How To Answer “What Is Your Greatest Strength?”

When participating in a job interview, there’s a good chance you’ll come across many of the same common interview questions. With so much practice, it’s easy for job seekers to answer the standard questions like “What is your greatest strength?”

“Instead of thinking up interesting, thought-provoking questions, they resort to prosaic questions, like “What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses?” The good news for job hunters is that these questions are relatively easy to answer.” –Jack Kelly, Forbes

Companies want to learn the type of value you’ll bring to the organization, so it makes sense they’d want to know your best qualities. Don’t just point out generic traits like timeliness or irrelevant ones like how high you can jump. Break through to the heart of the question and dive at your greatest, most relevant strengths by considering these points.

Be prepared

You don’t want to be on the spot listing things you think you might be good at aimlessly. Because this is such a frequently asked question, you’ll want to take the time to actually know your strengths and practice answering the question.

Job Hunt’s Susan P. Joyce says to start by asking yourself the question along with asking people you trust the same question. Self-scouting is always a great way to come up with a list of prepared answers, but asking others is a great way to find things you may have missed.

Once you have a list of your best strengths in mind, you can practice your answer using the following points to build confident and impressive answers. Consider doing a mock interview or working with a mentor to practice.

“Outline your speaking points in advance and practice them until you’re comfortable with your response. Having an idea of what you’re going to say before your interview will help your answer sound polished and natural.” -Jamie Birt, Indeed

Focus on the job description

Not every strength will be the absolute best option for every job opportunity. Even when you’re looking for a specific title, different companies will have different needs, and you might need to pull the right tool from your utility belt.

Make sure to do a deep review of the job description. You’ll get a good idea of what the company really needs right away, according to Joel Schwartzberg. With their biggest needs being directly identified, you can tailor your answer easily. Just like we’ve said to utilize keywords in your resume, be sure to circle back to these keywords when answering the question.

“There’s no need to guess what superstar qualities they’re looking for — it’s all there in black and white. Look for the attributes listed under the “preferred qualifications” or “required skills” section of the job description.” –Joel Schwartzberg

Think in terms of skills

You’re probably good at a lot of things, but not all of them are what a company is looking for when they ask this question. Simply always being on time or knowing how to talk to people isn’t quite enough. Using the job description as a starting point, think of what specific skills are needed in this role, and how can you use them.

Soft skills are important in every role, so think of your strengths in terms of tangible skills. The Muse’s Lily Zhang says to really consider what skills you’ll need to excel in this role and to frame your strengths in this way. If you’ll be interacting with clients or customers, discussing your communication skills is wise, while if you’re going to be in a fast-paced environment, you might discuss your ability to multitask and prioritize.

Being able to frame your strengths in a specific and tangible manner will be more effective than simply saying what you think you’re good at.

Use examples

Of course, you can’t just expect hiring managers to take your word at face value. I could say “I am the finest writer in all of human history,” but no one would believe it without proof. That’s why you want to support your strengths by showing your potential employer how you’ve used them in the past.

Forbes’ Jack Kelly says to once again find the best use for your skills at that organization and show how you’ve utilized them in the past. If you’re a creative type, you might show off a portfolio. You can show how you exceeded monthly sales quotas. If you’ve saved the company money, you can show your interviewer how you did so.

“As mentioned, you have to be focused and specific while answering the question. You should play with facts and figures while answering this question. If you do so, the answer will appear more genuine and hence more impressive.” –Rakesh Ghumatkar, LinkedIn

The more specific you can be, the easier it is for the interviewer to see you’ve put your strengths into action in the past and can use them to add value to the organization.

Wrap up

By doing some preparations before the interview, you can be ready to tackle this common interview question. Have a good understanding of your skills, know how to relate them to the job at hand, use specific examples, and express confidence and you’ll successfully convey that your strengths will bring value to the organization.

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Leadership Habits To Develop For Career Growth

If you’re looking to get far in your career, you’ll need to invest in your leadership skills. Even if you aren’t currently in a leadership position, finding ways to hone and show off leadership-related traits is vital to moving up the career ladder.

Soft skills are the key to showing your employer that you’re ready to take on a bigger role in the workplace. The experts at FlexJobs covered nine leadership habits to develop for career growth. We look at some of our favorites and add our own insights.

Support your team

The best leaders are those that elevate their team members to new heights by celebrating their accomplishments and putting them in the best position to succeed. Leaders that make people actually want to follow them are the most successful.

You don’t have to actually be a manager or project leader in order to hone or show off this skill. FlexJobs’ Kimberli Lowe-MacAuley suggests offering to train or mentor new team members along with creating opportunities to make sure every team member is heard.

“Visibly exude caring, compassion, and concern for employees. Thoughtfully administer rewards and recognition (tailoring to employee preferences for how they like to be rewarded), ensure employees have robust personal growth and development plans, and unswervingly show respect.” –Scott Mautz, keynote speaker

Another step is to share credit and accept blame when necessary. You’ll build goodwill with your team by celebrating their accomplishments and taking responsibility for your own shortcomings rather than shifting blame.

Focus on the big picture

Adjusting your focus is a great way to change your mindset and think like a leader. Learn to see the forest for the trees and start thinking about the big picture.

Kimberli says to offer solutions that have a greater effect than just the needs of your team. Leaders have to think of what is good for their entire organization, and pitching an idea that doesn’t directly benefit you shows thinking from the top and a willingness to make sacrifices.

Forbes’ Erin Urban also writes that sometimes this means focusing on relationships over immediate results. This connects with the above point of supporting your team. Taking the blame for an issue might make you look bad in the immediate future, but your team will respect your efforts to fight for them.

Be a self-starter

It can be hard to show leadership skills if you aren’t leading a team or even a part of one. But one of the strongest ways to show you have leadership potential is to always be proactive and find ways to contribute.

Kimberli writes that being someone always willing to suggest new ideas and taking initiative is a great way to get noticed by the bosses. If you aren’t afraid to step up and float an idea, this shows creativity and a willingness to do the extra work.

Walden University suggests you can go even further by learning to anticipate organizational needs. This shows a strong understanding of the organization, a focus on the big picture, and the proactive approach needed in a leadership role.

Look for growth opportunities

Another sign of a great leader is the ability to keep growing and learning. A strong leader needs to be able to adapt and make decisions, and by constantly learning new skills, you’ll be ready to make those decisions.

Kimberli says to find training courses and workshops, even if they aren’t required for your role. You can also take advantage of any tuition reimbursement opportunities and take courses to keep learning and upskilling. Do some research to find out what your organization can offer and take advantage!

“Individuals that develop a growth mindset believe they are capable of learning and their talents, abilities and intelligence is not static. They believe in their ability to “figure things out.” They trust that their hard work and persistence will help them develop the skill set to meet a particular challenge or need.” –Jackie Capers-Brown, LinkedIn

Forbes’ Ashira Prossack also suggests finding a mentor to learn from. An experienced leader in your organization will have insights that can’t be found in an article or in a course, and this person will directly see you making efforts to learn and better yourself. They might be able to recommend you for a promotion down the road.

Wrap up

You don’t have to already be a leader in the workplace to show off your skills. By simply being a collaborative team member, focusing on the big picture, and taking initiative and finding ways to grow, you’ll show your employer you have the skills to take the next step and earn that coveted promotion!

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Increasing Your Visibility At Work

Hard work pays off, but if you’re looking to get far in your career, you need to make sure that work is getting the right attention. Learning how to increase your visibility at work will make sure your accomplishments get noticed by your bosses, helping you land promotions and leadership opportunities.

The rise of remote and hybrid work models may add additional challenges in getting noticed, but those obstacles can be overcome with a little effort. Join us as we uncover some of the best ways to increase your visibility in today’s work climate.

Be an active participant

The obvious first answer is that the more active and vocal you are during the work, the more visible you’ll be. By speaking up in meetings, volunteering, and even simply turning on your camera during Zoom meetings, you’ll be engaged and visible to your team.

“Use your company’s platform to share important updates in respective channels, discuss ideas and encourage others to brainstorm. Be the one to break the ice.” –Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms

Soulcast Media CEO Jessica Chen says it only takes little extra work to speak up effectively in meetings. Before a meeting, make sure you understand the objective and what you can add to the conversation, and chime in when the moment is right. Just adding a little extra value to the meeting, only if you speak once, is enough to be noticed.

Partake in events

If you really want to take the next step. Go above and beyond where you can to get your presence out to many more people.

If your organization offers to chance to be part of an interdepartmental team, join a cross-department meeting, or have any sort of leadership opportunity, be one of the first to volunteer. This shows initiative, leadership, and ambition. It may be a little extra work, but if you’re looking to move up, it’s a good way to get noticed.

“Demonstrating a willingness to learn is another way to show initiative and boost your visibility at work. Improving your skills and qualifications can also lead to raises, promotions and other advancement opportunities.” –Caroline Castrillon, Forbes

Of course, not all opportunities like this need to be extra work. TalentBridge suggests going to conferences, charity events, and company parties when the opportunity arises. Even if you work remotely, your organization may offer remote happy hours or social periods you can join. By being at these social events and having casual conversations, you’ll be remembered.

Embrace social technology

If you work remotely, you’ll have to work a little harder to get noticed. But even if you meet in person, it’s still a good idea to get familiar with all technological tools at your disposal to maximize your communication potential and to become an expert others can rely on.

Jonathan Prichard of MattressInsider.com says to take advantage of collaborative software. Using a chat tool like Slack can increase your visibility while increasing others to do the same. Meanwhile, embracing project management tools can ensure everyone is involved and on the same page, leading to increased teamwork and productivity.

Maddyness suggests that becoming an expert on something is a great way to increase visibility, and mastering the technology your department uses is a great way. You don’t need to be a tech expert, either. If you master the ins and outs of Zoom, for example, you’ll be the go-to person for those in your department, and you can help new hires as well. You’ll carve a niche and be noticed.

Elevate others

Perhaps the best way to be seen in the workplace is to elevate everyone else around you. It’s good to make your bosses aware of your accomplishments, but it’s even better to help elevate your team and highlight their accomplishments.

Forbes’ Caroline Castrillon suggests sharing the spotlight by sharing your team’s accomplishments on any social tools your company uses and directly thanking people. This can build morale, enhance company culture, and put everyone in the spotlight together.

“Of course, be selective in your praise, but do go out of your way to recognize when others are doing a good job and that will make its way back to your work and your value added to the business. “-Matthew Capala, Alphametic

Harvard Business Review found that 51% of Gen Z workers feel unprepared to enter the workforce, and the pandemic also made work-related social skill use take a hit. Doing your best to offer help to those who may be struggling, including working with them on projects, highlighting their accomplishments, or simply thanking and appreciating their work can elevate their self-esteem and teach them how to communicate better at work. In the long run, this will highlight your empathy and leadership skills, but more importantly, you’ll be helping someone.

Wrap up

Increasing your visibility at work doesn’t mean asking, “Look at me!” Being actively engaged and enthused, making the most of communication tools, and helping others communicate and highlighting the work they’ve done will show you’re an actively engaged, helpful team member. These behaviors will also show that you’re a good coworker and can help build confidence as well!

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Captivate Your Audience With These Public Speaking Tips

Public speaking is a highly frightful concept for many adults, but it’s something most of us will have to do from time to time. Even in an increasingly digital world, knowing how to address a crowd is a valuable skill. Knowing how to captivate your audience will make your presentations, team meetings, and even performance reviews go much better.

You don’t need the charisma of a cult leader to be successful, but brushing up on your public speaking skills will lead to greater success in your career. Join us as we reveal insightful strategies to help improve your speaking skills!

Know the material

It’s always easiest to present when you know the topic well. Ideally, you’ll be giving a presentation about something you’re passionate or knowledgeable about, but this isn’t always the case. In those circumstances, you’ll need to take extra time to absorb the knowledge.

“Nothing leads to a nervous panic like not knowing your subject well. Confidence grows when you are sure what you’re saying is accurate and on topic.” –Mark Swartz, Monster

Take some extra time to fact-check and become very familiar with the content. You’ll feel more at ease in your delivery and better appear as an expert to your audience.

Know your audience

Knowing the material is one step to good preparation, but it’s equally important to know your audience. If you have a good understanding of your audience’s knowledge level, needs, and expectations, you’ll be better able to tailor your speech to them. A speech directed towards senior members will be much different than one with college students or members of your team you work with daily.

One of the common fears of public speaking is that the audience is judging you as an arbiter of fate, but this isn’t true. Nick Gold of Speakers Corner says to remember that your audience is on your side. Others in the room want you to do well so that they are entertained and can learn something from you.

Stay focused

Once you know what you’re writing about and who you’re speaking to, you’ll have a good idea of what information to include in your presentation.

Simplicity is key—don’t overwhelm your audience with too much information. Think about the main point you want your audience to embrace and include information that supports it. A good speech can be bogged down by too many details or poor structure.

TeamBuilding says that if you’re using presentation tools like PowerPoint, ensure you don’t overload your slides with text. These tools are meant to support, not to share every single note.

Practice

Even if you feel confident about your material, presenting that material is a different beast. That’s why you must practice with your material until it becomes second nature. This will also help you to further absorb the information to make you even more of an expert.

If you can, find someone to practice in front of, says Blake DeCola. This provides you with an outside source unfamiliar with the material so that you can make sure your points are hitting home, and they can provide valuable feedback. This is also a good chance to practice eye contact!

“There’s no better way than to watch recordings of yourself speaking, no matter how painful that might be! Then iterate, try new things, and watch the results.” –Andrew Chen

Be yourself

At the core of your speech, it’s important to remember to make it your own. Your audience will feel more connected to you if you invoke some passion, and your presentation will be more memorable. Having the facts is great, but the key to a memorable performance is that connection.

Use bullet points rather than full sentences on note cards to avoid sounding rehearsed, writes MasterClass. An extemporaneous style means more words from the heart and a more natural performance.

A conversational tone will feel like you’re talking to each audience member individually, even if there are 100 people in the room. Meanwhile, Coursera recommends adding humor and personal anecdotes to spice up the bulk of your speech. This will add to the authenticity and help form connections rather than detract from your message.

Invoke a call to action

In all of the excitement, make sure that the reason you gave the speech in the first place is clear. Your speech may knock it out of the park, but if your audience immediately forgets what the point was, it won’t be a good use of time.

Invoke a call to action at the end of your speech by reinforcing what you want from your audience. Whether you want them to consider the implications of your topic, purchase a product that will help their needs, give you a promotion, or join your organization, you need that final point to hit home. The beginning and end of a speech are the most memorable parts, so use them to drive your mission home.

Wrap up

If you approach your presentation with a plan, find a way to let your unique perspective through, and end with a call to action, you’ll dazzle with your speech and impress your audience. A little “make it til you make it” energy helps, but if you take the proper preparations and have a well-crafted plan, you’ll be able to tackle any speech.

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Self-Care Tips To Ease Your Job Search Blues

Let’s face it—searching for a new job is stressful at the best of times, and the longer your search goes on, the harder of a toll it can take on your mental health. To avoid the burnout associated with doing too much, it’s important to incorporate self-care strategies into your routine.

When things seem tough, it’s important to take a step back and prioritize your mental health. We’ve looked at what career experts believe to be some of the most efficient and reassuring self-care tips so that you can take care of yourself and come out on top in your career journey!

Pay attention to your needs

At its most basic level, all self-care needs to start with looking after your physical well-being. It’s hard to grow and succeed if you’re neglecting your needs in favor of accomplishing your job-seeking goals.

“There has been a lot of research proving that physical exercise provides countless mental health benefits, including alleviating anxiety, minimizing stress, and increasing brain function.” –Ashley Wilson

At the very least, you need to make sure you’re getting enough sleep, eating right, and getting in some exercise. It’s extremely easy to forget, or at least prioritize, your psychical well-being when you feel the pressure to find a job, especially when you really need the money. But eventually, you’ll begin to feel the neglect catch up with you.

Balance your time

When it comes to job search specific self-care, learning how to balance your time effectively is crucial. Finding a job is important, but you can’t let the search control your every waking minute.

The best way to start is to plan out your day and create a daily schedule, writes Lindsay E. Mack. Use a calendar scheduling app to plan out your day, making sure to include necessary breaks. Adding in time limits on certain tasks will keep you from becoming overwhelmed.

Not only with this help your mental health, but having a balanced approach will make sure you’re covering all of your job search bases and not leaving any avenues behind. Check out this example calendar from career coach Hannah Morgan as a place to get started.

Be social

When applying for jobs, don’t make the mistake of isolating yourself. Spending time with others in both a professional and friendly capacity can make the search easier to bare.

The Washington Post’s Danielle Paquette says that there are actual support groups for job seekers, providing a place for others going through the same things to connect. With the prevalence of LinkedIn and the availability of university alumni groups, these types of groups are even easier to find than ever.

“[M]eeting people has so many benefits to your mental health and to your job search! Engaging with others helps you keep a healthy balance during your job search, plus you never know who may have a hot job lead for you.” –Mac Prichard

Hannah Morgan writes that having an “accountability buddy” can help. Not only will this person make sure you’re working toward your milestones, but they can provide a fresh perspective to help you see things clearly.

Learn something new

If you want to take a break from what you’ve been doing but still want to focus on something career-related, there’s always the option of learning a new skill. We’ve evolved into a skills-based hiring cycle, and learning a new skill can be very rewarding.

Forbes’ Christine Y. Cruzvergara mentions the plethora of free or affordable online courses available for job seekers. Not only can you earn something that can go on a resume, but you might meet new friends or someone that can help your search!

Step away

Sometimes the most important thing you can do is take a step away from your search and do something fun. It may seem counter-intuitive, but having some fun is not only good for your mental well-being but a good way to reward yourself for your accomplishments.

Mac Prichard suggests getting out of the house and trying something new if possible. This can reinvigorate your life and help you keep things in perspective.

Career coach Emily Liou says that a sense of detachment in the job search is a good thing. Learning how to not take the search personally, handle the rejection well, and accept that something will come along is a healthy mindset. Knowing when to step back is part of embracing this mindset.

“As a jobseeker, the best state you can come from in your search is from a state of detachment: reminding yourself that a rejection isn’t personal, and you will find a great job or something even better down the line.” –Emily Liou

Wrap up

Some of the above tips may seem obvious, but knowing and doing aren’t the same. Are you making yourself a priority during your search? Sometimes the first step is simply recognizing you need a change or a break in routine so that you can get to where you need to be mentally. By embracing the above stratagems, you’ll be putting yourself in a good position to reduce burnout and find the career you deserve.

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