Because you are trying to sell yourself to potential employers,
you should take the same approach as you would when trying to
sell them a product: you must intimately know the product you
are selling. In other words, to sell yourself well, you must know
yourself well. This page will help you identify what you have
to offer—what skills and personality traits you bring with
you. Skills fall under three main categories:
Use the table below to help you analyze yourself. You may wish to have
a pen and paper handy while you do this exercise. Our more detailed checklists
(PDF files; you will need Adobe®
Reader® in order to download and print these) can also help you
identify your functional,
transferable, and
personal/self-management skills.
| Technical skills |
|
Functional/technical skills are those specific
to a type of work. They can be learned on the job or through
formal training and education.
|
|
Verbal and written communication skills
|
Displaying products or ideas
Editing manuscripts or reports
Public and motivational speaking
Public relations; acting as a tour guide or media spokesperson
Translating materials (foreign languages or technical jargon)
Writing creative pieces, essays, press releases, articles,
technical reports, correspondence or memoranda |
|
Analytical skills and numeracy (the ability to work with
numbers and data)
|
Budgeting, projecting, and analyzing costs
Compiling data and preparing reports
Develop computer applications to improve work systems
Compiling numerical or scientific data
Conducting tests and experiments
Growing/cultivating plants, cultures
Drawing or drafting; producing plans, blueprints, flowcharts,
diagrams, or layouts
Investigating hard-to-find data or information
Managing money; reconciling statements
Ordering/purchasing supplies; maintaining product or supply
inventoryAnalyzing quantitative or statistical data
Performing financial audits of a department or organization
Troubleshooting problems; suggesting and implementing solutions
|
Evaluative skills |
Appraising programs, strategies, services
Determining the performance of individuals
Developing models to explain phenomena
Evaluating a book or journal
Evaluating individuals' performance or assessing programs
or activities
|
|
Leadership and management skills
|
Administering a department, program, activity
or club
Advising or counseling others
Coordinating people, events, or information
Delegating tasks and responsibilities
Facilitating discussions; managing the dynamics of a group
Interviewing
Managing others; overseeing the productivity of a team
Motivating others to reach goals
Organize and plan events, conferences, trade shows
Identify, recruit, and interview others to work in your
organization
Selling
Public and motivational speaking
Teaching others
Maintaining and updating files, data, or reports
Growing/cultivating plants, cultures
Drawing or drafting; producing plans, blueprints, flowcharts,
diagrams or layouts
|
| Transferable skills |
|
Learned throughout life and derived from
a multitude of experiences, transferable skills are those
you can carry from one job to another.
|
|
Work Ethic: skills which assist in promoting productivity
and satisfaction in one's work
|
Cooperating with others
Implementing decisions
Enforcing policies
Punctuality
Meeting goals
Enlisting help
Setting and meeting deadlines
Time management and prioritization
Attention to detail
|
|
Organization, management and leadership: the ability
to supervise, guide, and direct others in the fulfillment
of tasks and goals
|
Initiating and implementing new ideas
Attention to detail
Team-building
Teaching and/or coaching
Counseling
Advocacy
Selling products or services
Decision-making
Conflict resolution
Delegating responsibility
|
|
Communication skills: the skillful expression, trasmission
and interpretation of knowledge and ideas
|
Speaking effectively
Writing concisely
Editing
Listening attentively
Expressing ideas
Describing feelings
Facilitating group discussions
Providing appropriate feedback
Negotiating
Interviewing
Persuading
Reporting information
|
|
Researching and planning: knowing how to look for specific
knowledge and how to conceptualize future needs and solutions
for meeting those needs
|
Predicting, forecasting
Creating ideas
Identifying problems
Proposing alternatives
Solving problems
Identifying resources
Setting goals
Extracting key information
Defining needs
Analyzing
Evaluating strategies and results |
|
Interpersonal skills: human relations to resolve conflicts,
relate to others and help others
|
Establishing rapport
Listening attentively
Conveying feelings
Motivating and persuading
Counseling
Sharing credit
Asserting
Perceiving feelings and situations
Cooperating
Showing support for others
|
| Self-management skills |
|
How do you describe yourself? How would your
friends describe you to a stranger? What do you believe
are your greatest strengths?
|
|
Adaptable
Adventurous
Ambitious
Articulate
Assertive
Caring
Charismatic
Committed
Compassionate
Conscientious
Cooperative
Creative
Dependable
Discreet
Dynamic
Efficient
|
Empathetic
Energetic
Enterprising
Friendly
Flexible
Genuine
Goal-oriented
Helpful
Honest
Humble
Humorous
Imaginative
Independent
Intuitive
Methodical
Meticulous
|
Motivating
Neat
Organized
Outgoing
Persuasive
Precise
Punctual
Receptive
Reliable
Self-motivated
Sociable
Sympathetic
Trustworthy
Unique
|
