With the pandemic easing up and coming to an end, we look forward to picking up our lives where we last left them off. For some of us, it can mean going back to school, picking ourselves up after being laid off, or maybe even considering a career change!
As the global construction industry is expected to make a recovery in 2021, why not make labour hire a strong consideration in your next career steps? The construction industry of the past has long been associated with physically-demanding work and unsafe working conditions, but that simply is not true anymore! While technical skills will get your foot in the door, these soft skills listed below are essential to being successful in the construction industry.
Social Awareness
Working on a construction site means that you are highly involved with your co-workers, no matter your position. Listening and communicating effectively is key to promoting safer working environments and improving your working relationship. Onsite, teamwork is of absolute importance and employers are usually looking for candidates who have the ability to recognise their co-workers’ emotional needs.
Problem Solving
We have all been there before, regardless of what type of job it is: A client contacts us with a list of requests and expect us to complete it or else. Of course, you can ask them how they want the job to be done, but what if they don’t possess the technical skills that you have? Sounds like the perfect opportunity to show off what you’re capable of! Combining your technical know-how and lateral thinking is a sure way to make your job easier and definitely impress your employers and clients!
Inspirational Leadership
Who says you have to be in the top spot to be a leader? According to Forbes, inspirational leadership is “the ability to uplift, enliven, fill, and empower people with compelling vision.” You do not have to be a foreman or in a managerial position to learn inspirational leadership. Learning and executing this skill can come from simple things like offering to take initiative, or reminding your co-workers that you are all working together to achieve the same goal. It does not matter where you’re working, as employers are always on the lookout for leaders!
Productivity
Unlike desk jobs, working in construction has noticeable results and low-productivity will be much more identifiable. Efficient prioritising and planning is key here and being able to optimise their output is a skill that plenty of employers are looking for in a candidate, as construction work has usually has strict deadlines. Besides, who doesn’t love to see the results of a job well done?
Self-Assessment
Amongst all of the soft skills we need to work on in order to advance a successful career, self-assessment comes out on top. Before we can work on developing emotional intelligence, leadership, and increasing productivity output, we must first have the ability to objectively deduce our workplace performance. It would be good practice to ask ourselves every day, “How am I doing? Can I do this better?”
