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Career Corner: 5 Action Steps to Communicate Your Transferable Skills

We’ve all heard the age-old saying, “No time like the present.” Given the uncertain times, these words are feeling more relevant as days go by. Industries are changing daily, and organizations have to shift gears on a moment’s notice, causing many people to self-reflect on their work and personal situations. Whether you’re ready to take the plunge into a new career or industry, or still considering the switch, knowing which direction you want to head and how to communicate your transferable skills is pertinent. But no need to fret. We’ve got you covered.

You may be asking yourself, “Where do I begin?” Or, you may have already conducted countless hours learning about your desired new industry and/or role, and you’re ready to make the jump. No matter where you are in the journey, communicating your transferable skills and share your personal brand presence will set you apart from other candidates, even those currently within the field.  Here are five action items to get you to your dream job and feel confident about your decision to change careers.

Action Item No. 1: Pre-work and Research

The hardest part about changing careers is deciding which direction you want to head. It’s important to take time to self-reflect and learn about the industry and the role you truly want. Think everything through thoroughly. Are you feeling stuck because your role has been affected by Covid-19? If this is a short term fix due to our current environment, that is understandable. However, these steps are for someone who has the clarity and conviction to make a change – and now needs that extra support to cross the bridge from one industry to another.

Here are some questions to ensure you are 100% committed to making this leap!

  • What is most and least fulfilling about your current role? How does your new role interest fill the gaps in your current/previous role?
  • Are there factors in your current industry that are affecting you to pivot now? Is this a long-term or short-term pivot?
  • Does this new role/industry fulfill your passions?
  • How long can you endure this roller coaster ride as you make the transition, both financially and mentally?

A bit of due diligence and pre-work on the front end will give you a competitive advantage as you communicate your motives and worth. Need help with some of the questions above? Here are some recommended resources:

Hire a Coach

Many organizations offer in-house career counseling services to assist with succession planning. Nicole Wagner’s role focuses on in-house career counseling to students entering and starting with Compass Group. If your organization does not, please reach out directly to Rebecca Ahmed as a follow up to this article, or research the plethora of certified coaches through the International Coaching Federation.

Research

Platforms like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, Recruiting Daily, and ERE are common sites to check out for advice on organizations, job expectations, culture, interview processes, and compensation. Hear from experts directly through their blogs and reach out to those experts for additional insights and opinions.

Read

Looking for a book to tackle this head-on? Richard N. Bolles is a trailblazer when it comes to the job search front. His book, “What Color Is Your Parachute?” is a tried and true method for anyone looking for direction and pinpointing career paths based on interests. His Flower Exercise will send you on a self-discovery of knowing who you are so you can explore the best path for your next career move.

Action Item No. 2: Identify and Communicate Your Transferable Skills

Your professional success shines through in the stories you share about your past experiences and roles. Here are some questions to help create three elevator pitches that highlight your accomplishments and achievements.

  • What is/was your last role?
  • What problem existed in this role?
  • Exactly what tools did you leverage to address this problem?
  • What solution did you provide to address this problem?
  • How did your solution benefit the organization?

Once you have thought through and answered the above questions, step two is taking these solution-oriented approaches and relating them to your new desired role. Check out our case studies below to see exactly how we did this step by step.

Action Item No. 3: Integrate your transferable skills

Now that you’ve identified your transferable skills, next on the agenda is articulating your career journey and past experiences into your branding. Your resume and LinkedIn profile are the first impressions you are making to potential employers. Think of them as digital advertisements showcasing your talents, accomplishments, and the overall badass you are!  Below are a couple of ingredients to help you integrate your story and stand out in the digital world.

Resumes

On average, recruiters spend less than 10 seconds skimming resumes for keywords. Ten seconds, that’s it! So how do you convey your awesomeness on one single page? Skills-based resumes are the perfect format to highlight your expertise and transferable skills clearly and concisely.

  • Ditch the objective. These one-liners tend to be generic and fail to demonstrate your true talents and abilities.
  • Showcase your value and skills at the top of your resume in a “summary of qualifications” or “core competencies” section. Leverage sites such as TopResume to assist with verbiage to beat the bots!
  • Under your work history, list out three to five accomplishments for each role. We recommend using The Ladders formula for effective and concise communication – success verbs and data points to emphasize each role’s accomplishments.
  • Make sure your resume is targeted to the role and company. You will want to update it for every job you apply to, ensuring you speak to each role’s desired experience and company culture.

LinkedIn

Tapping into your LinkedIn community and utilizing all facets of this platform will give you a competitive edge. In addition to showcasing your experience, LinkedIn is a great platform for you to share your passions, connect with various networks, search for jobs, and build your brand!

If you’re new or in need of a refresher, we highly recommend checking out this article on how to leverage your LinkedIn profile. Looking to go more in-depth with their Sales Navigator platform? Check out recommendations from Samantha McKenna.

Action Item No. 4: Leverage Your Resources

You’ve completed your research and determined your next move. You’ve built a resume and designed your LinkedIn profile. Now it’s time to get out there and ensure everyone knows your desired next steps. Have your network work for you. You are only one person, but your network can reach thousands!

How can you ensure your network is working for you? Here are some quick steps to get the ball rolling:

  • Let recruiters know you are actively seeking an opportunity and ensure they know what the opportunity is. There are settings in each social media platform to turn on and ensure you show up in Boolean searches.
  • Leverage your alma mater connections. Even if you don’t know someone from your school, send a private note to connect with them. People naturally want to assist others from their communities, even if they don’t personally know you.
  • Hit the town or hit up zoom! Sign up for networking events that attract leaders in your career field of interest. Attend galas, association events, virtual coffees, wine tastings, etc. Have fun connecting with people in a variety of communities that all align with your desired role. All it takes is one personal interaction that can lead you to your dream job interview! 

Action Item No. 5: Nail the Interview

You leveraged your connections, made it through the bots then landed an interview. This is your time to shine and highlight how you bring value to the new organization.

Most often, companies use behavior-based interview guides to assess how candidates handle certain situations. As you can imagine, these guides ultimately tell them if the candidate is a good fit and also a match for the role. These questions tend to have multiple parts and can be confusing if you’re not familiar with the format. The STAR Interview Method is a fool-proof way to answer and nail these questions every time. Think of it as giving a personal example in a story format.

  • Situation: Briefly set the scene by providing a few short concrete details of your example and how it relates to the question.
  • Task: What was your role in the situation? Be concise and clear.
  • Action: Explain the steps you took to overcome the challenge. How did you bring value to the situation?
  • Results: What was the outcome, and how did your achievements lead to the result?

You’ve now read through our five actions to communicate your transferable skills effectively. No matter where you are in the career change journey, these steps will empower you to communicate your value and worth!

 

Editor’s Note:

This post was co-authored by Rebecca Ahmed, an upcoming TEDx speaker, a certified Energy Leadership Coach with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), and a published writer. She has taken her expertise and launched her own business, Laugh Thru Life, where she brings energy and joy to the workplace.

Rebecca AhmedRebecca is a recognized expert in talent acquisition, culture, and diversity and inclusion. During her 10+ years as a leader in Human Resources (HR) in Hospitality, she is most notably recognized for partnering with C-Suite Executives through a 2.8B M&A, overseeing Talent Acquisition, HR Operations, and Technology for up to 16,000+ team members. Rebecca has a bachelor’s in public relations with a double minor in communication design and business from the University of Southern California, and a master’s in hotel administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

What Just Happened? Decoding the Job Interview

There is plenty of advice out there concerning what to say and do, during an employment interview. However, I find there is little written about how to sort out the jumbled mess of feelings and observations that you are left with. Even with the best of intentions and lists of potential questions — interviewing is not (and never will be) a perfect process. In some situations, you are not really sure what has actually transpired. In fact, you may leave feeling you know less about your potential future there, than when you began.

Over the years, I’ve experienced a number of job interviews. Interestingly, even with my training, I was a poor bet to predict the actual outcome. However, looking back, I could have nailed down the “gestalt” of the interview. This could have offered a few clues as to what might (or should) transpire next.

To be blunt, many organizations still do not have a clear structured interview process — and even if they do — the conversation might ramble into territories “off the grid”. Paying close attention to these moments may offer you needed clarity. I’m going to share a few of my interview experiences, including what was said and how I felt after reflecting on the interview. I’ll also let you know if I landed the role.

#1 – The Interview as a “Call for Help”

In many situations, organizations are not really sure what they need. You may have responded to a job posting, however when you arrive it’s clear the situation is quite fluid. Ultimately, their actual needs become cloudier as the conversation continues. My read: They are in flux — but at the same time the prospect of challenge and growth increases. Truth: If you end up in an interview smacking of this, inquire about what they need to accomplish right now. Size up whether or not you fill that need, and if you’d still like to pursue the relationship. Assess alignment and your chances from there. My scorecard with this scenario: Interviews 2; Adequate fit 0; Job Offers 0. (Satisfied with this outcome.)

#2 – Playing Close to the Cuff

During the job search process, some interviewers present as so professional, that it is quite difficult to get a read on them as a “human-being”. There is little feedback or emotion during the interview, and you have absolutely no idea where you stand. My read: Chances are you wouldn’t be there if you are not qualified. If this is your potential boss, you’ll likely need to be a self-starter. Truth: You won’t know, until you know. (I left with this is in mind, “I’m never going to step foot here again.”) My scorecard with this scenario: Interviews 1; Job Offers 1. (Surprise.)

#3 – The Passive Aggressive Interview

These interviews feel like a boxing match. The interviewer seems determined to show you every “wart” of the organization and wait to see if you will call their bluff. It’s almost as if you are running a race, and with each successive hurdle you sustain an injury. Truth: I feel as if the interviewer(s) want to be sure that you are willing to endure, what they have endured. My read: the organization is likely unhealthy. So, figure this fact into any decisions. My scorecard: Interviews 3; Invitations to return for follow-up 2 (Respectfully declined.); Job Offers 0.

#4 – The “Non-Interview”

This is really an endorsement for taking shorter-term projects, that could set you up to land a longer-term role. Personally, there have been situations where my career was either “in transition”, I was tied to a particular geographic location or the job market was simply very, very tough. My read: Part-time or project-based roles are great realistic job previews for both you and the employer. Truth: Your network is vital to find these gems. My read: Every workplace situation is essentially an interview, so gather as much information as possible. My scorecard: “Interviews” 3 ; Job Offers 2.

What scenarios have you encountered? What were your strategies to “decode” the interview? Share them here.

This post was first published on The Office Blend on 12/22/15.

Photo Credit: oskfor via Compfight cc

252 Powerful Words to Avoid Apocalypse at Job Interview

In the beginning was the Word.

Have you ever wondered why some writers can’t hook us while others simply toy with your emotions? Why do we listen to some speakers carefully while others make us nothing but fall asleep?

Words.

They use different words to influence readers and listeners.

When written in resumes or said during job interviews, words become your powerful weapon. The better you use them, the bigger your chances to influence recruiters are.

So, how to do that?

Next time you write a resume, make sure you use strong and powerful words, as they increase your chances of getting hired by 80%! It’s high time to forget about clichés: professional recruiters read hundreds of resumes daily, so they are sick and tired of all those “great team player” or “responsible and dedicated individual” every second candidate writes in resumes and says at job interviews.

Powerful words in your resume will help you avoid apocalypse and motivate recruiters, especially when you search for your first job after graduation.

Said during an interview, they can do wonders.

Carefully-chosen, such words draw interviewers from one emotion to another, making them sympathize you and see you an ideal candidate as compared with others.

What are these powerful words, after all?

Broken down alphabetically, they are easier to find and remember.

A-Words

Able

Absorb

Accelerate

Accomplish

Achieve

Acquire

Administrate

Advanced

Advise

Advocate

Align

Amplify

Analyse

Announce

Appraise

Arbitrate

Assemble

Assess

Assign

Assist

Attain

Attract

Audit

Authorize

Award

B-Words

Balance

Bargain

Benefit

Block

Bolster

Boost

Brief

Budget

Build

C-Words

Calculate

Campaign

Capitalize

Centralize

Chart

Clarify

Coach

Co-author

Collaborate

Commit

Complete

Comply

Compose

Conduct

Conserve

Consolidate

Consult

Convert

Convey

Convince

Contribute

Coordinate

Correspond

Counsel

Create

Critique

Customize

Cultivate

D-Words

Decrease

Deduct

Define

Delegate

Deliver

Demonstrate

Design

Detect

Develop

Devise

Devote

Design

Dispatch

Diagnose

Discover

Distinguish

Diversify

Document

E-Words

Earn

Educate

Enable

Encourage

Enforce

Engineer

Enhance

Enrich

Ensure

Establish

Evaluate

Examine

Exceed

Excell

Expand

Explore

F-Words

Facilitate

Field

Finance

Forecast

Forge

Formalize

Formulate

Foster

Found

Fulfill

Further

G-H-Words

Gain

Gather

Generate

Head

Help

Hire

Host

Give

Grant

Guide

I-Words

Identify

Illustrate

Implement

Improve

Improvise

Incorporate

Increase

Influence

Inform

Initiate

Innovate

Inspect

Inspire

Integrate

Interpret

Introduce

Investigate

Itemize

L-M-Words

Launch

Lessen

Lift

Lobby

Maintain

Manage

Map

Market

Monitor

Motivate

Multiply

Maximize

Measure

Mediate

Mentor

Merge

Mobilize

Modernize

Modify

N-O-Words

Navigate

Negotiate

Observe

Obtain

Oversee

Outpace

Outperform

Operate

Organize

Originate

Overhaul

P-Words

Participate

Partner

Perform

Persuade

Pioneer

Plan

Prepare

Present

Project

Promote

Provide

Publish

Q-R-Words

Qualify

Rank

Reach

React

Receive

Recommend

Reconcile

Recover

Recruit

Redesign

Quantify

Reduce

Reengineer

Refine

Refocus

Regulate

Rehabilitate

Reinstate

Remodel

Reorganize

Quote

Replace

Represent

Restructure

Resolve

Retain

Revamp

Review

Revise

Revitalize

S-Words

Safeguard

Save

Scrutinize

Secure

Segment

Select

Shape

Showcase

Simplify

Skill

Spearhead

Specify

Standardize

Stimulate

Streamline

Strengthen

Structure

Succeed

Suggest

Supervise

Support

Surpass

Survey

Sustain

T-U-V-Words

Target

Teach

Test

Track

Train

Transcend

Transform

Translate

Triumph

Tutor

Uncover

Unify

Unite

Update

Upgrade

Utilize

Validate

Value

View

Verify

As far as you see, all power words are verbs of action. When you use them in resumes and interviews, you tell a recruiter that you are a doer, a man of action who is ready to work and do his best.

It’s clear you shouldn’t use all 250+ words at once or learn them ALL to blow HRs out of the water:

  • Check them carefully;
  • Choose those corresponding to your skills and describing you as a leader and responsible individual ready for self-development, learning, and working the best you can;
  • Make sure they sound during your answers to a recruiter’s question.

A word is a powerful weapon that can help you win as well as fail. So, use this weapon for your sake.

Have you ever thought of words as a method to influence interviewers? Do you consider it a good technique to improve your resume and help you get a dream job?

photo credit: Interactive e-Resume Template Vol. 1 via photopin (license)