Many Philippine companies prioritize having soft skills over years of experience and education when it comes to hiring people. While it’s important to beef up your academic and professional credentials, these qualifications aren’t enough to get ahead of the competition. Whether you’re looking for a part-time stint or aiming for the highest paying jobs in the Philippines, you need to develop soft skills to land the job you’re eyeing and thrive in any work environment.
Soft skills, also known as employability skills, are competencies, attitudes, and personal characteristics that can help you perform well in any position or job situation. These skills are often innate, but you can acquire and hone them over time with the right mindset and willingness to invest your time and energy. If you want to become highly “employable,” impress potential employers, and boost your chances of succeeding at any job, here are several in-demand employability skills you may need to develop:
Adaptability
Adaptability is the ability to adjust and adapt to changes in the workplace. When you have this skill, it means you’re flexible. You’re someone who’s not easily discouraged when plans, situations, and other conditions don’t go as expected. Instead of complaining and fretting about the sudden changes or introduction of new things at work, you start thinking of ways to handle the situation to make it work to your advantage. If you have adaptability skills, you’re also open to learning new things, willing to take risks, and have a positive mindset.
Because change is the only thing constant in life, being adaptable is a significant element in professional success. After all, when you embrace the reality that nothing is permanent, you become more proactive, resilient, and able to flourish regardless of work conditions or environment. If you want to hone your adaptability skills, here are several things you can do:
• Be open to accepting new roles or assignments.
• Keep learning new things out of your comfort zone.
• Keep up with new trends in your industry.
• Practice seeing the positive aspects of different situations.
• Learn from your mistakes instead of wallowing in discouragement.
Reliability
Reliability is another essential employability skill that will entice employers and help you get ahead. Being reliable, in essence, means you can be trusted to perform your responsibilities and complete your assignments—even without constant monitoring or prodding. You do what you say you will do. While this may seem pretty straightforward, being dependable requires a variety of competencies.
For one, you should be organized and able to manage your time wisely. You must know how to prioritize, balance your workload, and schedule tasks to ensure everything gets done on time. Being reliable also requires self-management. That means you’re fundamentally your own boss. You keep track of deadlines, manage your tasks, and deliver on your commitments with the best effort. Boost your reliability skills by taking your responsibilities seriously, analyzing your situation carefully to avoid overcommitting, and holding yourself accountable at all times.
Self-Motivation
Do you often quit when things get tough at work or when you don’t get the results you want? If so, you probably need to improve your self-motivation skills. This innate ability will help you stay focused on your goals and encourage you to continue moving forward even when things don’t go your way or you feel overwhelmed. Ultimately, you are more likely to succeed at anything when you are intrinsically motivated because your natural response to situations—both good and bad—is to persevere, look for opportunities, and finish what you started, despite challenges and minimal external support.
Do you want to develop this inner motivation to keep going regardless of circumstances? Consider the following tips:
• Break down big goals into simple, doable steps to make them more attainable.
• Celebrate small victories to keep you motivated.
• Manage your expectations to avoid disappointments.
• Believe in your capability to make things happen.
• Give yourself time to de-stress and relax when you feel overwhelmed.
Teamwork
Whatever your profession is, you’ll probably spend a significant amount of time working with colleagues, supervisors, managers, clients, and other stakeholders on projects and activities. As such, you need the ability to work well with them to maximize everyone’s skills and achieve a common objective, even if you sometimes fail to see eye-to-eye.
Perhaps you find collaborating with others slightly challenging. If so, below are some strategies that can help you develop your teamwork skills:
• Find a good role model with strong teamwork qualities you can imitate.
• Keep a positive mindset to create a welcoming and supportive working environment.
• Focus on solving issues instead of complaining.
• Learn to accept both positive and constructive feedback.
• Open your line of communication and learn to respect other people’s opinions and ideas, especially if they’re contrary to your own.
The items discussed above are some of the top employability skills you need to succeed in the workplace. Perhaps you can conduct an honest self-evaluation to determine which of these abilities you need to improve so that you can begin working on them. With patience, perseverance, and a positive attitude, you can hone these remarkable skills and use them to stand out from the competition and achieve your career goals.