Features of the influence of individual personal qualities on success in professional activities

In some standard forms for resumes and applicant profiles, there are such related semantic blocks as “Business Qualities”, “Personality Traits”, “Positive Aspects” and “Character Flaws”. The purpose that such a breakdown of identical information can pursue is to identify the applicant’s ability to analyze the task, understand the employer’s expectations and structure information about himself. Indeed, despite the similarity of these sections, each of them has a certain emphasis.

The “Business Qualities” column is designed to assess the personality traits of the applicant that will make it possible to perform the assigned duties. Compared to general positive character traits, an employee’s work merits are less significant for “fitting in” to a team, establishing contacts with colleagues and bosses (with the exception of leadership positions) and assessing loyalty to the employer. According to the definition proposed by the personal management dictionary, these data include significant abilities and talents, motivational aspirations and mental properties necessary for the implementation of specific actions.

Of course, personal inclinations useful for carrying out work manipulations should ideally be supported by appropriate education and experience. And as a result of repeated use, they turn into skills, but basically employers determine the suitability of a candidate, including in this column. Therefore, you should not ignore the opportunity to present your professional potential and adaptability, especially in the case of a lack of experience, to a student at the beginning of his career, when changing his activity profile, or when there are certain negative aspects in his personal or work biography.

Filling rules

The principles that should be followed when compiling a list of your business traits are similar to the general laws of writing a resume:

1. All professional advantages of an individual must be correlated with the target position. If a self-presentation is compiled for databases, without relying on information from a specific vacancy or information about the desired employer, you need to start from the needs of the specialty.
2. Business virtues, like skills, are more significant than other character traits, so you can expand the list of positive qualities to ten.
3. When presenting the business aspects of a person for a resume, it is wise to combine template phrases with your own wording. If an HR manager filters documentation from applicants using keywords, the presence of recognizable clichés will work; If the recruiter is inclined to look for candidates who think outside the box, individualized statements will help. From applicants for middle and senior management positions, HR employees expect greater originality, independence and an active approach to developing the content of a resume.

What should you not include in your resume profile?

You don't need to include information in your profile that is already on your resume. This will make your profile seem weak – as if you have nothing else to write. Emphasize soft (so-called “soft”) skills rather than those that are obvious or implied elsewhere in your resume. You can mention personal experiences that have affected your work life, such as family circumstances, but keep this to a minimum. Nobody wants to read about the details of your personal life. So the purpose is simply to give an introduction to yourself.

Avoid making jokes and expressing opinions. They already have a place in the interview, and in the right situation they can even help you outperform other candidates, but they should not be in the professional profile. Another important thing to avoid is negativity. Your profile should be upbeat and create a good first impression, just like on a first date. Also, don't add your contact details or other personal information - they usually go separately at the very top of your resume.

Universal signs of business qualities for starting a career

There are more or less general personality traits that are necessary for effective activity in any field of work. These characteristics can be used by representatives of all specialties. Also, the typical qualities of a business personality will be useful to students or people who decide to change their field of activity. Universal refers to intellectual characteristics, communication skills (effective communication) and organizational talents. It should be remembered that all of them can be congenital and subsequently successfully developed.

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The group of useful intellectual qualities includes:

• dynamic thinking (the ability to quickly perceive, process and reproduce significant amounts of information), excellent reaction;
• analytical mindset (breaking information into subordinate parts, sequential processing of data, understanding relationships and identifying patterns);
• systems thinking (combining disparate information into holistic structures);
• mental flexibility (the ability to find different options for solving a problem);
• determination of priorities - the most significant, main features of various objects;
• the ability to form the desired sequence of actions, taking into account given resources; develop mechanisms to achieve results taking into account existing conditions; modification of the original situation.

There is an opinion that for blue-collar jobs, thinking abilities do not play a decisive role. However, there are areas of manual and physical labor in which the analytical process is of fundamental importance. These are all kinds of diagnostics, adjustment and repair of equipment, installation of water, heat and electricity networks, various construction processes that require the ability to evaluate, calculate and predict. In addition, any production is interested in a reserve of future managers, which can be formed on the basis of existing working specialists.

Communication skills include:

• flexibility in communication;
• understanding – correct perception of the motives, feelings, emotions, goals, behavior of others;
• activity and confidence, talent to establish and maintain contact with different people;
• the ability to clearly express and argue thoughts orally and in writing, understand information verbally and from a medium, conduct presentations, etc.;
• the ability to influence and persuade by influencing the feelings, thoughts, and behavior of opponents;
• ability to cooperate, work in a team, attract like-minded people, achieve results through mutual understanding and friendly attitude, create a positive working atmosphere.

Organizational skills, contrary to popular belief, are required not only by managers. This is an important criterion for the professional suitability of any employee. Among them:

• independence in decision making, understanding of personal responsibility taking into account initial conditions;
• the ability to set a task according to goals and find motivation to ensure results;
• orientation towards the final stage - the desire to achieve the final goal of the work, which must be clearly represented. For the performer-“process worker”, the result of this orientation is close monitoring of the quality of the actions performed. Clichés: determination, assertiveness;
• ability to organize a working day, plan activities, and monitor results. In a group - distribute responsibilities, delegate some functions, request and receive help.

To these characteristics we can add the requirements and conditions that are common among job vacancy texts and that an applicant must have:

• high labor productivity;
• habit of planning;
• oratory;
• the ability to correctly formulate thoughts;
• diligence;
• strict adherence to instructions;
• tact;
• politeness;
• discipline;
• love of teamwork;
• responsible approach to responsibilities;
• quick adaptation to new information support products;
• attention to details;
• mathematical thinking;
• accuracy in working with documents;
• high performance;
• ability to interact with clients;
• tendency to plan;
• professional integrity;
• enterprise;
• the ability to distinguish between the main and the secondary;
• scrupulousness;
• ability to perform several tasks/directions/projects simultaneously;
• creativity;
• ability to negotiate;
• strategic thinking;
• ability to make quick decisions;
• tendency to work effectively with large volumes of data;
• desire for self-improvement;
• delivered diction.

What to include in the “key skills” section when filling out your resume

What is a personal profile?

Essentially, a profile is the introductory part of a resume, the purpose of which is to give the reader an idea of ​​who you are and what is special about you. Please note: a profile is a short story about you and your life, but it is in no way a mini-biography. A potential employer is absolutely not interested in reading long essays on the topic “My psychotype.” A successful profile gives the reader reference points—an overall picture of you. These points may be raised later during the interview, at the getting-to-know-you stage.

Some people think that a personal profile is a shortened version of a cover letter, but in reality it is not. A personal profile is your chance to express yourself, say a few words in your support, and “sell yourself.” However, don't overdo it - don't be a pushy salesman or exaggerate your achievements - this may come off as too presumptuous or will be revealed later in the interview and seen as lying.

Self-assessment algorithm for professional suitability

The relative importance of these characteristics is explained by the fact that different job responsibilities imply variations in the relevance of each of the positive business qualities. For example, such a topical indicator in the selection of effective participants in modern business as focus on results is completely unimportant for specialties that require high-quality execution of the process during monotonous work - stamping equipment operators, air traffic controllers, office clerks, lawyers and accountants, mainly engaged in data analysis and accounting. .

The factor “performance” depends on the type of personality and the characteristics of the chosen professional path: if a person prone to productive creative thinking and successful in generating solutions is entrusted with the punctual execution of other people’s or his own ideas, then the unfruitful implementation of these functions can lead an illiterate observer to the conclusion of passivity and employee's disability. Therefore, when drawing up your professional portrait, you should adhere to the specific requirements of your specialty and personality traits. So, by what parameters can one generally assess one’s accomplished mastery or being one of the desired employees?

1. Attitude to work. Many psychologists believe that laziness and inaction at work can characterize a person only if he is immature and infantile. At the same time, the influence of external stimuli (disciplinary sanctions, life crisis, stressful situation, systematic psychological work) or a person’s desire can raise the level of self-awareness and lead to changes in attitude towards work. In other cases, parasitism is a sign of a discrepancy between professional inclinations and the goals of the position held. Nevertheless, hard work is one of the most important factors in the success of a professional.
2. Efficiency: shows the ratio of the employee’s independent contribution to solving assigned tasks to the assistance provided from outside. This indicator may be expectedly low for novice employees in specialized areas when there is a lack of practice, motivation or personal abilities. For example, a sales representative at first is poorly versed in the product (lack of knowledge), is embarrassed or embarrassed to use persuasion techniques on customers (inappropriate character traits, undeveloped professional skills).
3. Productivity depends on the perfection of the skills required for a given specialty, and is determined by the ratio of completed and unresolved production tasks.
4. Communication skills are often necessary even for those employees whose main activity is not related to communication. How developed is the ability to accept tasks from management, clarify details and clarify unclear points; inform colleagues or boss about progress; the ability to discuss the scope of one’s responsibility with other employees, report on emerging difficulties and failures - the overall success of the company depends on this.
5. Reliability shows whether the employee fulfills his promises and assigned responsibilities, whether he can inform about the problem in a timely manner and ask for outside help.
6. Interest can be initiated by professional aspirations, social ambitions or materialistic expectations. Ideally, passion for work should include all of these aspects. In addition, interest is a guarantee of professional growth and prospects.

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How long should a personal profile be?

Now that you know what to add to your profile and what to skip, you need to decide on the profile length. There are no clear rules here; Each person thinks differently, so the amount of information will be different. Ideally, the text volume should not exceed 6 - 8 lines. With a standard font size, this is no more than 120 words, but a little less is better.

Of course, the more experience and skills you have accumulated during your career, the more you will want to say in your profile. In this case, choose only the main points and avoid piling up information (this overloads the reader with facts about you). Conversely, if you are just starting your career path, it may seem like there is not much to tell. In this case, focus not on experience, but on personal qualities; for example, mention your ability to communicate with people, giving one or two examples.

Examples of other business qualities by specialty

Teacher: friendliness, humanism, competent speech, discipline, kindness, responsibility, morality, behavior according to pedagogical theory, sense of humor, self-criticism, stress resistance, ability to speak in front of an audience, sociability, optimism, tolerance, perseverance, commitment, tact, organization, decency, restraint, efficiency, prudence, justice, patience, respect for people, exactingness, modesty, balance, humanity.

Accountant, economist, financier: good memory, ability to analyze information, attention to detail, pedantry, accuracy, foresight, perseverance, scrupulousness, rationality, punctuality, planning ability, organizational management, stress resistance, learning ability, responsibility, non-conflict, loyalty, trustworthiness.

Lawyer: ability to influence others, self-organization, ability to plan, respectful attitude towards people, tactfulness, ability to clearly and clearly formulate thoughts and tasks, resourcefulness, self-control, ability to influence others, learning ability, non-conflict, stress resistance, determination, responsibility, benevolence, loyalty .

IT specialist: scrupulousness, learning ability, tendency to cooperate, initiative, independence, responsibility, energy, diligence, attention to detail, creative thinking, analytical mind, high efficiency, ability to process large amounts of information, initiative.

Sales Manager: communication skills, sensitivity to the problems of others, ability to cooperate, win over; ability to influence other people's opinions, charisma, learning ability, tendency to teamwork, responsibility, energy, focus on results, sociability, activity, stress resistance, ability to adapt, non-conflict, ability to clearly and competently express thoughts, politeness, organization, decency, honesty, loyalty .

Where to put your personal profile on your resume?

According to established tradition, the profile should be on the first page of the resume, closer to the top. In most cases, a resume begins with your name, address and contact information, such as a phone number and email address. Next comes your profile, and after it - information about your education, professional qualifications, work experience and your main achievements. Thus, the personal profile is in the most prominent place in the resume, which is why it is so important to write it correctly.

However, despite this profile layout, keep in mind that many readers will skip this section and return to it only after reading other sections. But knowing this, don't be tempted to put your personal profile at the end of your resume. This will break the structure of the resume and make it difficult for readers to understand. Potential employers often receive hundreds of resumes and have to review them all, so it's best to stick to tradition.

Finally

A person of any character and temperament can find in himself strong qualities that can make him a competent specialist. It takes a lot of inner work and years of life experience to develop these traits. However, seeing potential in yourself, realizing personal advantages and the willingness to work efficiently in your chosen field are one of the main conditions for business success. An instructive anecdote about entrepreneurial life illustrates this point:

One shoe company decided to expand its market and sent two representatives to a developing African country. The first specialist gave a disappointing verdict: “Absolutely no business opportunities. Everyone walks around barefoot here.” And the second one brought back a sea of ​​enthusiasm from a business trip: “Grand prospects! People still walk around barefoot here!”

Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Personal Profile

• Common phrases and qualities that any other candidate might have. The word “personal” is used for a reason; Your profile should tell a personal story about you and be as specific as possible. In short, write in such a way that your profile cannot be copied and pasted into any other resume.
• Spelling and grammatical errors . Of course, they should not be in the entire resume, but especially in the first paragraph! So make sure to check it thoroughly. You can proofread the text yourself or ask a friend to do it.
• Bulleted lists and keywords . Write in complete sentences. Notes and bullet points are fine for other parts of the resume, but not for the profile.
• Verbosity . The ornate turns look confusing.
• Copying requirements from the job description . After all, your profile is your chance to stand out! Yes, recruiters will look to see if you have the necessary professional skills, but give them a little more. Be sure to write at least one unique point that other candidates do not have.
• Mixing first and third person forms . Both forms are fine, just don't use them at the same time.
• Don't make things up or write anything that contradicts other information from your resume.

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key skills

Key skills are formed depending on the position and functions performed; the most in demand now are those aimed at managerial features or performance, for example:

• managing subordinates and time;
• personal and business communication;
• business management;
• sales;
• strategic and creative thinking;
• organizational abilities;
• decision-making competence;
• multitasking;
• ability to develop and train others;
• business ethics;
• computer literacy;
• language proficiency.