cross-functional initiatives that involve many moving parts and people. This speaks to taking the initiative to develop myself and the ability to manage complex projects and deliver results–two things that are expected in nearly every professional position.

These are just a few ways to help you think about transferrable skills and navigate your career development. You’ll be surprised by how relatable your skills are to many different fields. The first step is to write things down. Once you do that, it becomes a game of plug and play. Happy hunting!

This article originally appeared on The Well, Jopwell’s digital magazine and is reprinted with permission.Jopwell is the career advancement platform for Black, Latino/Hispanic, and Native American students and professionals.

FastCompany.com | May 11, 2018 | BY RICH JONES—JOPWELL 4 MINUTE READ