The Top Soft Skills for Your Resume (100+ Examples to Try Today)

No? Well, you should. Soft skills are becoming increasingly important in job search and career progression. 

Let's travel back a little to explain this one. Back in the day, long ago, jobs were very specialized. If you wanted a job as a stone cutter, you needed to have hard stone cutting skills. If you wanted a job as an administrative assistant, you needed to type a certain amount of words per minute.

Jobs were so specialized that hard skills outweighed any number of soft skills. In fact, hiring managers may have balked in your face if you even tried to present soft skills. 

"Agnes Bedelia, we have no use for empathy, not in this transpondster factory. Good day!" 

Still think soft skills are fluffy and fuzzy?

Why Soft Skills Matter at Work

Think again. Research conducted with Fortune 500 CEOs by Stanford Research Institute International and the Carnegie Melon Foundation found that 75 percent of long-term job success depends on people skills (aka soft skills), while only 25 percent depended on technical knowledge (aka hard skills or technical skills.) If you like statistics, you'll also love to hear that 67 percent of HR managers and recruiters said they would hire a candidate with strong soft skills even if hard skills were lacking. 

Soft skills have long been the underdog, often dismissed as a little too "fluffy" for most. However, we bet that any single person reading this can pinpoint a specific failure or problem at work that could have been avoided or ameliorated by a good set of soft skills. 

The best part of soft skills? We all have some.

The ones we have—the ones that are almost inborn—we can work to improve and strengthen. The ones we don't have, we can also work to improve. Here's how to thoughtfully add your soft skills to your resume, your LinkedIn profile, and your cover letter.

Showcase what makes you—well, actually you.

Our Top Ten Soft Skill Sets 

There are many soft skills to consider here. One thing that soft skills have in common is that they all relate back to your emotional intelligence. Unlike computer skills or technical hard skills, soft skills can translate across multiple industries. This is great news for someone looking to make a career transition. 

Here are our top skills, what they mean in the workplace, and examples of how to list skills on your resume.

Communication

Whether written, verbal, or non-verbal, good communication is key at any job—especially careers in sales, marketing, human resources, and management.

Resume Example: Wrote content and copy for print and digital marketing materials for various XYZ clients.

Resume Example: Launched remote communication processes that increased department productivity. 

Examples of Communication Skills for a Resume

Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills allow an employee to relate to, communicate with, and work alongside others. Also commonly known as teamwork, interpersonal skills will ensure that you work at your best with others.

Resume Example: Collaborated with curriculum team to create and implement relevant and engaging lesson plans. 

Resume Example: Coordinated with events team members to plan corporate events, from planning to post-event analysis. 

Examples of Interpersonal Skills for a Resume

Adaptability

Adaptability is a tough skill set for many. This allows you to go with the flow, roll with the punches, and embrace change as it comes. Adaptability is an especially important soft skill in a startup environment.

Resume Example: Created new recruitment process that streamlined remotely onboarding new hires.

Resume Example: Developed innovative digital marketing strategies that increased qualified leads by 10%.

Examples of Adaptability Skills for a Resume

Problem-Solving

Problem-solving skills are a set of particular skills to use in difficult, unexpected, or complicated matters that arise in the workplace.

Resume Example: Fielded customer phone calls and delivered expedient complaint resolution.

Resume Example: Co-authored updated company handbook that decreased ambiguity and led to a 15% decrease in employee turnover.

Examples of Problem-Solving Skills for a Resume

Leadership

Leadership soft skills allow you to guide others while reaching for the goals and mission of your organization on the whole.

Resume Example: Managed a team of 20 remote marketing professionals through the implementation of multimedia marketing strategies and tactics.

Resume Example: Directed a team of five lawyers to develop company-wide legal procedures for start-up firm.

Examples of Leadership Skills for a Resume

Organization

Organization is pretty much key in every organization (see what we did there?). Your organizational skills will be important to offset any potential problems, to make sure everything adheres to deadlines, and to keep clear communication open.

Resume Example: Regularly and accurately prepared, reviewed, and delivered invoices for customer base of over 500.

Resume Example: Created growth-based analysis model for each student, based on their interests and goals.

Examples of Organization Skills for a Resume

Time Management

Time management is your ability to work smart. Contrary to belief, it's not to work faster or harder, but it's using your time to work productively and efficiently.

Resume Example: Managed multiple IT modernization initiatives while delivering continuous support to existing infrastructure. 

Resume Example: Supported multiple client engagements while training new staff members on existing protocols. 

Examples of Time Management Skills for a Resume

Creativity

Creativity is more than being able to whip up a gorgeous painting or some punny prose. Real creativity comes in handy at any workplace—whether in problem-solving, forging new directions, or developing new solutions to old problems. And unlike listing design software like Illustrator or adobe photoshop, you'll notice that creative soft skills are more focused on the approach to new ideas and the key skills that support those ideas.

Resume Example: Designed and implemented a new onboarding process that streamlined the previous process from three days to one day.

Resume Example: Led a team of designers to design and produce all digital marketing collateral for XYZ clients.

Examples of Creativity Skills for a Resume

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is pretty much at the core of every soft skill. Emotional Intelligence, or EQ, is as simple as how you treat a server at a restaurant and as complex as how you navigate working with a particularly difficult coworker. 

Resume Example: Demonstrate high-quality care to all patients through effective and empathetic communication.

Resume Example: Created encouraging company-wide mentorship program that increased positivity and productivity in the work environment.

Examples of Emotional Intelligence Skills for a Resume

Work Ethic

Another skill that is at the core of everything is an actual work ethic—because, without a good worth ethic, your soft skills don't serve anyone looking to increase a bottom line at work.

Resume Example: Volunteered to serve as acting lead for regional sales team during the current lead’s maternal leave.

Resume Example: Developed uniformed training for new employees where no prior formal training had existed. 

Examples of Work Ethic Skills for a Resume

How to Identify Your Own Soft Skill Sets 

It's time to honestly identify your soft skill sets. There are some skills you can qualify almost immediately. For example, under the communication umbrella of soft skills, you might immediately identify yourself as excellent at written communication—but maybe your verbal communication is a little lacking. 

Step 1. Make a List (or Three) 

To get started, create a three-column list. In the first column, list the skills you're pretty dang sure you have mastered. These might already be listed in your resume skills section since you're confident you're skilled at them. In the second column, list the skills you have but you'd like to develop more. In the third column, list the skills you need to start from scratch to work on improving. 

Step 2. Phone a Friend (or Colleague) 

Remember the last time you sat down to update your resume, write a cover letter, or navigate your LinkedIn profile? Even worse, have you ever been asked to write a biography of yourself from the third-person point of view? 

Thinking about yourself, writing about yourself, or qualifying your skills can be extremely difficult. That's why our second tip in identifying your soft skill sets is to phone a friend. As human women, we can tend to be a little too modest for our own good.

It's always great to get an opinion from someone close to you—whether it's your mom, your partner, or your coworker. Because, here's the deal—some soft skill sets are so incredibly inborn, we might not even notice them ourselves. You might be excellent at really constructive feedback without knowing it. Why? Because you're someone who naturally has a knack for being helpful, empathetic, and communicative. There, right there, are three amazing sets of soft skills. 

Once you have created your three-column list, take it to a trusted friend, family member, or colleague. See how their insights fall in line, differ from or complement yours. 

How to Identify the Best Soft Skills for the Job 

Is it time to level up at your company, look for a new job, or change careers altogether? For any of these bold career moves, you'll want to boast about your soft skills—exactly where they're applicable for the job. 

Scour the Job Post or Job Description 

Yes, we're talking about keywords! Every job post has a little hidden language and it's our job to decode it. The thing is, it's not that hard to do it—and it only takes a few minutes. 

Some job postings are going to list soft skills that are easy to identify. The job post might ask for someone who is detail-oriented, someone who has a proven record of excellent written communication, or someone who is extremely organized. Look for these call-outs of expertise and highlight them. 

Other job posts will be a little more cagey or use more flowery language—when what they're really asking for is skill sets. For example, we found a job posting for a content writer that requested, "Help to educate, inform and energize investors." This request doesn't detail a step-by-step "need list." Instead, it's asking for a writer who might have creative soft skills, problem-solving soft skills, and interpersonal soft skills. 

Consider taking a few sentences from your next job post or job description. Deconstruct the problems you will be asked to address. Then, reconstruct them with your natural skillsets.

We know that taking this route might seem labor-intensive, but hear us out. Every time you thoughtfully apply for a job—when you actually take the time to imagine yourself in the role working hard and expanding your experiences—you are learning more about yourself, your strengths, and your weaknesses. Now, let's get to writing some keyword-rich bullets!

How to Insert Soft Skills Into Your Resume, Cover Letter, or LinkedIn Profile 

So, we made some lists, checked them twice, and deconstructed an entire job post. We have picked it apart, line by line, and now we actually need to write this ding-dang resume and cover letter. 

Add Soft Skills to Your Resume 

A big mistake we see in resumes and cover letters is the "errant list." This is when an applicant simply uses a little real estate—perhaps on the right or left border—to list out soft skills they believe to have. Here's the problem with the errant list. It doesn't provide context for the skills—and how you actually apply them in your work. 

By now, you have made a list of soft skills—hopefully with the help of a trusted mentor or friend. Once you have done this, scour through your past experiences and add the relevant skills to your resume summary, work experience bullet points, and any specific skills section of your resume. 

Perhaps you were an administrative assistant who has great communication skills and a suuuuper legit attention to detail. Rather than "showing" this by simply listing "attention to detail," tell it on your bullet points. Under your administrative assistant experience at X company, tell the hiring manager all about your communication prowess. Did you implement a project management system that communicated a hierarchy at the office? Did you single-handedly close deals while taking over written communication for your manager? 

Learn to tell a story wherever—and whenever—you can. Not only does it inform and color your soft skillsets, but it also makes for an interesting read (because let's face it, resumes can be boring). Plus, applicant tracking systems look for the keywords in your resume that match the job description so you have a better shot at the job altogether when you do this.

Add Soft Skills to Your Cover Letter 

 Your cover letter is a great place to take every tip from above and expand on it. 

Remember that list of soft skills we made? Let's find two to three soft skills that are best suited for this particular job and expand on those. If the job description mentioned soft skills by name—e.g., "Great Written Communication a Must."—then attack it by name. Tell this hiring manager a few stories about how your written communication saved a project or amplified business in a big way. Of course, you will want to do all of this while communicating (through writing) like a true professional. 

If the job requires creativity—and lists it as a required soft skill—consider being more creative with your actual cover letter. If their job description had a jovial and fun tone, respond in kind. Tell a story, share a particularly creative project you spearheaded, and maybe even share a creative idea you could contribute to the company if you were to land the job. Your achievements can be tailored to showcase your best skills and your qualifications for the job!

Add Soft Skills to Your LinkedIn Profile 

The amazing thing about LinkedIn, especially when compared to resumes or cover letters, is that you have virtually unlimited real estate. 

For your LinkedIn profile, consider adding your strongest soft skills in a few sections. Inserting soft skills into your LinkedIn is a great way to color your experience—and set you apart from everyone else. 

FAQs

How Many Skills Should I Include On My Resume?

When it comes to your resume, the choice of including hard and soft skills is entirely up to you. It's important to consider the skills that are most relevant to your industry and what each potential employer is looking for.

As a general guideline, it's a good idea to have a skills section where you list up to 10 key skills. However, don't limit yourself to just that section —feel free to sprinkle related skills throughout your summary and experience sections. It's all about showcasing your abilities in the best way possible!

What Skills Should I List If I Have No Work Experience?

First things first, make sure to thoroughly study the job description using the advice we listed above. Take note of any skills mentioned that align with what the employer is seeking. It could be anything from proficiency in a specific software like Excel to being a skilled problem-solver with excellent communication abilities, both written and verbal.

Next, reflect on the skills you already possess and select the ones that are most relevant to the position. These are the gems that should make it onto your resume. Remember, they should be the skills that truly highlight your capabilities and make you stand out as a candidate.

Additionally, when you write your cover letter and during the interview, you can expand on these skills. Show the employer how these particular abilities will contribute to your success in the role. It's all about emphasizing the value you bring to the table!