Pros and Cons of Adding Soft Skills to Your Resume
In recent conversations with recruiters, I’ve noticed a new theme in what they look for in a resume: the inclusion of so-called “soft skills.” While many recruiters still believe that a resume should only talk about more measurable “hard skills,” there is an argument that soft skills are not just unnecessary filler, but provide enough information about what you can bring to a team to justify your inclusion.
What are soft skills?
Soft skills are your personal abilities in how you work, how you interact with others and how you communicate – things like communication style, time management, flexibility, teamwork, self-discipline, goal setting, honesty, openness. thinking, critical thinking, and everything else that you can’t necessarily measure or demonstrate with a certificate or degree.
The opposite is hard skills, or specific, measurable technical skills—skills you acquire through a training course or years of working with a particular type of software or tool. Knowing how to code is a complex skill; Staying organized enough to consistently complete projects on time is a soft skill.
Pros and cons of including soft skills on a resume
William Vanderbloemen, author of Be a Unicorn: 12 Data-Driven Habits That Separate the Best Leaders from the Rest , has conducted more than 30,000 interviews over the past 16 years and says that nearly every candidate search his team has required them to “find people with really good soft skills” or “people skills”.
“What we’re seeing now is that these skills make all the difference, especially now that AI is starting to take over some of the tasks that could be done with the human brain,” he says. When such job responsibilities disappear (at least for humans), “the ability to have these soft skills will determine who really comes out on top in the next 10 years.”
It’s “all a ball game,” he says, because as automated chatbots and number-crunching algorithms gain more popularity, “people are going to have a pretty strong desire to talk to other people and people who are really good at this.” are going to come out on top.”
While Vanderbloemen and others like LinkedIn career expert Andrew McCaskill say that people skills or “transferable people skills” are an integral part of the modern resume , there may still be downsides to adding soft skills to yours that you should consider. First, they can be considered unnecessary , especially when they are too obvious. Recruiters and employers may assume that you are a good communicator or team player (or at least perceive yourself to be one), especially if your past work experience indicates successful collaboration.
Therefore, the soft skills listed should be specific and relevant to the position you are applying for, rather than serving as a substitute for hard skills that are more relevant or specific to highlight. If they are too obvious or common, or not specific or relevant, consider ditching them in favor of something more visible and directly related to the work.
Best Ways to Highlight Soft Skills on a Resume
Adding soft skills to your resume doesn’t have to be difficult. Don’t dedicate an entire section called “Soft Skills.” Instead, in the existing “Skills” section, include several bullet points, highlighting your best skills and those that match the job posting. Take care to choose skills that you can back up with a brief anecdote if asked about them in an interview. Or you can skip the skills section altogether and add soft skills to your work experience items. “Led a team of 10 people through a record quarter,” “Worked directly with clients via phone and email to resolve issues with a 98% success rate,” and “Communicated directly with clients to establish deadlines and protocols” all demonstrate soft skills that simultaneously emphasizing technical skills and focusing on past actions and results.
Vanderbleemen even says that if you have some space, you should list a hobby on your resume—within reason. He gave an example: If you worked on Duolingo for 800 days straight or successfully raised funds for an educational trip, it shows that you are driven and intellectually curious. He says he’s always interested in finding out if a candidate is a “student,” so if you have the opportunity to mention a volunteer opportunity, a side project, or a recent continuing education course taken, do it.
The goal is to highlight your work experience, education, and technical abilities, but to stand out as a valuable addition to the company culture and not just a number.