Using your Transferable Skills during COVID-19

by Hatien Van

For thousands of Australians, if you have found yourself stood down, redundant or laid off due to COVID19, there is always opportunity to reset your thinking. While everyone’s personal circumstance is unique, learning to pivot in light of a setback will help build resilience now and in the future. Taking the opportunity to objectively consider alternative work during this time can be a way to refresh and reset during a very unsettling time. Don’t underestimate the skills and experience you have!

If gaining short, temporary or casual employment is your goal, there are transferable skills which you may possess that will come in handy and is at the core of any customer-centric business.

Reinventing yourself in the context of job searching in simple terms means to reposition, evolve or adapt to the position you are interviewing for. Spending some time researching the organisation and industry that you are submitting an application for is time well spent.

Here are 5 transferable skills that are relevant to most jobs:

Being able to effectively address customer needs includes showing empathy, active listening, problem solving and communication. Not only does good Customer Service apply in face-to-face interactions, responding to online customer queries should be timely and professional.

Being an effective communicator takes practice but with a goal to understand a situation or person through active listening, being open-minded, non-verbal cues such as eye contact, body language, tone of voice one can improve their communication skills. Whether your reason is to inform, persuade or motivate through your communication, knowing your audience is just as important to delivering your message. Your written application will be key to demonstrating these skills when submitting your application.

Technology has made our lives so much easier to process, document, analyse and store data. If you consider yourself a computer whizz on Excel spreadsheet, PowerPoint presentation, Word processing or compiling an email these are invaluable skills to have nowadays. In a digital era where Instagram and Facebook dominate our lives, content creation and community management are also key skills to engaging with audiences. Knowledge of specific systems relevant to the industry where your application is being submitted are worth highlighting if appropriate.

Everyday in our lives, we are solving problems. Some problems are easy and some may be complex but when we are faced with any problem, most will consider the options or pathways to take. A different way to look at a problem is around giving the problem different meaning and seeing it as an opportunity. The glass half full is more positive than a glass half empty!

Team work requires collaboration with other individuals to achieve a common goal. In most workplaces, understanding your role, open and honest communication, knowledge sharing are some key qualities to foster a close-knit team dynamic.

Preparing for an interview or preparing your resume for an application is key. Make sure you have some solid examples for each of these skills where you have clearly demonstrated your skills in each of these areas. Be Specific, identify the Task and Action and clearly articulate the Result (and make sure it was a good one!) that you can share either via y

our resume as an achievement or in person at an interview. This is known as the STAR interview method.

You may be currently re-evaluating your work options and reshaping your resume to attract potential employer. If you need some advice or interview practice, book a free consultation with one of our highly experienced HR consultants TODAY. You’ll find the booking link in your welcome email.

We are here to support you and help you succeed.

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Hatien Van is a results driven Marketer with over 15 years of experience bringing customer experiences to life for Retail, Financial Services, Automotive and Lifestyle brands, and is generously donating her expertise and editorial talent to Project Displaced.

Originally published at https://projectdisplaced.com.