Finding employment in a competitive job market can be difficult. You must possess the right combination of skills, education, and experience to stand out among other candidates. You also need to stay current with industry best practices and trends to succeed in your job search.

In a challenging employment landscape, high demand for positions and limited role availability may leave candidates unsuccessful in their job search. If you’re looking to land a job, distinguishing yourself from other candidates is key. Here are some tips to help you.

According to an article in the International Review of Business and Economics, upskilling enables an employee to acquire advanced skills through additional training and education. Upskilling can keep you from getting stagnant in your field and give you opportunities for professional growth.

You don’t have to wait for a company to train you for skills you want to have. You can avail of training courses online to help you improve both your hard and soft skills. Here are some of them.

Udemy is a gold mine of training courses. It covers a broad spectrum of expertise ranging from web development and digital marketing to business, finance, and accounting. It even offers courses on personal development like leadership, career development, and stress management.

The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) online program offers free online courses on agriculture, construction, electrical and electronics, and other technical skills. Courses on soft skills like financial literacy, communication, and environmental literacy are also available.

Coursera is popular for its on-demand video lectures conducted by top university instructors and lecturers from all over the world. Business, computer science, and language learning are among the most popular categories in this online education platform.

If you’re looking to level up, LinkedIn Learning offers group and individual access to in-demand skills training. It gives users a month of free, unlimited access to over 21,000 courses. You can find training on the latest software, management, techniques, or industry-specific knowledge, all designed to enhance your professional profile. The best part? Recruiters or potential employers will be privy to all your newfound skills.

Companies nowadays use various tools for project management, communication, and online collaboration. Knowing how to use these tools gives you an advantage, increasing your chances of finding a job. Here are some of the commonly used programs in today’s workplace.

These collaborative, cloud-based tools allow you to work on documents, spreadsheets, and slide presentations with your team members. With these tools, you no longer need to deal with different versions sent back and forth. All you need is one file stored online where all of you can add your inputs.

These project management tools help you track the progress of different tasks. They make monitoring deadlines easier and help you stay organized, especially if you’re handling multiple projects.

These are among Forbes Advisor’s best video conferencing apps of 2024. Companies use these apps to conduct online meetings, webinars, and even job interviews, so knowing how to use these tools is crucial.

Whether you’re working remotely or not, communicating online with your colleagues is part of a typical workday. Almost all kinds of work conversations happen on Slack or Microsoft Teams—from quick questions to checking in on your team members. Learn how to use them and give yourself an advantage in your job search.

An article in the Canadian Journal of Career Development defines adaptability as adjusting thoughts, feelings, and actions to tackle new situations and challenges. Adaptability involves various skills—like communication, problem-solving, and creative thinking skills, to name a few—that help you cope with change at work.

Being adaptable shows you can deal with unexpected situations, and this trait can help you stand out among other candidates and make companies want to work with you.

According to a study in the journal Open Engineering, employers look for strong teamwork skills in candidates. Being a team player can manifest in several ways, like your conflict management style, the way you give and receive feedback, and how reliable you are. Make sure to highlight these on your resume or during your job interviews when asked about your strengths and positive traits.

A review article in the journal Heliyon indicated that employers value good communication skills in candidates. Exhibit these skills during interviews by speaking clearly, listening attentively, asking questions, and being mindful of your body language.

Even if you’re not looking for a new job, make sure you have an updated resume ready. List all relevant work experience, trainings attended, certificates for any courses you’ve recently taken, and, for some fields like publishing and design, an updated portfolio.

Keep your LinkedIn profile page updated, too. An Asian Journal of Management study revealed that employers prefer candidates with sufficient job-related skills and consistent information across their LinkedIn profiles and resumes.

Upskilling, being proficient in apps used at work, and developing soft skills can help you stand out from the competition. So, keep on improving yourself to succeed in a competitive job market.