Describe your job duties to showcase your skills

Most CVs contain a list of job duties that sound like a copy from a job description: 'Responsible for customer contact', 'Handled finances', 'Led projects'. The problem is that such formulations don't say anything about what you actually can do – only what you were tasked to do. A recruiter who reads five similar CVs has no reason to call specifically you for an interview.

To stand out, you need to describe your job duties in a way that shows your skills in action. It's about making visible your contribution, your abilities, and the impact you've had – without exaggerating. Here you get concrete tools to rewrite your job duties so they become proof of what you can do, not just a list of tasks.

From task to achievement – how to rethink

Start by asking yourself three questions for each job duty: What did I do? How did I do it? What was the result? The answers help you turn a passive description into an active story about your skills.

Take for example 'responsible for customer contact'. With the three questions, you can write: 'Handled incoming customer calls and resolved issues within the same day by prioritizing and using the company's systems'. Suddenly your ability to structure, prioritize, and use digital tools is visible – not just that you sat at a phone.

• Always write in the first person and in active form – 'developed', 'improved', 'coordinated' – instead of 'was responsible for'.

• Focus on skills that are relevant to the position you're applying for, not everything you've ever done.

Concrete examples make a difference

A common mistake is to write job duties at an abstract level. 'Participated in meetings' says nothing. 'Led weekly meetings with the sales team and compiled decision documents' shows that you can structure information, lead groups, and take responsibility.

Keep in mind that each job duty should be able to answer the question: 'How do you know you're good at it?' If you can't answer concretely, you should rephrase. An example: 'Conducted interviews with candidates and assessed their skills against the requirements profile' – here your analytical ability and judgment are clearer than 'recruited staff'.

Adapt the job duties to the position you're applying for

The same job duty can be described in different ways depending on what the position requires. If you've worked in a store and are applying for a sales job, you can emphasize how you actively listened to customers and suggested products. If you're instead applying for a warehouse job, you highlight how you handled inventory and kept track of deliveries.

Read the ad carefully and identify the skills that recur. Then rewrite your job duties to reflect exactly those. It's not cheating – it's showing that you understand what the employer needs and that you have relevant experience.

• Pick out three to five keywords from the ad and make sure they are reflected in your job duties.

• Use the same terminology as the employer – if they write 'customer care', use that instead of 'customer service'.

Common pitfalls to avoid

A common pitfall is making the list too long. Five to seven job duties per position is enough, and they should be the most relevant. Another is mixing up responsibility with results – 'handling the cash register' is not the same as 'ensured accurate cash records and reduced discrepancies'.

Also avoid writing job duties that don't say anything about your skills, like 'performed administrative tasks'. Be specific: 'updated customer records and handled invoices in the accounting system' shows both your system knowledge and your accuracy.

Your skills are worth showing – believe in them

Rewriting job duties this way takes time, but it's well invested. You don't need to be a salesperson – you need to be honest and clear about what you can actually do. Every time you phrase a job duty that shows your ability, the chance increases that a recruiter feels: 'This is someone we'd like to meet'.

So sit down with your old job duties and redo them. It's not uncommon to discover that you can do more than you thought – and it's exactly that insight that brings you closer to the interview.