Resume Preparation: How to Inventory Skills on Resume

The inventory skills on your resume provide employers with an overview of your professional history. As you might expect, this should be an integral part of your resume preparation. While you can list skills without a process, there's a more efficient way of doing it during your resume preparation. Here's a guide on how to inventory skills on a resume.

Evolution of Skills

Skill growth comes in multiple phases. The first phase involves learning basic knowledge. Similar to a student, you're still trying to grasp the process. As you get better, you move on to the second phase, being an apprentice. The apprentice level allows you to use what you learned and assist on a smaller scale.

You can have more impact as you move to the next level of your evolution. This phase is what you can call the “work” stage. Compared to the apprentice phase, you're actively using your skills to contribute. What follows is the “expert” stage, which is the penultimate phase of the cycle. At the expert level, you use your skills to resolve problems creatively.

Finally, the peak of the skills evolution process is reaching the so-called “craftsman” phase. It's the level where you start innovating and creating your own solutions. Most will now turn to you for advice due to your expertise on a specific matter

The evolution of your skills depends on how driven you are to improve. It's worth noting that everyone has their learning speed. Don't feel pressured to reach a particular stage before you're ready.

How to Inventory Skills on Your Resume

The resume preparation stage entails inventorying your skills. Luckily, there are effective ways to do so. Let's discuss some steps on how you can outline and inventory skills on your resume.

1. Determine the different types of skills

   The first step to inventory skills on your resume is identifying different skill sets. You can arrange them as hard or soft skills. The purpose of knowing skills types is so you can separate them during resume preparation. You can then create a dedicated skills section. The skills section of your resume gives employers an accessible overview of your most relevant talents.

2. Make a list of your top five skills

   Once you've sorted skills into their proper categories, proceed to make a list. You can even break down soft and hard skills into subcategories. These subcategories can be technical, leadership, organizational, or life skills. Continue your resume preparation by listing your top five talents in each area.

3. List the skills you want to improve

   Out of the skills you listed, identify what you still want to work on. Your chosen skills don't necessarily mean you're bad at these things. However, these are the areas that still have room for improvement. This part of the resume preparation process can be an opportunity for self-reflection.

4. Devise a plan to strengthen your weak areas

   It's safe to say that everyone wants to improve in certain areas to be a better worker. To do this, you can go out of your way to make a strategy. A plan to improve your skills shows initiative and may help your chances. If you want, you can dedicate a brief section for this during your resume preparation.

5. Include a brief explanation of the inventory skills on your resume

   The inventory skills on your resume will look better with a description. You can go the extra mile and state specifics regarding your competence in these areas. A brief explanation adds another layer of depth to your resume.

A Seamless Process

The resume preparation phase involves many steps. However, some may overlook the importance of including inventory skills on their resume. It's easy to get overwhelmed during the resume preparation phase. Fortunately, this can serve as your guide as you inventory skills on your resume.

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