What Skills Do You Need to Get a Good Job?
Making a positive career choice is a problem which worries many people nowadays. What am I good at? How can I find a well-paid job? What kind of knowledge and what traits of character should I have to succeed? These are the questions that people often ask themselves. Nowadays employers demand perfect knowledge, work experience, a range of transferable skills and such qualities as efficiency, punctuality, practicality, creativity and many others. If you want to get a good job, you must convince your employer that you are the best candidate for it. Choosing your future job you should take into consideration your interests, abilities and opportunities. Besides, you should know your employer’s requirements.
If you want to become a good specialist, to keep your job and to get a promotion, you should be competent. Competence is a requirement for a person to properly perform a specific job. In other words, it is a combination of knowledge, skills and behavior, the ability to perform
The ability to make the right decision is crucial in the world of business. A well considered decision will lead your team to success; a poor decision can result into failure. A good employee should demonstrate problem-solving capability and think about what is to be achieved and how it is to be achieved. Many companies need people who can work effectively in different countries and cultures, in other words, people who can function in a global context. Therefore it is important to develop intercultural competence. This requirement stems from the mass globalization of business and the development
of cross-cultural contacts. Intercultural competence is the ability to understand people of other cultures and to work effectively with them. A person must remember that the traditions and customs that he or she is used to may be inadmissible in another country. That is why one should be aware of intercultural differences to avoid mistakes, misunderstanding or offence and to achieve one’s business goals.Negotiating is part and parcel of working life that is why negotiating skills are essential no matter what kind of job a person has. The most important thing is to take into consideration your personal style and your partner’s expectations and reaction. You should be calm, reasonable, self-confident and convincing. You should try to win your partner’s favour and make him trust you. It is useful to take into account all details: your speech, body language, physical contact, eye contact, etc.
Relationship-building is a new popular term that means building good relationships with partners and clients. You should understand their needs and respect their rights. You should also maintain good relationships with supervisors and peers. It is very important to handle appropriately criticism and complaints, to deal respectfully with cultural and racial diversity and never to engage in harassment of any kind.
Modern life is full of stress that is why it is essential to be able to cope with stress and fatigue. When a person is busy achieving his aspirations, he often forgets about work-life balance. Many people suffer from the conflict between work and family. They are too much preoccupied with their career and they have no time for rest, pleasure and spiritual development. Don’t forget that if you want to make a career, you should be healthy and happy. And if you want to be healthy and happy, you should not forget a simple rule: don’t overwork, take breaks and remember that we work to live but not vice versa.
1. Complete each sentence (A-H) with one of the endings (1-8): A. Nowadays employers demand
B. Competence is
C. Today executives and managers don’t only speak of skills and qualifications of their employees, but of
D. Competence development is a long process that requires
E. A good employee should demonstrate problem-solving capability and think about
F. Intercultural competence is the ability
G. Relationship-building is a new popular term that means
H. Modern life is full of stress that is why it is essential to be able
1. their competencies that measure a person’s appropriateness for a particular job.
2. to understand people of other cultures and to work effectively with them.
3. a combination of knowledge, skills and behavior, the ability to perform a specific role.
4. what is to be achieved and how it is to be achieved.
5. to cope with stress and fatigue.
6. perfect knowledge, work experience, a range of transferable skills and such qualities as efficiency, punctuality, practicality, creativity and many others.
7. building good relationships with partners and clients.
8. training and personal development.
2. Make a short summary of the text (5-7 sentences)
3. Read and translate the following proverbs and sayings. Explain their meaning
– Business is the salt of life.
– A bird is known by his note, the man by his work.
– He works best who knows his trade.
– Business first, pleasure afterwards.
– If you won’t work you shan’t eat.
– All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
– A bad workman quarrels with his tools.
– Jack of all trades is master to none.
– No sweet without some sweat.
– Busiest men find the most time.
4. Answer the questions 1) Why is it difficult to make a positive career choice?
2) What should a person do if he or she wants to get a good job?
3) What should you take into consideration choosing your future job?
4) Why is it important to be competent?
5) How many groups of competencies do you know? Say a few words about them.
6) Why is the ability to make the right decision crucial in the world of business?
7) What does the expression ‘to function in a global context’ mean?
8) Why is it important to develop intercultural competence?
9) Are negotiating skills essential in business/in everyday life? Why?
10) What are the secrets of successful negotiating?
11) What does the term ‘relationship-building’ mean?
12) Why do many people suffer from the conflict between work and family nowadays? What are the ways to solve this problem?
5. Fill in the table
The rules that an employee must observe
– to arrivive and to leave on time;
– to be be appropriately dressed;
– to follow chain of command;
The skills that are essential for any job
– to adapt to new environments;
– skills in time management (to be able to save and invest time);
– strategic thinking (to predict the future development of one’s business and, at the same time, to focus on the present)
6. Read and translate the quotations below. Choose any statement and comment on it – Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better.’ (Martin Luther King, Jr.)
– ‘It’s true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure, why take the chance?’ (Ronald Reagan)
– Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.’ (Kahlil Gibran)
– Work is a necessary evil to be avoided.’ (Mark Twain)
– ‘There is joy in work. There is no happiness except in the realization that we have accomplished something.’ (Henry Ford)
– ‘Our fatigue is often caused not by work, but by worry, frustration and resentment.’ (Dale Carnegie)
– ‘Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.’ (Aristotle)
– ‘Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.’ (Confucius)
– Competence, like truth, beauty, and contact lenses, is in the eye of the beholder.’ (Laurence J. Peter)
If you want to get a job you should convince the employer to give you an interview. That is why your CV (Curriculum Vitae) is of great importance. Practice in writing your CV according to the plan below. A Curriculum Vitae (CV) is an overview of a person’s professional and academic achievements. It summarizes educational and academic history, and may include details about teaching experience, publications, and academic honours and awards. There is no single correct format or style for writing a CV In a CV, completeness is more important than brevity.
Typical Sections on a CV 1. Name, address, contact numbers, e-mail address.
2. Education (diploma or degree, type of qualification).
3. Work experience (put your present job first).
4. Dissertation.
5. Fellowships and awards.
6. Teaching Experience.
7. Research Experience.
8. Related Professional Experience.
9. Languages or other skills relevant to your field (e. g. computer proficiencies).
10. References.
11. Other (miscellaneous personal information such as membership in professional/ scholarly associations, travel or study abroad, hobbies and interests).
Additional tips – Make sure that the information in your CV addresses the job description.
– Don’t include skills which you don’t have.
– Don’t include some personal information if you feel that it is not relevant.
– Use numbers and active verbs.
– Be precise and clear.
A. Make a list of skills you need to get the job of your dream. Discuss it with your group mates.
B. Read the text ‘What Skills Do You Need to Get a Good Job?’ and continue your list.
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