Job Search Soft Skills 101: Communication

Communication skills are essential for all aspects of life, but they are especially important during a job search. Your ability to communicate effectively helps you succeed in your career, maintain professional relationships, and shine as a candidate. Employers are looking for candidates with good communication soft skills, so keep reading to learn how to develop those skills and make them shine.

Why Employers Look for Candidates With Good Communication Soft Skills

As industries evolve, employers reconsider the skills and competencies most important in potential candidates.  

In an over-saturated job market, equally qualified candidates struggle to stand out. Ever-changing skills gaps make it more difficult for employers to choose the best candidates, and the tangible, hard skills they're looking for could change in a month. Therefore, when all else is equal, many employers evaluate candidates based on their soft skills.

Communication is one of the most important and all-encompassing soft skills sought by employers. An employee with effective communication skills is usually more likely to: 

• Share ideas.
• Ask for clarification if they don’t understand.
• Help resolve conflicts.
• Contribute to improving company culture.  

As industries continue shifting and evolving, employers prize soft skills such as effective communication and adaptability because they are constants.

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Why You Need Effective Communication to Succeed

Effective communication can matter the most when you are least likely to think about your communication skills, such as during a stressful workday or when maneuvering through a tough transition. You likely can communicate effectively if you carefully choose every word, but developing healthy communication habits that you can demonstrate unconsciously is valuable.

Effective communication can foster improved on-the-job performance by:

• Improving how you share information.
• Removing doubt about your intended meaning.
• Refining your listening skills and enhancing how you retain information.
• Boosting your focus on what you say and how you say it.
• Developing improved conflict resolution skills.
• Fostering empathy.
• Increasing awareness of the words and phrases that upset others.
• Building trust between you and your colleagues.
• Showcasing your personality and contribution to company culture.

Communication skills are also valuable for the job search process. By improving how you speak with others and share information, you'll stand out among other candidates, make yourself more memorable to hiring managers, and be able to answer difficult questions without your words sounding forced or disingenuous.

How to Develop Communication Soft Skills 

Like most soft skills, there are unlimited ways to develop effective communication. One way you can naturally develop improved communication skills by actively engaging in soft skill-building exercises. Note your typical communication style in different scenarios, such as when you are distracted, and discover where there is room for improvement. Cultivating new communication habits can improve how you interact with others even when your mind is elsewhere.  Communication competency courses are another straightforward way to improve your skills that you can list directly on your resume.

However, only following training courses isn't enough, especially for interpersonal skills. You must apply what you have learned to continue to improve. 

Some of the best ways to improve communication soft skills include:

• Initiating conversations.
• Paying attention to your body language.
• Listening more than speaking.
• Being aware of who you're speaking to and their communication style.
• Reflecting on the words you say.
• Acknowledging when and why something you said impacted others.
• Talking through communication problems rather than ignoring them.

How you share communication skills on your resume ultimately depends on how you developed those skills. 

How to List Communication Skills on Your Resume

First, consider any communication competency training you've attended, such as through a previous job, during your college years, or on your own. List these skills in the appropriate section of your resume, citing specific course names and skills you gained.

Next, consider any jobs you've had that required heavy or detailed communication, or that otherwise honed this soft skill. Summarize how communication played a role in these positions. For example, if a position was in customer service, you could write, "Communicated information and policies to customers, colleagues, and supervisors in a descriptive and welcoming manner."

Finally, if you can't find any place to include soft skills on your resume, consider mentioning specific soft skills in your cover letter or other application documents. Use keywords frequently used in job postings, such as “communicative,” “interpersonal,” and “collaborative” to stand out to hiring managers and applicant tracking systems.  

Gain Communication Competency and Other Job Search Soft Skills With iHire

Communication is one of the most transferable skills you can gain in your career, and it can improve nearly aspect of your job and life. However, like most soft skills, effective communication takes continuous effort, dedication, and learning. Visit iHire's Job Seeker Resource Center to continue expanding your soft skills and improve your job search.