BANGALORE: Of course, every job has a list of desired or required skills. Employers will also look for strong work ethics, self-motivated, and energetic individuals. But, when two or more candidates are equally skilled, the employer will often look beyond the required skills to the mastery in soft skills. The fact is employers want people with skills. Having the right set of skills could mean the difference between having a dead-end job, and having a career with future opportunities for advancement.

Here are five must-have soft skills employers are looking for in today's job market:

1. Communication Skills

Most jobs require solid communication skills. Communication skills involve your ability to convey ideas to others clearly in conversations, emails, presentations and numerous other situations. Good communication goes beyond being able to speak well; it's about being able to convey ideas to people in a variety of ways.

A big component of communication is your listening skills. In order to be able to express ideas to others, you need to be able to understand the ideas that others are attempting to communicate to you. Good communication skills reduce conflicts and confusion, and allow for greater efficiency in performing your tasks.