Being able to identify what your skills are, and relate them to the skills needed for specific jobs is vitally important when you are looking for work.

It can help you:

·         feel more confident about applying for work

·         decide what jobs to apply for

·         write a good CV

·         fill in application forms

·         impress employers at interviews.

Unfortunately, when asked about our skills, most of us struggle to think of more than one or two. We all have them, we just tend to take them for granted. 

Try our four step plan to help you think about your skills and how they might match up with the skills required by a specific job.

And, why not take a look at our 'Skill-related words and phrases' article to help with this activity.

Step 1: List your main life experiences

Take a large sheet of paper. Start noting down all your main life experiences so far. For example:

• school (subjects you studied, projects you’ve done, visits or special events you’ve taken part in)
• part-time work (Saturday jobs, holiday jobs, babysitting, paper-rounds)
• work experience (placements you’ve had through school or college)
• training (from one day first-aid sessions to Modern Apprenticeships)
• college (courses, projects, work placements)
• holidays (you might have learned to ski, read maps or plan a journey)
• home life (maybe you’ve had to look after others or learn practical skills)
• leisure time (interests, hobbies or clubs).

They don’t have to be in any particular order. Just write down what comes into your head. Don’t expect to finish this exercise straight away. You’ll almost certainly forget some things, and want to go back to them later.   

Step 2: List the skills you’ve learned from your experiences

Now look closely at each experience you’ve listed. What skills did you learn from the experience?

For example, at school the project you did for Craft and Design showed:

• how well you can use your hands
• that you can take an idea from a drawing to the production stage.

Try putting the information into a table, like the one below. Take your time as you’ll discover a lot about yourself and this will be helpful in writing your CV, filling in application forms and answering interview questions.
        

You will notice that you develop most skills through more than one activity!

Also, while some skills are specific to a particular job or activity, others are ‘transferable’. You can use them in most jobs or activities.

These are the ‘Core Skills’ - Communication, Numeracy,  Information and Communication Technology, Problem Solving and Working with Others.

My skills list

Step 3: Find out what skills the employer wants

Different jobs need different skills. Before you fill in an application form, write your CV or go for interview you need to think about the skills the employer wants for the specific job you are applying for.

The job advertisement, the job description or the information pack that came from the employer should give you some helpful hints. If they don't, the job profiles on PlanIT Plus (in Career Zone) will help you find out more about the  job.

Some skills are important in most jobs. We call these ‘core’ or ‘transferable’ skills, for example, working as part of a team. Other skills will be specific to that particular type of work or to that specific job, for example, taking care of plants.

What if it’s not clear from the advert?

If you’re not sure from the information you have you could also:

• imagine you are the employer (What skills would you expect the ideal applicant to have?)
• have a look at the job profile, especially the information on the actual work and personal qualities you need for the job.   

Step 4: Compare your skills with the skills needed for the job

Once you’ve listed the skills for the job compare the list with your own skills list.  How well do the two lists match up? How you can show them that you have the skills and qualities they are looking for? Home in on the skills you and the job have in common.

First, think about the job you are applying for and fill in a table like the one below. Try to identify 4 or 5 skills you need for the job, and work out how you can show that you have these skills. 

This will help you get into the habit of giving the employer examples of how you’ve used the skills. You’ll also find it useful to draw up a table where you compare the skills the employer wants with your own skills. 

Now try completing your own table, for a job you would like.                              

You should now have a much clearer picture of your skills.