Unemployment Support Group

Recently unemployed or frustrated with the job search? Unemployment can affect more than just the bank account - it has a negative effect on motivation and self-esteem, even sense of identity. This community addresses the challenges associated with unemployment and how to cope.

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Identifying and Trying to Sell Skills

blazefly
blazefly
I am having problems trying to identify a skill or describe a skill on a job that has no real transferable or relate able skill? How can you identify the skill set for such a job?
Also, how to state it in a way that will sell it to a potential employer?

One more question, if I been out of work for a long-time and you only attended school during that time how can I convince a employer that I can or qualified for the position.

I post these question as advice
loveblue2
loveblue2
While on the surface it might appear that a given job has no transferable skills, often, if you look deeper, you can find much more worth there than initially meets the eye. When I'm faced with issues like this, I just think, "...what did it take for me to do the job?" Almost any job is going to require skill sets like organizational skills, meeting deadlines, prioritizing, etc. I would just play up those skill sets to a potential employer.

As far as the long term unemployment issue, during a 26 month stretch of unemployment, I also decided to return to school - partly to gain more current skills and knowledge and partly because having to also focus on my course work helped me to take my focus off of the unemployment hell I was going through. During that time, I also signed up with a few temp agencies. I didn't go out on many assignments, but, between going to school and the temp agency thing, when I went on interviews, more than one hiring manager commented favorably that I had chosen to return to school. Most understand that it's a tough job market out there, so won't hold it against you if you're long-term unemployed.

Wishing you the best in your job search!
Janice