Candidates with strong soft skills are in high demand for many different types of jobs. 

Related: Tips To Future Proof Your Employability

What Are Soft Skills?

Soft skills are the skills that enable you to fit in at a workplace. They include your personality, attitude, flexibility, motivation, and manners. Soft skills are so important that they are often the reason employers decide whether to keep or promote an employee.

Soft skills are different from hard skills (also known as technical skills), which are directly relevant to the job to which you are applying. These are often more quantifiable, and easier to learn than soft skills.

In order to succeed at work, you must get along well with all the people with whom you interact, including managers, co-workers, clients, vendors, customers, and anyone else you communicate with while on the job. These are the types of skills all employers value.

Employers want employees who are able to interact effectively with others. These skills are also very hard to teach, so employers want to know that job candidates already have the soft skills to be successful.

List of Top Soft Skills

Below is a list of some of the most important soft skills employers look for. Develop these skills and emphasize them in job applications, resumes, cover letters, and interviews.

Showing the interviewer that you have the skills the company is seeking will help you get hired.

Communication

How well do you communicate? Communication skills are important in almost every job. You will likely need to communicate with people on the job, whether they are clients, customers, colleagues, employers, or vendors. You will also need to be able to speak clearly and politely with people in person, by phone, and in writing.

You will also likely need to be a good listener. Employers want employees who can not only communicate their own ideas, but who also listen empathetically to others. Listening is a particularly important skill in customer service jobs.

Critical Thinking

No matter what the job, employers want candidates who can analyze situations and make informed decisions. Whether you are working with data, teaching students, or fixing a home heating system, you need to be able to understand problems, think critically, and devise solutions. Skills related to critical thinking include creativity, flexibility, and curiosity.

Leadership

While not every job opening is a leadership role, most employers will want to know that you have the ability to make decisions when push comes to shove, and can manage situations and people. The ability to step up to the plate in a difficult situation and help resolve it is something employers look for in prospective employees

If you are interviewing for a job that has the potential for advancement, the employer will want to know that you have what it takes to become a leader.

Other skills related to leadership include the abilities to resolve problems and conflicts between people, and to make executive decisions.

Positive Attitude

Employers are always seeking people who will bring a positive attitude to the office. They want employees who will be friendly to others, eager to work, and generally a pleasure to be around. Being able to keep things positive is especially important if you’re working in a fast-paced, high-stress work environment.

Teamwork

Hiring managers look for job candidates who can work well with others. Whether you will be doing a lot of team projects or simply attending a few departmental meetings, you need to be able to work effectively with the people around you. You need to be able to work with others even if you do not always see eye to eye.

Some skills related to teamwork include the ability to negotiate with others, and to recognize and appreciate diversity in a team. Another related skill is the ability to accept and apply feedback from others.

Work Ethic

Employers look for job candidates with a strong work ethic. Such people come to work on time, complete tasks in a timely manner, and stay both focused and organized.

They are able to budget their time and complete their work thoroughly. While they can work independently, people with a strong work ethic can also follow instructions.

A strong work ethic is difficult to teach, so employers will be impressed if you can demonstrate it in your job application.

How to Make Your Skills Stand Out

ADD RELEVANT SKILLS TO YOUR RESUME:

Include the terms most closely related to the job in your resume, especially in the description of your work history.

HIGHLIGHT SKILLS IN YOUR COVER LETTER:

You can incorporate soft skills into your cover letter. Include one or two of the skills mentioned here, and give specific examples of instances when you demonstrated these traits at work.

USE SKILL WORDS DURING JOB INTERVIEWS:

You can also use these words in your job interviews. Keep the top skills listed here in mind during your interview, and be prepared to give examples of how you’ve used each. Each job will require different skills and experiences, so make sure you read the job description carefully and focus on the skills listed by the employer.