Help...I don't have any marketable skills!
Posted on July 31, 2017 by Tom Chaplin, One of Thousands of Health and Fitness Coaches on Noomii.
You can pick up the necessary skills for a job when the requirements are in alignment with your natural talents and values.
While gathered around the dinner table one year for Thanksgiving, I overheard a family member say that the reason another family member was unable to find a job was because she had no skills. Although it was a harsh assessment of this woman who wanted a job, the criticism was far from accurate. This woman who happened to had recently made a major life change was actively looking for a new job. She also happens to be very talented individual with numerous skills to match. What her critic was observing was the lack of an easily recognizable professional title or description. She could relate to hard skills but not the softer ones.
Before going further, I want to talk about the difference between skills and talents. Let’s say a talent is something that feels very much a part of who you are. It may be something you love to do. It feels natural and comes easily, like something that’s innate. It may be an activity you gravitate to in your spare time.
A skill is more likely something you’ve learned on the job. For example, you may have learned how to repair motorcycles and if that’s something you like, there’s likely a value or innate talent that is being triggered, such as a love of diagnosing problems, working independently, uncovering hidden problems, alleviating a customer’s frustrations, providing a superior service. In this example, your preference may be to work exclusively with inanimate objects rather than people. Fixing a person’s problems can be much more complex and challenging than finding a solution for a broken machine.
Although the skill you’ve learned is motorcycle repair, your natural talents and values are dictating how you work. Therefore, you can easily feel passionate about your job. You’re also likely good at what you do because you bring so much of who you are to the job.
Perhaps your marketable skills are not something that everyone identifies with. You may not teach in a classroom but you may possess teaching skills regardless. Teaching generally means strong communicating skills that allow you to easily pass along your knowledge to others. There are numerous professions where strong communicators are valued, i.e., training, sales, speakers, writers and more.
When asked, many will trip all over their words trying to describe their most important skills and talents. I’ve worked with clients at the executive level who overlook some of their most valuable skills, so forget trying to name them. A big reason is because we’re so close to what we do on a daily basis that we take our strengths for granted and don’t even consider them.
The woman who was labeled unmarketable at Thanksgiving, is a dedicated, ethical, tireless worker with very strong problem solving and managerial skills. She’s also a quick learner. Combine all this with her strong, outgoing personality, she has the knack to hold people accountable and keep them honest. She’s also highly creative, imaginative and good at repetitive tasks. She possesses many of the traits that any employer would benefit from.
Remember Erin Brockovich with no legal knowledge, skills, training whatsoever, was able to throw herself in her work and excel. It was the right environment to freely express her strong, outgoing personality and commitment to honesty. When these ingredients were combined with her deep compassion for others, her career took off. She was able to accomplish a great deal more than attorneys with years of experience.
Presenting yourself in such a way that communicates your numerous assets is the 1st step to making your transition into a new job a success.
