Do seemingly simple questions leave you stumped like “What are you good at?” or “Can you name your top skills?” I would trip up and give vague horoscope-like descriptions that could apply to anyone but didn’t say anything unique about me. Before I wrote this post it took me awhile to brainstorm three top skills and how I applied them in real life. I was a bit surprised to discover that I didn’t really know myself as I thought I did.
Critical Thinking
I currently work for a swim school and one day I made a mistake big enough to make my boss visibly frustrated and angry with me. I was worried therefore I had to use some critical thinking skills to resolve my mistake.
The problem I had was trying to retain information from the training videos. They were often ten or fifteen minutes long and it wouldn’t let me skip ahead to review a particular step. So imagine having to sit through another fifteen minutes just to review one step and end up wasting half an hour on one video. This doesn’t sound efficient right?
I needed to find a simple solution to a complicated problem. Time and efficiency was my top priority.
I came up with a few ideas which were rewatching the videos and hope I could remember everything, remake it, or take notes. All my ideas seemed too complicated and time-consuming so I decided to take notes while my boss retrained me.
After I took a lot of notes I realized I could make a small booklet out of it so I created a training manual using Microsoft Word. This manual was a step-by-step guide, kind of like a Dummies book, of how to do every task in the management software we used. This was much easier for a new employee to look up a step by flipping a page rather than logging into their training account, watch a long video, and try not to fall asleep.
I noticed patterns when I wrote the manual like how almost every task had the same step, and a lot of account information that was hidden can usually be found in the student’s name link.
When I presented the training manual to my boss she was amazed. She then sent the manual to corporate. My critical thinking skills helped me find a simple solution to a complicated problem. I used my creativity to defuse a tension-filled environment and repaired relations with my boss.
Initiative
One of my first official jobs was working in a family-owned sandwich restaurant. While I was researching the business I noticed that the photos of the food didn’t look appetizing, and it looked like it was taken with a phone rather than a professional camera.
The photos needed a makeover and during my on-the-spot interview I asked my boss if I could do a free photoshoot for him. It turns out that he was looking for someone to take professional photos but the cost of hiring a photographer what held him back. He didn’t have much to spare after taxes, operating costs, and raising two daughters who were preparing for college.
During one of my shifts I set up lights, a plain white paper backdrop, and my camera and tripod. I took several photos and once I felt I had enough I uploaded them into Photoshop to adjust the colors and make the food look even more delicious.
I presented the finished photos to my boss and he loved them so much he posted them on the restaurant’s Twitter to promote our menu.
I’ve always taken the initiative to look for opportunities to improve my employer’s business. I’ll find solutions then implement them without being told to be proactive.
Patience
In the fourth grade, I remember my teacher giving a lesson about patience and she gave examples of how to act civil and calm if someone is getting on our nerves, like taking a deep breath and counting to ten. I carried the lessons I learned about patience and applied them at my job especially in my role as a sales associate at Brooks Brothers.
Customer service and patience go hand-in-hand and these were some of the first skills I learned on the job. It became a key focus in anticipating someone’s needs. For example, if a customer needed help searching for a specific color and suit style I usually had to look in the back room or search in our database to see if another store nearby had it. If we didn’t have the item, I offered similar styles as a way of thanking the customer for waiting on me.
One day a couple walked in asking for a refund but it was past sixty days. They got angry because our policy had changed, previously it was 90 days, so they asked for one of the managers and when she wouldn’t budge they started yelling at her. It got so bad that she started crying and she had to step out of the store to cool off. Eventually they settled for an exchange and decided to get a different suit. I stepped in and I asked how I could help. At this point they were mostly calm and were glad to see an employee who understood their situation. They thanked me for being patient with them and helping them find a suit. After resolving their dilemma they left the store satisfied.
I think this exercise is a good starting point for everyone to try regardless of your profession or age. You need a break from your daily, stressful routine. Get to know yourself better so that you’ll be on a better path in figuring out your next big move. Identify your strengths and utilize it to get a new job or in your current work. So what are your top three skills?