Marketable Job Traits You Didn’t Know You Had

marketable job traits

After working for a few years, it can be easy to lose track of what skills you have in your toolbox. 

You might think of yourself as a certain type of worker or trained to take on a specific kind of work, but are you selling yourself short? 

Each job brings with it the opportunity to add skills and experiences. Is it possible you’ve got more marketable skills than you realize? 

Here are some examples of skills you’ve probably picked up along the way without even noticing: 

1. Problem-solving expertise.

Simply as a product of working in the world and getting both older and wiser, you’ve learned how to listen to or assess a problem and make a decision on how to solve it. This is a great skill to have! Sometimes a creative problem solver is just the person a team needs to make great strides toward success. If you’ve worked on projects where you’ve had to make decisions quickly and with conviction, congratulations, you’re a problem solver. 

2. Conflict resolution.

When your coworkers are having a rough time, do they come to you? Have you helped break the tension between people on your team? Are you able to sit between two people, listen to their arguments and complaints, and help them find a solution that will work as an acceptable compromise between them? Conflict resolution skills are essential, as they help to keep the peace and production among coworkers, allowing work to continue uninterrupted. 

3. Planning.

Do you see the details in the big picture, or are you focused on the possibilities? When a major project comes around, can you immediately start to work out all the steps needed in order to bring it to completion? Are you great at sticking to deadlines and making sure everyone does their part — and knows what their part is — to finish a project? Those are the trademarks of a great organizer and planner. 

4. Curiosity.

An underrated and often overlooked trait, curiosity means always wanting to learn more and understand better. It’s a willingness to ask questions and try to gain knowledge to do a better job and take on new tasks. Curious people are leaders who are always looking to improve and aren’t likely to shy away from learning a new skill. 

5. Communication skills.

This is a big one: The ability to communicate clearly and concisely, in written notes and in conversation, can make or break a team. It can be the difference between everyone understanding their roles and responsibilities and a project falling apart at the seams. It’s also the ability to be a good listener, understand and retain key details, and share those when needed. Without good communication skills, things can go downhill quickly. 

Did any of these sound familiar to you and what you bring to the workplace? The next time you’re looking for a new job, or are up for a promotion at work, make sure to talk up these skills.

Contact Debbie’s Staffing 

At Debbie’s Staffing, we’re ready to help you understand everything you bring to the table and the workplace. Give us a call today to help polish up your resume or start the process of looking for a new job. Don’t sell yourself short — you’ve got more marketable skills than you realize.