Sunday, May 9, 2010

Tips For Identifying Your Strengths And Landing The Job You Want

During an interview, you are often asked about your strengths and weaknesses. If you know your strengths and can speak about your weaknesses and the ways you can improve upon them, you gain an upper hand over other candidates.

Identifying Your Strengths

There are ways to identify your strengths in order to get the job you desire. You can evaluate your experience and education, for example, or you can ask your friends, family, colleagues, or even your boss.

Strengths That Are Based On Knowledge

Knowledge-based strengths are those that you have gained through education and experience. These can be technical knowledge, computer skills, mastery of languages, and other similar skills. If you have excelled in a certain subject in school then you can project it as a strength.

Computer skills are an additional advantage for the job applicant whose field is not computers. Similarly, fluency in a foreign language can be a special advantage. If you have received certificates for courses you have completed then you can also add them as a strength.

Skills Developed In the Workplace

These can be analytical, communication, or planning skills or something similar. Different work scenarios teach us different skills and there might be some arenas in which you might have come out with flying colors.

You might have received accolades for a certain project or your colleagues might find you to be a great co-worker. It is these skills that you need to capitalize upon when you’re preparing your resume.

Know Your Personal Traits

Every person has at least one unique quality or a unique combination of qualities that sets him apart from others. You need to figure out your special qualities. You might be expressive, hard-working, punctual, formal, congenial, dependable, flexible, or a combination of these.

You need to know them and mention them as your strengths in your resume, cover letter or during an interview.

Ask For Help

If you are still facing difficulties in figuring out your strengths, ask you friends or colleagues. You might have certain skills that you have not been aware of. For example, you might be detail-oriented but you have never realized it.

You might be a congenial person to work with or you might have innovative ideas. To find out your weaknesses, you can ask your boss. He is sure to have some listed under your name. Work upon those areas to make yourself as free of these as possible.

A little self-assessment or help from people around you can go far in helping you identify your strengths and ameliorate your weaknesses and land you the job you want.

Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solution’s Six Sigma Online offers online six sigma training and certification classes for six sigma professionals including, lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.