CURIOSITY
The hiring landscape has changed significantly in recent times, with the pandemic and trends like quiet quitting and job hopping causing a shift in the skills that employers prioritize. Technical skills, which used to be highly valued, are no longer the most sought-after traits. Instead, hiring managers are more interested in identifying skills that can be used to build other skills. According to research by Cappfinity, having the following five behavioral skills as a foundation can allow individuals to acquire new skills and talents, and continue to utilize them throughout their careers.
- Curiosity: If you ask good questions, investigate the world around you, and are always looking to learn and expand your horizons, then curiosity is a skill that you possess. In a job interview setting, you can demonstrate this skill by discussing how asking good questions has helped you to work more efficiently and effectively, both in and outside of the workplace.
- Communication: The ability to communicate clearly and effectively is crucial in any work environment. This skill involves both verbal and written communication, and the ability to adapt your communication style to different audiences and situations. To showcase your communication skills in a job interview, you can provide examples of how you have effectively communicated with team members, clients, or customers in the past.
- Adaptability: Being adaptable means being able to adjust to changing circumstances and being open
LEARNING AGILITY
Ensure you convey to hiring managers times when you have learned something and applied it quickly, or even a time where you had to learn something new and adjust your thinking.
GROWTH MINDSET
To clarify, individuals with a growth mindset tend to actively seek out challenges and difficult projects as a way to demonstrate their perseverance and adaptability, rather than only taking on opportunities where they feel confident in their chances of success. When discussing your experiences in an interview, highlighting a specific instance where you faced a challenge and were able to overcome it can showcase your growth mindset and strength in overcoming obstacles.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS
BY NICKY GARCEA
3 MINUTE READ
After the pandemic and recent trends like The Great Resignation, quiet quitting, and job hopping, the hiring game has completely changed. Skills that used to be prioritized in job interviews, such as the technical skills found on a résumé, are no longer the most appealing traits that employers are seeking.
Instead, hiring managers are keen on identifying skills that build out other skills. Research from my company, Cappfinity, shows that by having these five behavioral skills as a foundation, individuals can acquire new skills and talents and continue to utilize them throughout their careers.
The best way to understand yourself from a skills perspective is to consider the things you’re good at, but also the things that give you energy. Those two components will truly allow you to develop that skill into a strength. Here are the five skills we have identified that hiring managers are the most impressed by in today’s competitive work environment, and how you can recognize them in yourself.
CURIOSITY
If you ask great questions, investigate the world around you, and are always expanding your horizons, then consider curiosity a skill of yours. You often find new situations and experiences exciting because they provide opportunities for you to discover more.
To demonstrate this in a job interview setting, think about the ways in which asking good questions has supported you in your work. Be sure to think of a time when being curious allowed you to gather information to do something quicker or more efficiently, in the workplace or even outside of the workplace, and highlight that example to the interviewer.
LEARNING AGILITY
Do you enjoy learning new things about a wide range of topics? Can you pivot quickly from discovering information about one thing and applying it, to then quickly moving on to something new? If so, then consider learning agility one of your skills.
Ensure you convey to hiring managers times when you have learned something and applied it quickly, or even a time where you had to learn something new and adjust your thinking.
GROWTH MINDSET
Those who possess a growth mindset have the desire to conquer new challenges, even if they require persistence to succeed. They have an inner belief that they can achieve their goals and find it motivating to work on unfamiliar projects.
It is important to make the distinction that those with a growth mindset seek out projects that are difficult in order to showcase their persistence and resilience, rather than being open to any and all opportunities in which they think they can be successful. In an interview, highlighting a time where you were able to overcome a challenge that allowed you to grow will show off this strength.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS
If you have the capacity to look at issues from different perspectives and enjoy consulting with multiple people to identify next steps and make informed decisions, then you may be an expert at critical analysis. You are able to grasp complex concepts, including numerical information, and can draw themes. You don’t necessarily need to be a mathematician, but you may possibly have an interest in data. Describe a time where having a different perspective on something added to a project at work.
COLLABORATION
Having strong communication, problem-solving, and teamwork skills can accelerate your professional development and increase your potential for advancement within an organization. These skills are valuable for anyone seeking a new job, returning to the workforce, or starting their career after graduating. By showcasing these skills to hiring managers during an interview, you demonstrate that you are not only qualified for the current role, but also have the potential to take on leadership roles in the future.
