When I speak with students about their skills—from ones they have to ones they want to develop for their future career—I frequently hear “I want to work with people.” This is a critical skill for many positions and in industries such as sales, marketing, management, and counseling, but just saying you want to work with people or have “people skills” often isn’t enough for an employer.
Have you ever worked in a group or on team? You may have practiced negotiating, facilitating, presenting, active listening, or participating.
Here are a few tips to demystify what people skills are, how you can gain them, and how to talk about them as you pursue internships and jobs.
What are people skills?
They involve all of the ways that you relate to other people. They can also be referred to as communication skills because they include how you communicate effectively with others, either individually or in a team. This includes communication via reading, writing, editing, active listening, and speaking.
They are used to share information, brainstorm ideas, offer interpretations, and convey feelings to others.
They include how you interact with others, such as conflict resolution, empathy, encouragement, respect, and patience (also called interpersonal skills).
They also include attributes such as honesty, keeping an open mind, and being supportive.
How have I been developing my people skills?
We all use these skills every day in our personal, academic, and work lives.
Have you ever worked in a group or on team? You may have practiced negotiating, facilitating, presenting, active listening, or participating.
Do you live with roommates? This helps you practice people skills—such as being able to get along with others, resolve disputes, communicate well, and respect those around you—that are highly sought after in professional settings.
How can I incorporate my people skills into an internship or job search?
- Consider what else you know about yourself including your passions, motivations, and ideal work environment. Include all of these factors as you look for positions.
- Create a list of some specific examples of when and how you have used your people skills.
- When it comes time to apply for internships or jobs, choose relevant examples to add to your cover letters and to talk about in interviews.
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