Portrait of an ideal employee or 12 personal qualities for an exemplary resume

But did you know that character strengths and weaknesses in a resume are an example of how to make a resume “sell”?

There is absolutely no need to wait for an interview - get ahead of the recruiter and increase your value right at the dating stage.

Let's look at how to do this correctly on your resume.

Let's look at the list of strengths and weaknesses that we recommend writing down in the main and additional blocks, and also get acquainted with the best examples that HR will definitely like.

1

Always start with strengths

It is likely that during the interview the recruiter will ask you to describe your strengths . And he does this for a reason.

Naturally, he is able to read your “stress-resistant,” “cheerful,” and “team player.”

We hope you have read our guide and do not use adjectives, replacing them with cases.

He wants you to independently indicate to him which quality you personally consider the most valuable.

The problem arises: how to answer the question in such a way as to hit the bull's eye, but not seem boastful.

Instead of saying, “I'm detail-oriented and hard-working,” or simply listing your skills, you can create a clear, interesting way to present your strengths while highlighting the things that can benefit the company, and most importantly, the vacancies.

Remember how we talked about how your skills will have to be tailored to the job requirements?

First, evaluate this list of strengths and try them on for yourself:

• Creativity;
• Multilateral development;
• Flexibility;
• Ability to focus on a task;
• initiative;
• Honesty;
• Devotion;
• learning ability;
• Self-control.

But simply specifying them as adjectives is not only insufficient, but incorrect. The recruiter will not appreciate your subjective opinion and will skip the entire proposal.

That's why:

1. Select the most valuable skill required for the job. For example, for a sales manager this is the ability to find a common language with people.
2. Justify it by giving examples from practice. We wrote about this in our guide.

Where to write strong character traits on a resume

With an interview, everything is clear: you were asked - you answered.

Where should you indicate your character strengths and weaknesses on your resume? There are no special blocks for this.

Correct answer: wherever you can.

Having chosen the most important skill or quality for the vacancy, touch it in the blocks:

• "Goals",
• "Experience",
• "Skills"
• "About Me",
• in the Covering Letter.

Just don't be too intrusive.

For example

Let's say you want to work as a cold sales manager. Your main job responsibility is to find points of contact with customers. It is logical that your strengths are communication skills, the ability to persuade, and find an individual approach to each person.

And your resume will then look like this:

Resume template

Professional skills and personal qualities: what should be avoided?

When filling out these items, follow one simple rule: be sincere. There is no need to invent something that does not exist. The deception will be revealed, and then the employer

will be extremely disappointed. Don’t write that you can, for example, work with Photoshop, although in fact you’ve only opened it a couple of times. Very often, recruiters give a test task to a candidate they like to determine their level of knowledge, and this is where you risk getting into trouble. There is also no need to write in the “personal qualities” column, for example, that you are a very sociable, sociable person who quickly finds a common language with other people, if this is not true. Another piece of advice: do not write too much or, conversely, too little about yourself in these paragraphs, keep it in moderation.

Examples of character strengths for a resume

Even experienced job seekers have difficulty preparing an answer to questions about their strengths. Therefore, we have prepared examples to help you cope with this task.

Just don’t copy the example, but take it as a basis and adapt it to your situation. And remember: no lies!

QA Tester

When a new version of software comes out, I am the first to test it and get familiar with the updates. I love moving forward and learning every aspect of a new program.

For example, last week I discovered a software problem in the project " xxx

", which I have worked on in the past. I called the developer and told him about it and they fixed it right away.

This position will give me the opportunity to apply my skills and help improve programs within your company.

Manager, teamwork

I have always preferred to work in a team and have realized that collaboration is one of my strongest qualities. In the projects I have led, I have always achieved great success by inspiring my colleagues.

I enjoyed working productively alongside colleagues to achieve my goals.

Over the past two years, I have increased the productivity of the department by 10%

.

Copywriter

My strong point is writing skills. I always meet deadlines and never miss deadlines.

For example, I was once asked to complete a project that a colleague had forgotten about. The editor realized this only two hours before the deadline.

This was an important article, so I quickly got to work and was able to complete the work with precision and on time.

Not only did I not miss the deadline, but I also completed the work efficiently, because the article was well received by the readers.

Economist

I'm relatively new to the finance industry, but I'm good with numbers and really enjoy it. I love helping people save money and finding new investment opportunities for my clients.

I like to identify people's needs and find ways to achieve results.

Working as a freelancer, I helped my clients increase their net worth by an average of ten percent.

Salesman

I am an empathetic person who knows how to communicate with people and understands everyone's needs. During my summer internship, I worked in a call center on a helpline and received a call from a dissatisfied client with whom the company had recently terminated its contract unilaterally.

However, there was still no solution to her problem. I offered her alternative options, together we selected other contractors who helped her and she left with a positive response about the company.

I know how important a happy client is, and I am ready to be friendly, optimistic and focused on solving problems of any complexity.

Financial Director

I believe my strength is my ability to solve problems quickly and effectively. I can assess a situation from different points of view. This makes me a unique specialist, able to complete the job even in difficult conditions.

This approach to problem solving has allowed me to become a better negotiator. I can negotiate freely with both the board of directors and technical experts. My ability to see all sides of an issue helps me be a leader and driving force for the team.

Marketer

I know the industry inside and out. Having worked in sales and marketing for over fifteen years, I have acquired skills that will help increase company profits.

When I first started working for [previous employer], the company's sales were falling.

Under my leadership, revenue increased in subsequent years by 7% and 5%

respectively.

Energy Engineer

My strength is my work ethic and willingness to step in when needed. I'm not afraid to take on a difficult client or a project that no one else wants because I get good experiences with those clients and projects.

I love to take on extra work outside of my job description and do whatever is asked of me.

I pride myself on my ability to jump into any challenge and adapt to the situation to get the best results for the company.

You know what storytelling is, right? This is a way to give an answer in the form of a story, creates a pleasant impression. It is considered one of the key techniques of modern marketing and sales.

And employment is the ultimate sale. Your candidacy to the employer.

And the better you can formulate a story about yourself that focuses on your strengths, the better the information will serve you in your job search.

If you're having trouble understanding your advantages, ask a close friend or former colleague for help, or use our examples. Once you identify your strengths, a story with an example from experience will form itself.

2

Personality weaknesses

As we have already said, during the interview you will be asked to answer several

questions.

We have discussed how to talk about your advantages, but what will you answer when asked to name your weakest points?

Again, don't wait until the interview to answer this question on your resume.

• Firstly, the recruiter, having read your answer, may not ask it during the interview.
• Secondly, this technique allows you to create a selling resume that is relevant to the requirements of the vacancy.

“What's the point of having weaknesses?” you ask.

It's simple - every person has them, and the recruiter wants to understand how soberly you evaluate yourself and whether you understand that learning is a continuous, life-long process. (With)

The main purpose of weak qualities in a resume is to cover issues of non-compliance with the requirements of the vacancy.

You will appear smug and arrogant if you deny weaknesses and say that you have no weaknesses. On the other hand, you may lose your position if you list too many negative qualities.

The ideal option is to show yourself to be moderately modest and ready to learn and overcome difficulties.

That's why having a ready answer about shortcomings in your resume is of paramount importance for successful employment.

When you talk about your weaknesses, show the steps you take to turn the weakness into a strength.

On the other hand, it is important that your weakness has as little as possible to do with the key requirements for the position. But still, she must have at least some relation to it.

Specifying “I can’t draw” when applying for a job as an economist is a bad idea.

Moreover, this approach - reporting irrelevant shortcomings - reduces your chances of getting a job. Either do it right or don't mention it at all.

By talking about your shortcomings and what actions you are taking to get rid of them, you make a good impression on the employer.

If you are having trouble identifying and finding weaknesses, also try asking a friend or former colleague to help you identify your weaknesses.

Here you will be helped much more actively than with strong qualities, no doubt.

The main thing is to remember that weaknesses are not permanent, so their presence today is not defined as an obstacle to the desired position.

Any weakness can (and should) be worked out.

The ability to identify your weaknesses that need improvement indicates that you are a well-rounded candidate.

List of weak qualities

• Self-criticism;
• Excessive closedness (introvert);
• Excessive sociability (talkativeness);
• Obsession with details;
• Poor financial literacy;
• Poor knowledge of software;
• Vulnerability;
• Weak organizational skills.

As with strong character traits, we recommend using storytelling.

Examples of weak character traits for a resume

Do not write about negative qualities in your resume itself. This is of no use here.

The cover letter is your choice.

As a last resort, if you decide to focus on the main skill for a vacancy, use the “goals” block.

If you have trouble answering this question, check out the examples.

Programmer

I tend to be overly critical of myself. Every time I complete a project, I feel like I could have done more, even when the work I did gets positive feedback.

This causes me to become overworked and feel burnt out.

Over the past two years, I have tried to take the time to look at my accomplishments objectively and celebrate my victories.

It improved my performance and confidence and helped me evaluate my team.

HR Manager

I'm a real introvert, which makes it difficult for me to share my ideas in groups or speak up during meetings. I know I have great ideas, I just find it quite difficult to talk about it with my colleagues.

After our team failed to meet expectations on two projects, I decided to start making changes and using my ideas for the greater good. I enrolled in a local acting and public speaking course to help me get comfortable and overcome my difficulties in speaking my mind.

The journey to change is still a work in progress, but over the past year I have made significant improvements to this deficiency.

Administrator

I often take on large projects without outside help. I have a problem with delegating responsibilities. Because of this, I felt a lot of pressure and stress. For example, last year, when I was in charge of preparing our annual event, I tried to handle all the tasks myself, from the most important ones, like “venue location,” to the smallest ones, like “organizing table settings.”

The tension was so great that I could barely cope. This situation taught me to look back and analyze when and where I needed help.

Now I'm trying to learn how to delegate responsibilities and have found that teamwork produces better results than the work of one exhausted employee.

Architect

I am unfamiliar with the latest version of the software you use for your work. Throughout my career, software has constantly changed and I have been willing to adapt to new things. Therefore, I will definitely set aside time to study the program.

I have excellent learning abilities and high motivation: I completely learned the latest version of AutoCAD in 1 month using free videos on YouTube.

Head of IT department

I always avoid confrontation in both my personal and professional life. This forced me at times to compromise on the quality of my work or what I needed to complete a project just to keep the peace.

When I became the head of the department, this became a real problem.

One of the most important aspects of managing people is telling them what needs to be said, not what they want to hear. I realized my weakness and actively worked to express my opinions constructively and for the benefit of the common cause.

Web developer

When I am given a task, I am very determined and work hard at it. However, when new projects come along, I start switching between them without finishing the first one. Having to constantly jump between projects interferes with my productivity and achieving my best results.

Now I use the AGILE project management tool to intelligently plan tasks and time, and better understand priorities. Since implementing this system, I have increased my efficiency and productivity.

The better you formulate a story about shortcomings with examples of overcoming them, the better they will serve you when applying for a job and in an interview.

Always show that you are willing to turn weaknesses into strengths.

This is a big advantage.

List of negative qualities

What should you write in the negative aspects column if you can’t show yourself in a bad light? For example, is there too much competition for a place, when any word can be decisive? Here are some tips to give.

Doesn't ruin your resume

You can write negative traits that do not apply to this profession. The programmer does not need communication skills, so you can indicate “closeness” in the disadvantages column.

An accountant might write “modesty” or “straightforward.” This technique is quite simple, but such a list may not satisfy the manager’s curiosity, so use it carefully.

In some professions, the negative aspects of the human soul do not interfere, but rather help. For example, a sales representative must not only have the gift of eloquence, but also be able to lie, looking honestly into the eyes of the interlocutor. And the head of the department can be forgiven for his ambition and authoritarianism.

Find positive qualities in yourself and expose them as “negative”. Such character traits will be perceived by superiors as something good, not something bad.

Write in other words the wishes that you have for your workplace, boss and team.

If you are applying for a job just for the money and are not interested in any “creativity” or “self-realization”, then write that you are a mercantile applicant.

This may serve as a reason for refusal, but it’s better than enduring half your life with hated bosses, disgusting staff and terrible working conditions.

The table below contains several examples of how you can rephrase your requirements for working conditions:

Below are some examples of negative traits for each common profession.

Manager

Negative qualities of a manager include conflict and aggressiveness, because a person has to work with people, and these characteristics make it difficult to establish contact. Indecision and isolation can be a hindrance.

Administrator

Passivity and lack of determination are the worst traits of an administrator, since in order to perform one’s functions one must show initiative and take the situation into one’s own hands. Arrogance and hypocrisy also become a negative quality.

Ministry of Internal Affairs

The police require assertiveness and speed of action, so uncertainty, indecisiveness, and isolation are bad qualities for law enforcement officers.

In addition, commercialism is not encouraged, as this is a clear sign that a person is capable of taking bribes.

Shop assistant

The most inappropriate qualities would be indecisiveness, isolation, lack of communication, and fear of negativity. Consultants have to communicate a lot, so they need to be outgoing and positive.