Are you a foreign English speaker and youre fed up with your current situation at work and

youd really love to change jobs?

Are you already preparing for a job interview and youre anxious to make the best impression
possible?
Or maybe youre in the process of creating a CV so that you can start applying for relevant
positions?
Whichever is the case, you may want to make sure youre using relevant job-seeking related
phrases and expressions! If you do so, youll definitely increase your chances of getting picked
for the position because youll sound just like your native English speaking counterparts.
So without further ado, lets get down to business and see exactly what smart English phrases
you should use in your CV and during your job interviews!
Describing Your Profile
Im a wide profile sales/marketing/customer support professional this is a general phrase
used to describe industry/-ies youre been working in. If you say wide profile instead of just
Ive been working in , it will sound smarter and more professional!
I perform well under pressureis a phrase you can use to describe that youre an employee very
well capable of working when theres a lot of pressure and youll do your best to get things done.
Im used to working in a busy environment similar to the previous one, and you can use it
interchangeably with I perform well under pressure during an interview so that you dont
constantly repeat yourself.
Customer-orientated means you value customers and youll be polite and efficient when dealing
with them. Remember customers are life-blood of every business, so this is what every
potential employer will want to hear from you!
Meeting targets is a professional way of saying getting things done in time. In terms of work
and professional environment, targets is the word thats used to describe tasks and assignments,
so you should use it to sound like a true professional.
Handle stress easily this phrase is especially relevant in customer support and other industries
when dealing directly with customers starting with catering and ending with direct sales.
Team player if youre a likeable person who gets along well with others while at the same time
being able to maintain professional relationship instead of filling your workplace with gossip
then youre a team player!
Can-do attitude means you dont accept defeat and you dont get confused the moment
situation gets difficult and complicated at work. You just get things done, you cheer others up in
your workplace and youre the right person for the job youre going for!
Drive to succeed is one of characteristics of a typical career person, and you definitely want to
mention that during the interview or in your CV. Your future employer will look for someone
whos naturally driven by success, so make sure to describe yourself as such a person.
Results driven this phrase is somewhat similar to the previous one with emphasis on results.
Success is a more general term; results imply youre good at meeting targets, too.
Eager to learn use this English collocation to stress the fact that youre always taking
opportunities to acquire new knowledge. Its going to send a message to your interviewer that
youre not afraid of new duties and responsibilities!
Good at multitasking use this phrase to convince your future employer that youre not easy to
give into despair when things are getting hectic and you have to juggle a lot of responsibilities at
the same time.
Describing Previous Experience and Your Current Position
I have years experience in the field this phrase allows you to describe your experience
precisely while using professional lingo at the same time.
Proven track record when you say, for example I have a proven track record in
telecommunication it means youve been working in the sector and you have an official
employment history and related references.
Work against the clock this is a perfect way of describing a fast-paced work environment in
your previous or current job. Another good job-seeking related word combination to go with this
one is to meet deadlines We often have to work against the clock to meet deadlines during
the busy season.
SLA (Service Level Agreement) is a standard term used across industries whenever two parties
have agreed on certain targets in terms of performance. Its especially relevant for customer
support based positions where every individual has to work towards meeting Service Level
Agreements such as responding on e-mails within a certain period of time, logging phone calls
properly and ensuring timely resolution of customer problems. So if youve been having similar
responsibilities in your current/previous job but you didnt know its called meeting SLAs
make sure you use this smart phrase in your CV and job interview!
Liaise with other departments its a fancy way of saying to communicate with other
departments. If youre willing to get the job though, you may as well learn the word liaise.
When it comes to speaking about your communication between departments in your company,
youll know exactly what phrase to use!
Explaining Why You Want This Job
This question comes up during every job interview, and oftentimes interviewees arent quite sure
how to respond to it. Its essential therefore that you learn a few phrases you can use exactly for
this purpose!
Also remember never speak ill of your previous/current jobs or employers! Even if youre
going for a new job because you hate your boss, never admit to it during an interview. Thats
when the following phrases come in handy:
I want to further my career in sales/marketing its a perfect way of saying that there arent
any promotional opportunities in your current job without admitting to it directly.
I n line with my qualifications if you tell your future boss that you want to get this job because
its in line with your qualifications, its going to send a message that youre a person fully aware
of what your expertize is. And I dont think theyll keep probing you during the interview until
they get you to confess that youre just unhappy with your current job. Theyll take this answer
as a satisfactory response and be happy with it!
I want to take on more responsibility a totally valid phrase you can use when aiming for a
slightly higher position. Just like when using the first phrase in this section you can use this
sentence, highlight the fact that youre an ambitious professional but dont say directly
Nobody will promote me in my current company
The Tricky Part of Any Interview Salary
In 9 situations out of 10 youre looking for a better pay when going for a new job, arent you?
But what if the advertised position doesnt have a price-tag attached to it? The problem is you
cant just tell your potential employer right upfront I want to get paid 12$/h!
Thats when you have to be smart and use the right phrases to send a message to the interviewer
that youre aware of what your experience and skills are worth.
Competitive salary you cant go wrong with this one if you say that youre expecting a
competitive salary, it means you know what the industry average is and youd like to get at
least that amount of hourly wage.
My remuneration was adequate if you dont want to reveal how much you earned in your
previous company, this is the phrase to use!
I expect experience based remuneration as I already told you mentioning numbers during a
job interview speaks of bad manners, so if youre quite an experienced professional in a certain
field, its safe to say that you expect your experience to reflect on your remuneration package.
My salary expectations are in line with my qualifications and education same thing as the
previous phrase but with an emphasis on your qualifications and education. This is a good way
of emphasizing your educational background and its role in your career of course, if you have
something really relevant to bring to the table. If you expect your bachelors diploma to work
as a salary-boosting factor when applying for a catering position better think twice!
What Sets You Apart From Other Candidates?
Its another one of those questions that can make or break your job interview. The thing is
while both you and your future employer know that youre probably not a unique person among
other job-seekers out there, youve just got to sell yourself as the best person possible for the
position!
And of course dont forget that being a foreign English speaker, you have to sell your spoken
English skills as well, so thats when the following phrases come in handy:
Im self-motivated this phrase is kind of overused, but if you really mean it, it says a lot about
you as a worker. It means you dont have to be constantly supervised and youre mature enough
to take on responsibility!
I take pride in my work this a great phrase and I bet your future boss wants to employ someone
who takes pride in his/her job and is enthusiastic enough to make sure day-to-day tasks are run
effectively.
Im very attentive to detail heres a quality that can really set you apart from others. I know
from my own experience that small mistakes can lead to big expenses down the road for your
employer, so having someone on board whos going to be meticulous when it comes data entry
and similar tasks is very important!
Im 100% involved while performing work-related duties means youre really dedicated and
your future boss wont have problems with you not completing your tasks and assignments.
Im good at resolving problem situations dont forget to mention a difficult situation from
your past which you resolved successfully. Typically it involves dealing with a difficult
customer, but it can also include resolving other problems delivery issues, technical problems
and whatnot.
Language Skills
Its of the utmost importance for you as a foreign English speaker to describe your English and
other language skills so that those descriptions properly portray your capability of using the
respective languages. Heres how to describe your English skills other than just fluent:
I have effective communication skills in English both verbally and in writing. Its a perfect
way of elaborating on the matter in your CV because it also explains that youre good both at
writing and speaking. Fluent is a term that can be stretched; this phrase, however, leaves very
few questions to be asked!
Ive been speaking English for the last years you can use this sentence to alleviate any
doubts that your English mightnt be good enough for the job.
Ive been working in an English speaking environment for the last years same as the
previous one, with a slight emphasis on your work-related spoken English skills. Its going to
send a strong message to your future employer that you wont have any problems
communicating with your fellow employees and supervisors!
My English is competent for this industry its a way of admitting that your English mightnt
be 100% fluent yet you can deliver 100% results in the respective industry. Youre probably
better off avoiding this phrase unless you run into some English fluency issues during the
interview and then this might be your last chance to salvage the situation.
As we all know, in times of stress your spoken English may suddenly sound quite bad, and Ive
written about dealing with such and similar problems extensively. Here are a few articles you
should definitely read:
Native English Speakers Dont Always Spot Your Mistakes!
How to Achieve Complete English Fluency in 4 Easy Steps
Put On a Show Every Time You Speak in English
The biggest problem you may be facing is the following your English is quite fluent, but stress
is getting the better of you during the interview which in turn results in a lot of spoken English
mistakes. Now, in your CV youve indicated that your English is fluent, but if thats the case
why youre sounding like a beginner English learner?
Therefore its best to prep up for the interview well in advance to avoid such situations, and if
youve memorized at least a dozen smart phrases like the ones in this article, your chances of
sounding like a fluent English speaker are much bigger!
You should CONSTANTLY practice with yourself during
these last days leading up to the interview!
1. Create the potential interview questions and answers on paper.
2. Highlight the most commonly used expressions & industry phrases (theyre the ones in the
article above!)
3. Learn those expressions off by heart and do a role-play whereby you pretend to be both
yourself and the interviewer.
4. Do this exercise all over and over again until you can comfortably provide an answer on all
possible questions.
And of course on the interview day simply forget about it all and try and ignore
everything the mounting pressure, everything. Just go into the interview room and allow your
mouth to do the talking because the more youll stress out, the worse youll perform!
Basically the key is to do LOADS of spoken practice beforehand and allow all those speech
patterns to literally embed themselves into your brain so that you dont have to FORCE
yourself to say this or that particular thing.