Top 5 personality traits employers look for (and how to make sure you have them)

You may be wondering how to secure your next promotion or get the advantage over the competition on your interview. Research by employer branding firm, Universum, who annually surveys over 400,000 students and professionals worldwide on jobs-related issues, provides a clue by sharing the top five personality traits employers are looking for in job candidates.

Not surprisingly, professionalism (86%), high-energy (78%), and confidence (61%) make the top three. When it comes to these traits, first impressions count. You can tell from the first 30 seconds of meeting someone if they are a confident, energetic professional.

As important as first impressions are, employers like to see proof that your awesome traits will come to life on the job or under pressure. Confidence is a key part of this, but the question is how can we gain and keep it?

Luckily, confidence can be learned, practiced and mastered, just like any other skill. And having it will positively impact your professionalism and energy.

Self-monitoring (58%) and intellectual curiosity (57%) is the fourth and fifth. Demonstrating that you are self-motivated, can solve problems and have an ongoing dedication to learning, is what employers want.

As a tax practitioner, it’s safe to say that the stronger your base knowledge, the more confident you’ll feel when advising clients and colleagues on complex tax issues. Pursuing structured education or professional development will also demonstrate that you’re self-motivated and intellectually curious, ticking all the personality trait wish list sought by employers.

Skill up for success with advanced taxation

Tax is a highly technical field, and in order to provide the best advice to your clients, having confidence in the technical aspects of the job is essential. You will appear more credible to your clients and stakeholders if you exude confidence on your area of expertise. Even if you’re looking to climb the corporate ladder and become a leader of tax teams, knowledge builds confidence. And the Tax Institute is committed to equipping tax professionals with the skills they need to confidently practice tax, and has been so for over 75 years.

The Institute’s education programs and professional development are designed to assist tax professionals through every stage of their careers and equip them with the knowledge they need to thrive. The advanced taxation subjects, CTA2A Advanced and CTA2B Advanced, are designed for those looking to build on their base knowledge and provides the skills to oversee complex tax compliance affairs and prepares you for professional advice-giving, which are required to move into management roles.

When you complete a CTA2A Advanced you will be able to comprehend fundamental discipline knowledge and its theoretical underpinnings and apply and evaluate outcomes and solutions for client scenarios while applying the ethics, responsibilities and duties of a tax professional.

With CTA2B Advanced, you’ll discover how to locate the information you need to analyse complex factual scenarios. You’ll learn to interpret tax law to prepare client briefs, and evaluate alternative tax strategies and consider implications of your advice from a Part IVA perspective. You will also learn the tax consequences within a global context, recognising the interaction between domestic and international tax legislation.

CTA2A Advanced Modules
CTA2B Advanced Modules
          Ethics, TASA 2009 and the Code of Professional
Conduct
          Corporate tax
          Tax Administration
          Goods and services tax
          Capital gains tax (CGT) fundamentals
          Fringe benefits tax
          Small business CGT concessions
          International tax fundamentals
          Partnerships
          Part IVA and general anti-tax avoidance
          Trusts
          Research and writing skills
          Superannuation

Study your way

There is a choice of study method to accommodate your full career and personal lives. That’s why you can study face-to-face, via distance, or by sitting the assessment on its own:

  • Face-to-face study allows candidates to attend lectures once every 2 or 3 weeks at CBD venues in mainland capital cities (subject to minimum numbers)
  • Distance study utilises group web/teleconference tutorials every 2-3 weeks
  • Assessment-only study allows candidates to accelerate their studies by progressing directly to the assessments for the subject based on prior study, qualifications and experience. 

Confidence is something that can be mastered. Step out of your comfort zone, prepare for the future, and equip yourself to attract new clients and provide the best advice by advancing your knowledge.

It’s not too late to hit your career goals in 2018. Study Period 3 enrolments close on 19 November.

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