Four words people mix up
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Skill | The ability to do something well |
| Quality | A distinctive attribute or characteristic possessed by someone |
| Experience | The knowledge or skill acquired by a period of practical experience, especially in a particular profession |
| Qualification | A pass of an examination or an official completion of a course |
Which is which?
Why it matters on a CV. Employers ask for skills and qualities in different sections and they mean different things. A quality describes what you are like. A skill describes something you can do. Only one of them can be demonstrated on request.
Good skills in the workplace
The three-colour self-assessment from the original.
Sort each one. Best = describes me best. Well = describes me well. Least = describes me the least.
Written communication
Verbal communication
Teamwork
Problem solving
Leadership
Organisation
Motivation
Confidence
Working under pressure
Learnability
Resilience
There is no good score here. Nobody is green on all eleven, and a page that was would tell an employer nothing. The red column is genuinely useful — it is the honest answer to "what do you need to work on", which is a real interview question.
Good qualities in the workplace
Disciplined
Ambitious
Creative
Loyal
Humble
Honest
Flexible
Patient
Experience and qualifications
Experience
Work experience · volunteering · past job experience · animal experience — at college, on work experience, and your own pets.
Qualifications