Character qualities for work. Professional skills and personal qualities when writing a resume. Examples of personal qualities in a resume

The current situation in the labor market has led to the fact that the number of resumes significantly exceeds the number of vacancies. As a result, when filling a vacancy, a competition begins, and the applicant must make his application form something like a business card.

Below are examples of what personal qualities can be indicated so that the questionnaire does not go unnoticed by the employer. This technique will attract the attention of a potential employer and allow you to get into a personal meeting.

Hundreds of applicants applying for one vacant position in the company invite HR officers to evaluate their candidacy. Therefore, you need to stand out from other applicants by pointing out not only the relevance of the experience gained in your previous job, but also the personal characteristics unique to this candidate.

It is the combination of “business qualities plus personal characteristics” that are assessed by personnel officers and influence the decision to enroll a person on the staff. The personal qualities of the applicant play the same role as his professionalism!

Brevity and completeness of information

The first is the application form. The resume should be short, concise, and succinct. It is worth indicating only those personal and professional qualities that correspond to the proposed position. Listing all previously held positions is appropriate only if each previous position is relevant to the position for which the applicant is applying.

Moreover, employers are increasingly less likely to hire a person with a long track record; experience can be gained. Much more valuable properties have become:

competence;
compliance of the candidate’s knowledge with the employer’s requirements;
livability;
personal interest in the work (implies the profile of the organization in general and the current project in particular).

It is these personal qualities that personnel officers pay attention to in a resume. For an experienced employer, a young man who recently graduated from college may seem a more interesting candidate than a specialist with N years of experience who has not changed jobs in all these years (and, perhaps, because of this is incompetent in some new areas).

Emphasis on personality

The second important point is personal positive qualities, or more precisely, their correspondence to the position for which the person is applying. Take, for example, such a popular property as organizational skills.

This quality is undoubtedly positive. But is it worth adding it to your resume if a person gets a job as a salesperson or cashier?

A resume for such a position should focus on the following characteristics of the applicant:

perseverance;
contact;
stress resistance;
punctuality.

These personal characteristics will no doubt be appreciated by employers who are interested in hiring a competent employee who can quickly integrate into the team and do an excellent job.

A system administrator may not have communication skills, but not a middle manager, for whom this personal characteristic develops into part of professional skills.

A universal set of personal characteristics of a candidate that will appeal to the employer

In the event that an applicant is applying for a position for which the candidate has not yet developed experience, it is worth emphasizing his own prospects.

Those. List in your resume, first of all, not valuable professional skills (which do not yet exist), but positive personal qualities that will indicate the potential of the applicant.

There is no completely universal set of personal characteristics for an ideal resume - only an average set of properties can be given, which in most cases are considered positive when applying for a job. Which personal characteristics to choose depends on the specific vacant position.

Personal characteristics – sample list:

The ability to be objective. It depends on the employee’s ability to sensibly assess the situation and those around him whether the subjective perception of what is happening will become the cause of conflicts.
The ability to remain attentive. It is impossible, as they say, to take such a person by surprise - he is always collected, is not surprised by anything, and is difficult to bring him into confusion.
It is also worth mentioning observation. Sometimes climbing the career ladder depends on this personal trait.
The candidate must have the following mental qualities - they will be appreciated by the vast majority of employers:
- availability of analytical skills;
- the presence of consistency and flexibility of thinking;
- the ability to find the optimal solution in any situation, including non-standard ones.
Communication skills - as mentioned above, it is advisable to indicate them depending on the vacancy for which the applicant is applying. For a number of positions, the success of the project depends on the employee’s ability to conduct business negotiations. In any case, it wouldn’t hurt to focus on features such as:
- non-conflict;
- the ability to build a constructive dialogue with any opponent;
- , i.e. ability to lead a team;
- the desire to defend a personal opinion, a personal point of view.
and peace. The already mentioned competence attracts the potential employee’s ability to work independently. Such a person does not require constant control from his superiors - the employee clearly understands the circle of his job responsibilities and is ready to cope with his tasks.

Attention! These positive qualities must correspond to reality - during the interview, the candidate will have to prove that he fully possesses all the personal qualities that the applicant wished to indicate in the application form.

In addition, it is worth showing sincere interest in getting a position - prepare counter questions for the interview, prepare answers to possible questions from the employer in advance, ask about the history of the company, etc.

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What does an employer want to know about a potential employee, in addition to his education, experience and professional skills? Usually this is the attitude towards work, towards other people (employees and clients) and career goals.

Personal qualities for a resume should look like a brief but succinct description of your advantages. It is logical to add negative qualities to a resume only if the employer requires them.

You should write about yourself honestly. The deception will be revealed during the interview and will become a serious disadvantage for the applicant. It is better not to write anything than to attribute non-existent virtues to yourself.

What qualities are best left unstated?

This directly depends on the desired position. The manager and head of the sales organization should indicate the relevant business qualities for the resume. Creativity or love for children has no place here.

Communication skills should not be specified for specialties that require concentration and perseverance. And they shouldn't be mentioned to people creative professions: designers and artists.

It’s worth writing about attractive appearance and athletic training only if they are required for your future profession.

How to Avoid Patterns

Recruiters are annoyed by typical and hackneyed “responsibilities” with “punctuality”. The applicant is automatically included in the list of identical applicants. In addition, the gaze does not linger on banal phrases. The time a recruiter spends on viewing does not exceed half a minute.

How to get his attention? Simply reveal the meaning of a word as an explanation or replace it. As an example: the expression “I perform my duties in good faith” is better than the standard “responsibility”. “Communication skills” are described in more detail if special courses and business trainings have been completed.

From a psychological point of view, it is more useful to do without the particle “not”. As an example: “non-conflict” - friendly, peace-loving, calm.

It is more effective to describe personal character strengths in a detailed, but laconic manner in a resume; examples of more effective disclosure of personal qualities are given in the tables.

It happens that the employer requires a list of shortcomings. Which negative qualities of a person are suitable for a resume are determined by the intended position.

Writing example

We have summarized the most commonly used personal qualities for resumes in tables.

Character strengths and personal qualities of a person for a resume

Strengths for a resume	Synonymous expressions (which are added or used instead of character traits)
Responsible	I am conscientious about my work
Punctual	I always complete tasks on time
Communicable	I easily find common language with people
	I always find an individual approach to the client
	I try to find an approach to each child (student)
Polite	Doesn't need rephrasing
Polite	I am always polite and remain calm in any conflict situation
Creative	I search for and implement original solutions even for mundane tasks
Trainable	I am constantly engaged in self-improvement, improve my qualifications through courses and trainings, and am ready for further training.
Efficient	Able to work productively while focusing on end goals
Stress-resistant	I maintain composure under any circumstances
Balanced	Most often it is possible to leave it like this
Initiative
Organized
Careful
Disciplined

Negative personality traits and aspects of character presented as strengths

A creative approach to telling a story about yourself helps you find a new job, even if the requirements for the vacancy are specified in formalized formulations. What if this is the first test of real interest?

It must be remembered that it is impossible to create a universal list of characteristics for all companies. It is better to prepare several versions of your resume and prepare to argue what you wrote at the interview.

Special opinion

Ivan Dmitrievskikh

Head of HR Department Belitsoft

Personal qualities by which an employer chooses a future employee are divided into four groups. It is important to decide on each of them, not only to pass the preliminary selection by the recruiter, but also to stand out among other resumes on the manager’s desk:

1. Flexibility in communication. It is important for any manager to know how easily you will fit into the team and strengthen the team, and to be sure that the amount of time spent on you during the “breaking in” period will be reduced to a minimum. Personal qualities of this group usually include:

the ability to find a common language (works better than “communication skills,” which many perceive as an addiction to “just talk”);
ability to resolve conflict situations;
a team player or a lone hero (different jobs require different qualities - try to determine for yourself what you are better at);
leadership skills;
the ability to find a balance of support and pressure to achieve common goals, etc.

2. Responsibility is a very important quality, which for some reason the younger generation pays little attention to in their resumes:

attitude towards deadlines;
How ready are you to put aside your personal life “if there’s a war tomorrow”;
attitude to quality (how to do it right - faster or better?);
attitude to detail - you prefer to collect complete information and check every detail, or you understand that you will never collect 100% of the necessary information and sometimes a decision must be made when it is insufficient;
attitude towards problems (shoals, fakaps) - “it’s not my fault” or there is an understanding of the cause-and-effect relationships of the problem that has arisen (next time, to prevent this, do this, and to reduce losses, do this);
Do you have systems thinking?

3. Motivation - internal or external - is based on your internal principles or values, or external factors are needed:

“to” or “from” - achieving something (bonuses, career, status, experience) or avoiding (punishment, for example);
understanding the balance of pleasure and necessity - which part of the work in the previous place aroused passion, and which killed with boredom.

4. Your energy - there is nothing worse for an employer than taking on an expensive burnt-out professional:

why you left your previous job (why you started looking for a job);
relations with management at the previous place;
what are you looking for in a new job?
what hobbies do they have outside of work (usually burned out people don’t have them under the pretext of “no time”).

All these qualities are indicated in a separate column of professional qualities or in cover letter. For example:

“Over the course of five years of work, I rotated through three departments. I easily found a common language with colleagues in each of them. The ability to provide timely support has always helped with this. There were a couple of conflicts, but they were resolved fairly quickly. Unfortunately, six months ago I realized that I had reached the ceiling in my professional growth. And my energy is much more than was needed there. In my new position, I am looking for an opportunity to work with a strong mentor and implement my ideas.”

Irina Verevka

Head of Recruiting at the Center for Human Capital Development

When looking for a job and writing a resume, it is important to understand that the employer is interested in the result. The main question for a recruiter: how can a potential employee make the company better? Therefore, it is preferable to formulate personal qualities for a resume in the format of soft skills, that is, flexible non-specialized skills and competencies. Their presence allows the employee to solve non-standard problems, effectively interact with the team, and manage their own performance.

Formulating personality traits in soft skills format with specific results makes the resume more presentable and professional. It helps the employer understand what a potential employee can achieve.

But when describing personal qualities, the applicant often oversaturates the resume with them. Therefore, before formulating another point, think about whether it is really necessary? A sense of proportion is very important. Many characteristics give rise to doubts among recruiters and provoke questions. For example, you indicated a quality such as “charisma”. Can you explain how it manifests itself and how to evaluate it?

If the employer still has questions, be prepared to confirm your personal qualities. Prepare several examples that prove your serious attitude to the matter and ability to take responsibility. If in doubt, refuse to indicate a particular trait. If you don't include anything necessary for the job in your resume, the interviewer will ask leading questions.

Kristina Korepina

hr-marketing specialist

The article provides an excellent table for rephrasing hackneyed descriptive adjectives. But I propose to go even further and identify personal qualities through examples from practice. That is: “I come to meetings 5 minutes in advance to have time to get comfortable” - this phrase is about punctuality, about responsibility and about good manners.

Or “I reply to any incoming letter at the post office that the letter is in progress. And this is not an automatic response” - this is about high accounting service, about customer focus.

This kind of storytelling will definitely catch the eye of HR and at the same time reveal you as a creative person!

Personal qualities in your resume should highlight your strengths in a business environment and not be formulaic. At best, they won’t read template characteristics; at worst, they will think that you copied them from another resume or did not consider it necessary to devote time and attention to your own wording (and here the resume will lose several points in the eyes of the employer).

To create a list of personal qualities that will be added to your resume:

remember your last birthday in the company: what did you wish for? How were you described? what colleagues, subordinates, managers, partners said about you;
Remember 2-3 difficult work tasks over the past year: what made you succeed at them? What personal qualities helped you? thanks to what qualities you overcame difficulties along the way;
look at the two resulting lists, mark the ones that intersect, evaluate the remaining ones, create your own list to add to your resume (3-5 points).

Sometimes, if it is difficult to write personal qualities in a resume, it is better not to write them at all. The only thing is that in this case, prepare to be asked about them in an interview, and most likely you will have to talk about them.

Victor Nazarishin

Head of HR SIM-NETWORKS

On the one hand, the personal qualities (soft skills) that will allow a person to be effective in a position are indicated in the professiogram and the position profile, which is created on the basis of the corresponding professiogram. Please read these documents before deciding on your personal list.

On the other hand, when a recruiter publishes a vacancy, he describes the requirements for the personal qualities of the person the company is looking for for this position. Ideally, determine a summary list of personal qualities that correspond to both the professional profile and the employer’s requirements. These personal qualities and their manifestation are of interest to the employer.

Taking into account the fact that the requirements of employers are different and they do not always coincide with the classic vision of a professionogram (expert assessment), it is recommended to describe personal qualities not in a resume, but in a covering letter!

First of all, focus the employer’s attention on those personal qualities that are important in your profession. For example, it is important for a project manager to be able to manage time wisely and be punctual. And if you are applying for a position that involves monotonous, repetitive work, you should declare your perseverance, consistency and love of order.

Well, you should avoid cliches - the standard “communication skills” and “stress resistance” in your resume will, at best, be ignored.

“What are your strengths and weaknesses?” - this is a question you will most likely be asked at any interview. And in modern resumes the column “Strengths and weaknesses” is simply missing. But if you’ve already decided to write about it, then let’s “present everything in the best possible way.” A universal rule is that even your weaknesses in your resume should be attractive to the employer. For clarity, let's look at a few examples.

Weaknesses in a resume (relative to the requirements of a specific vacancy):

There is no work experience at all (but there is specialized education and a willingness to gain experience with “0”)
No specialized education (but have work experience and a desire to develop in this profession)
No knowledge of special programs (but there is a desire and readiness to master them as soon as possible)
There is a small child (but there will be no more maternity leave, grandparents help with the child)
Insufficient level of foreign language proficiency (but there is a desire and readiness to “pull it up” in the shortest possible time)

It’s definitely not worth writing about character weaknesses on your resume.

Strengths in your resume

Strengths on a resume are essentially your experience, education, knowledge and skills. There is no need to highlight any of this in your resume. It is better to emphasize during the interview that your experience, education, knowledge, skills and personal qualities make you a suitable candidate for the vacancy.

Character strengths can be mentioned in a resume. More often than not, these are all your personal qualities. Try to get away from the hackneyed “communication skills”, “punctuality”, “responsibility”, “dutifulness”, “high performance”. Describe your qualities in simple phrases. For example, “I easily find a common language with strangers,” “I take a responsible approach to solving the tasks assigned to me,” “I always complete the work efficiently and on time.”

During the interview, be prepared to share how your character strengths helped you solve a work problem.

Getting a first job is a troublesome and incomprehensible matter. In college, they don’t teach you how to fill out forms, and if they talk about it, it’s in a general sense, without specifics. That’s why young people get stupefied when they need to name a person’s weaknesses. What to write? How, in general, should we approach such points? How are the strengths and weaknesses of a person determined in the context of professional activity? Let's figure it out.

Self-knowledge

Let's start with the fact that a person, one way or another, evaluates his character, inclinations, and abilities. He knows more about this than anyone else. A person’s weaknesses are an obstacle that hinders his realization. We usually consider these to be laziness, absent-mindedness, gluttony, love of sleep, desire to have fun rather than work. But this has an indirect relation to the place of service. And is it worth telling your employer that you like to eat cakes three times a day? This does not particularly affect the performance of work duties.

When you need to talk about yourself, you need to focus on the conditions in which you will have to work. That is, analyze your qualities, identify those that will help you work, and those that will hinder you. Pay special attention to the point “person’s weaknesses”. Say too much and they will refuse to hire you. If you hide what is relevant, you will be fired in a few days. The moment is very subtle. It should be approached in a balanced, thoughtful, careful, but honest manner. Below we will try to fill out this item in practice in such a way as to avoid negative consequences. But first, take a piece of paper and write down what you consider to be your weaknesses. Don't think about work yet. Record everything that comes to mind. We'll sift out the excess later.

How to analyze your abilities

To describe a person’s weaknesses for a questionnaire, it is necessary to carefully understand the character, habits, and internal attitudes. Would you say that only a specialist can do this? You will be wrong! Now you will see everything for yourself. Sit comfortably, armed with a pen, and make lists. Enter in the hotel columns the following:

works well;
likes to perform;
It doesn’t work out at all;
still needs to be mastered;
causes disgust;
it is done, but with a creak, without enthusiasm.

If you approach this process thoroughly, you will get the basis for identifying a person’s weaknesses for the questionnaire. This is, in principle, what specialists do. They extract this information during conversation, observation, and testing. But you know yourself, and therefore things will go faster. And to make your work easier, here is a list of what are considered weaknesses. Focus on this data, but try not to copy it. Use your own brains!

Human weaknesses: examples

The employer needs you to keep things moving and not stand still. A person is given a range of responsibilities that must be strictly fulfilled. His personality traits may interfere with his work. To identify such inconsistencies, a column is filled in that identifies a person’s weaknesses. Believe me, there is nothing shameful in this. We are all different, different from each other. One can command, the other is better at executing. Both individuals will find a place that will bring them satisfaction and profit, and benefit the common cause. Weaknesses can be as follows (for the employee):

lack of inclination to communicate, low sociability;
isolation;
little experience;
excessive emotionality;
lack of specialized education;
poor skills;
conflict;
lenient attitude towards lies.

The list is very approximate in order to guide those who are faced with the problem for the first time. Here you can add, for example, fear of public speaking (if necessary), inability to count money (if necessary), and so on. It should be based on the job responsibilities for which you are applying.

Strengths

By analogy, you can praise yourself in a questionnaire. Indicate all your talents, abilities, skills, experience. Eg:

strength of will;
endurance;
durability;
determination;
calmness;
organization;
clarity of mind;
determination;
communication skills;
initiative;
patience;
love of truth;
justice;
thrift;
business abilities;
financial skills;
tolerance;
spirituality;
analytics;
ability to compromise;
artistry;
accuracy;
respectful attitude towards leaders.

The list is also very approximate. It will be easier to correct it if they explain to you what you will need to do at work. Be sure to inquire. And from the responsibilities, highlight the skills that are necessary for their successful implementation.

What is desirable to hide

It is not recommended to lie when filling out the questionnaire. But there are moments that are better not to talk about. For example, you lack willpower. That is, there were no moments in life when it needed to be demonstrated. So you think that it doesn’t exist. Then just don't include this item. There's nothing wrong with that. Believe me, this quality, called positive by society, is questionable for an employer. If a worker is stubborn, having all the inclinations to achieve the goal, it is difficult to deal with him. Such people complain to the courts and can write a statement to the authorities. Why do management need these problems?

When filling out the questionnaire, focus more on business characteristics. This is where you have to be extremely sincere. Each item indicated in the questionnaire will be checked in practice. It will be awkward and embarrassing if you are caught in a lie. If you don’t know how to talk to a client, point it out. This is a profitable business - they will teach you. And for honesty you will receive bonuses, albeit intangible ones.

You know, interviews, as a rule, are conducted by people who know how to highlight a person’s strengths and weaknesses. Examples constantly pass before their eyes. Involuntarily, you will learn to notice the subtleties and nuances of behavior and project them onto characters. When you come across such a form, fill it out and read what you write twice. It is necessary to take a look at your data as if from the outside. You have two lists. Look at the list ratio. It is desirable that there be three times more positive, strong qualities than weak ones. Judge for yourself, who needs a worker who can’t do anything and doesn’t want to? It is foolish to give such an individual a chance to grow. And what do you think?

Each person has strengths and weaknesses of character that can play to his advantage or to his detriment. Especially when applying for a job or during an interview on which your future depends.

Human Strengths

It is known that among us ordinary people there are no “saints”. And each person has his own advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to the first of them. In order to “shine” in live speech during an interview and live communication, think in advance about the qualities that you think are inherent to you.

An example of a good list of a person's strengths:

Communication skills;
Determination;
Integrity;
Performance;
Friendliness;
Stress resistance;
Responsibility;
Punctuality, etc.

If you list at least some of the above traits and qualities, that's half the battle. If the manager sees how seriously you approach this issue, he will appreciate your ability to correctly express thoughts and convey the essence. You should not praise yourself and promise what you cannot fulfill.

For example, if you do not specialize in a particular industry, but you are asked provocative questions about a specific problem, it would be more honest to answer that you do not yet have such skills, but are striving and want to expand your boundaries and skills. Then the employer will be able to appreciate your honesty and desire to develop and climb the career ladder.

The future leader may ask you tricky questions, the answers to which will not be entirely convenient. The candidate's endurance and ability to get out of difficult situations are tested in this way.

This seems wrong. But if you are applying for a good position with a high salary and you will be required to be able to communicate with people competently and without emotions, then you must have self-control and discipline.

A potential employer, through live communication, will be able to identify your strengths and weaknesses and draw conclusions about your personality.

The manager will also ask you about your strengths and weaknesses. You should not take this issue seriously and completely remove all the “skeletons” from the closet. It will be enough if you name some minor shortcomings: for example, shyness. This little vice rarely deters. Therefore, there is no need to worry about this.

To avoid embarrassment during an interview and personal conversation with a potential employer, make a list of your strengths in advance. It will be useful for you to analyze your mentality and character, thereby you will be prepared for such a question and will not be confused.

Take a blank piece of paper and start writing down the qualities that you are proud of. For example, kindness, understanding, responsiveness, sociability, learning ability, etc. This is a kind of training. You will be able to objectively evaluate your pros and cons. And in advance, you can write a list of those qualities that you do not possess, but are trying to develop in yourself. This will give you a push and incentive to change.

Weaknesses of a person, their list

Now let's try to consider the weaknesses of human character. Most often, when trying to get a job, during the interview the employer may notice some shortcomings of the future candidate for the position. For example, he may be alarmed by inattention, absent-mindedness and slurred speech.

Consider a list of the most common human shortcomings and weaknesses:

Indecisiveness;
Emotional stiffness;
Shyness;
Timidity;
Coarseness;
Rudeness, etc.

When talking, try to tell your boss about your interests, hobbies, and a little about the family in which you grew up. In this way, you will win over the employer, and he will appreciate your aspirations and see that you are ready to do a lot for the sake of work. Honesty and unobtrusive frankness will benefit you.

Weaknesses in a resume

When writing your resume, be careful when indicating the reason for leaving your previous job. For example, if there were conflict situations with employees, or disagreements with the employer. It doesn't matter why you quit. Do not write about the reasons for leaving; it is better to write about it discreetly. For example, you weren’t happy with your work schedule, or you had to change your position due to a move.

Also, try not to get personal and tell your future employer about your past work team. It is better to avoid inconvenient topics tactfully and carefully. At the same time, without losing composure and self-esteem.

Strengths of a person in a resume example

When writing your resume, be careful to highlight your strengths. For example, you should not write about character traits that you do not possess. It’s better to focus on the strengths of your character. For example, you could write the following traits:

Determination;
Curiosity;
Stress resistance;
Communication skills;
Ability to get out of different situations;
Active life position.

By listing these qualities, you will definitely make a positive impression on your boss, and your candidacy will be considered.

Strengths and weaknesses of a leader

Additionally, you may be asked what qualities and personal merits you would like to see in your boss. It’s worth thinking about the answer to this question in advance. For example, you can say what you want to see in a leader:

Determination;
Restraint;
Responsiveness;
Demandingness;
Communication skills;
Individual approach to employees;
Decisiveness, etc.

You won't be asked questions like this for nothing. After all, every employer wants to see what the employee expects from his superiors. If you answer adequately and your potential boss likes you, you will get a permanent position.

Character strengths and weaknesses

Let's summarize. When applying for a job, you should think through your answers in advance to make a good impression on future employers. If you actively communicate, show your best side, emphasizing the strengths of your character, you will definitely get a promising job and the desired position.

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