Hard Skills & Soft Skills

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Though knowledge of certain tools is a large factor which defines the type of job you will be placed in, your personality will usually steer you to the role you would truly enjoy. Hard and soft skills, how are they defined, and how can you use both to your advantage?

How to find your hard skills and soft skills

A place to start, when trying to figure out what role you’re going into next, is looking at your personality. Are you good with people? Are you an innovative and strategic thinker? Are you full of thoughts and ideas? Of course, your personality doesn’t have to define what you do, as you are ever-changing and there are always opportunities to learn tangible skills to present when applying for a role- but it’s a good place to start.

Hard skills

You can develop hard skills through university, on the job, or on your own. A language, copywriting, proofreading, programming, knowledge of specific programs or CRM systems,  all fall under this category. These are extremely important elements on your resume. When you look at the requirements in a job description, it is best to tweak them to match.

In order to keep the interest of the HR/recruiter, be sure to match your soft skills with your hard. For example, if you’re applying for an inside sales role, mention your hard skill of making up to 30 cold calls a day, and the soft skill of telephone manners.  Be clever with matching skills together, and be aware of the danger of contradicting yourself.

Soft skills

The way you communicate, make eye contact, how explain yourself, and the all over energy you give off- those are the soft skills. Give examples of your strongest soft skills by telling your interviewer the story of your position when you worked in a team, or about the time you dealt with a difficult colleague.

So which is more important? Well… both. Sometimes a more underqualified candidate will get the job over the one with all of the hard skills, just based on how the conversation flowed, and vice versa.

Abroad Experience International Recruitment wishes you the best of luck in your job search and CV enhancement adventure!

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