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You Have Transferable Job Skills! Here’s how to highlight them in the interview

Can you make the leap from a customer service job to an administrative job – or vice versa?

While two positions like these seem unrelated, they actually both require some of the same job skills.

To successfully land a different type of role, you must convince your interviewer that you’ll be able to hit the ground running. When your experience doesn’t fit the bill exactly, selling your transferable job skills is the best way to demonstrate your value:

What are transferable skills?

Transferable job skills are ones you can apply in a variety of positions or work environments. They’re skills that make you more marketable and help you adapt easily from one type of role to another. And whether you realize it or not, you probably have already developed a solid foundation of versatile job skills, both in school and on the job. Here are a few examples:

  • Organizational skills – such as planning, prioritizing, coordinating and managing projects, records and tasks.
  • Problem solving skills – analyzing complex work challenges and developing practical solutions.
  • Communication skills – such as writing, speaking, training, presenting and even listening.
  • People management skills – including delegating, coordinating, motivating and supervising.
  • Soft skills – the skills that help you relate well to subordinates/co-workers/managers, communicate effectively, and influence or lead others.
  • Workplace skills – qualities that define your work ethic and character, such as reliability, punctuality, trustworthiness, attention to detail and integrity.

Of course, your skill set is unique. Take some time to inventory skills that you can carry from one job to the next, using your resume as a guide.

How can you highlight them in the interview?

  • Memorize them. Once you’ve created your skills inventory, commit it to memory.
  • Review the position description. Before your interview, carefully examine the job description to identify essential skills – and determine how your skills may be relevant.
  • Practice scenarios. Showcasing transferable skills requires thinking on your feet – so practice is essential. Have a friend ask you potential interview questions, like “How has your experience prepared you for this role?”. Then, rehearse answers that draw on your skills inventory.
  • Wait for the right moment. During the interview, listen for opportunities to highlight ways you could use your transferable skills. When your experience or background is not a perfect match, close the gap by demonstrating how you can apply your existing work skills in the new setting.

Looking for the best jobs in Cool Springs or anywhere else in Middle TN?

Work with Wood Personnel. Whether you’re seeking an administrative, light industrial, management or technical position, Wood Personnel can get you on the path to employment today. Go to work immediately on a temporary assignment in Middle Tennessee, while we search for the right direct opportunity for you.

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