You’ve got skills. Flaunt them.
Skills can be anything from a personality trait (i.e. organized, reliable) to a specific software expertise (i.e. Salesforce, C++). Be clear and concise when you feature these on your resume and Linkedin profile. It should be a 2-second glance into your strongest features.
Where should you feature skills on your resume and Linkedin?
How should you feature skills on your resume and Linkedin?
I’ll break it down for you.
Formatting Skills On Your Resume
One to two-word descriptions are the best way to highlight your skills. It allows the reader to get a quick glimpse into your biggest value-adds.
If you’re not in a rigid field, you can get creative in the way that you format your resume to make your skills stand out. Add related small icons next to your skills. Create space for a skills section that draws your eye.
The order of your skills also matters.
The skills section on your resume should change according to what jobs you are applying to. You may want to draw attention to one set of skills for Job A and a different set of skills for Job B. Put careful thought into what you want to feature and when.
Formatting Skills On Linkedin
On Linkedin, there is a specified section conveniently labeled “Skills.”
You can feature many skills on your profile, but be careful not to fall into the tempting trap of listing more than 10.
The order of your skills also matters here. Only a handful show automatically, the rest are revealed when you click on the “show more” button.
Keep in mind that you want others to “endorse” your skills on Linkedin. That means that peers in your network approve that you are, indeed, as good at that skill as you say you are. That’s your reality check – be honest with yourself and to others checking out your profile.
Pro-tip: skills are often used as keywords. Keywords are valuable to include in your professional materials to match your qualifications with the job description – they are one of the most critical components of your professional package.
Sarah Sax is the Founder of Write For The Job.