The Skills Series

This post is the first in a short series that outlines skills everyone can use to excel in the workplace. Many women contributed to this list and helped develop the practical application processes that I will outline in each skill.

A quick google search will yield a massive list of "leadership skills". Basic things like confidence, accountability, and purpose. But how do you practice accountability? Purpose? Do skills like that come across in your resume and work produced? Usually not. These skills are helpful and will be covered in this series but I will also expand on each skill and include hard and soft skills that take more than "natural leadership talent"(something that I firmly believe is built and not bred, but we can get into that later).

I'll include the first skill in this post: Writing

Your writing is often the first face of yours that your employer will meet. It may be in your resume, an email, or any other means of written communication that your employer sees. Many things must be taken into consideration when writing, like little grammar rules that I still don't understand. Tone, word choice, and content however are the 3 most important.

When writing, consider how you want to come across to your reader. You must consider who your audience is. Do you want to be professional or more casual? Funny or serious? Tone can often be lost in writing. We've all gotten those texts that are followed by a moment of panic when you don't know if the sender was being sarcastic or not and you don't know how to respond. This is why playing it safe in terms of tone is recommended in writing. Tone is also an important way to convey your personality, this is important in a cover letter and to make first impressions, allow your voice to come through in your writing.

Word choice is also an important, though simple, factor. It is easy to cheat in writing (cheat in a good way). The difference between "thought" and "pondered" can show elevated intellect and it is as easy as googling synonyms. My personal favorite is thesouraus.com. and as a very particular writer who wants to say exactly what she means, I always have a tab open.

Organization and conciseness are not only skills that come in handy in life and the broader workplace but are crucial in writing. It may be because I'm a visual person but organization in writing always brings it to a new level. This can include making lists, numbering items, and not getting off track. When a reader gets tired of your writing, it is because you are either off track, talking in circles, or it's just plain too long. If someone is no longer engaged they will tune out your words and that is not a good impression to make. Keep it short, keep it impactful.

Like every skill, writing needs practice. Reading or writing a little bit every day can help improve your tone, word choice, and organization. You may think that once you've left the classroom you can't improve your writing ability but there is always room to grow. The last and possibly most important tip for writing is to have someone else, or a grammar service like grammarly.com proofread your writing. This is extremely important when it comes to tone. Sometimes you get so deep into your writing it may be difficult to get out of your head and look at it afresh. A new person can offer a new perspective, as long as you are patient and seriously consider their advice if not take it.

Hopefully, this series helps you grow your capabilities and you learn something new. Tune in soon for a new post!

To follow in this series: Speaking and Public Presentation