In an uncertain job market, skills are your best security. Transferable skills are generic and necessary for almost any kind of work.
THE FRONT NINE
Managing change
Change is a constant part of our daily lives. Everyone needs to spot trends and respond to new information. In a more proactive way, it is best to anticipate change and seize opportunities. Perhaps you are a change agent, one of the innovators who create change, or maybe you are skilled at moving through change or facilitating the implementation of changes. Is change your area of expertise?
Communicating
No man (or woman) is an island and to succeed you must hear what others have to say and express your own thoughts and feelings clearly and diplomatically. If communication is key to your personal brand you may offer a multitude of services including writing, speaking, training, negotiating, persuading, coaching, or counseling.
Leading
Eventually you will need to direct, inspire, give instruction to, be accountable for, or otherwise take a leadership role with others. If leadership is an important part of your skill set, make sure your personal brand emphasises this.
Learning
Learning is a life-long venture. Perhaps you are skilled at finding information, conducting research, integrating ideas, or collecting data. Those skilled at learning will keep up-to-date on current trends and technology. They won’t get left behind. Do you see learning or processing information as a key part of your brand?
Working with numbers and data
At some point we all need to either collect, analyse, calculate, or work with numbers and data. For some people this is a necessary evil, but for others the devil is not in the details. If you are a numbers or data whiz, consider if this is important to your personal brand.
Problem Solving
Appreciative minded people would rather call this capitalising on opportunities, but either way you look at it there are always problems to solve or situa-tions that can be improved. If you are good at problem solving consider making this skill part of your brand. Opportunities abound for people who can solve problems and make improvements.
Achieving results
Everyone must achieve results to succeed at work. Some people are especially adept at expediting processes to accomplish goals. If you work with high efficiency and effectiveness, this may be an important skill to emphasise in your brand.
Working in a team
You need to work with others. Some people prefer to be independent and find the team aspects of work difficult or unrewarding. Others have a knack for harnessing human resources to build consensus, cooperation, and collaboration to produce results. They are often astute at finding ways to build relationships with just about anybody. If taking a team approach is your strong point, think of how you express this in your personal brand.
Thinking
You need to know when to use your various thinking skills at work. The best approach to a situation might require practical, creative, global, logical, or humanistic thinking. Some people find it stimulating to think through and consider situations from various perspectives and mindsets. Usually our thinking is honed to enhance another skill. For example, you may use a humanistic approach to improve communication or teamwork or a logical approach to solve a problem.
Assessing and developing your transferable skills will help ensure your success.
Source: Donna Dunning, PhD, is a psychologist, certified teacher, member of the MBTI ® International Training Faculty, and director of Dunning Consulting Inc.
Contributed by Mrugesh Desai, Manager, Ilford Centre, 5E Ltd