7 Vital Intrapersonal Skills And Ways To Improve Them

Have you ever noticed those people who seem to have an incredible sense of self and wondered how they do it? They possess accurate self-awareness, an acute understanding of their strengths and weaknesses, as well as self-discipline and resilience. 

Because of these traits, they can rapidly assess situations, identify their task, and steer themselves toward the goal. They have a clear understanding of who they are and what they can accomplish.

These folks have highly developed intrapersonal skills. 

In this post, we'll take a look at seven examples of vital intrapersonal skills and discuss how you can improve yours.

What are intrapersonal skills?

Intrapersonal, by definition, means “inside a person.” Intrapersonal skills, then, refer to the emotional or cognitive abilities that an individual possesses. 

Intrapersonal skills are essential because they: 

• Encompass the tools you use to manage your emotions, cope with challenges, and process successes

• Impact how you perceive yourself, how you manage stress, and how you cope with frustrations

• Allow you to increase your self-awareness and shift behaviours to support your goals and aspirations

• Help you navigate your external world and reactions to others successfully

Intrapersonal skills vs interpersonal skills 

Your interpersonal and intrapersonal skills are deeply connected, but obviously very different. Both contribute to your ability to communicate needs, goals, and ideas to others. Both contribute to successful project and task management.  But where your interpersonal skills – that is, your ability to interact with others – are imperative for productive collaboration and leadership, it's difficult to project those abilities without a strong sense of self-awareness, self-discipline, adaptability, time management, and so on. In other words, your intrapersonal skills make your interpersonal skills possible. 

Key differences between intrapersonal and interpersonal skills

Intrapersonal skills focus on internal awareness related to how you understand and manage your emotions, thoughts, and behaviors – your inner world. 

• The primary goal of developing intrapersonal skills is to foster personal growth, enhance self-awareness, and improve decision-making aligned with one’s goals and purpose – think: resilience, self-awareness, adaptability, time management, and self-motivation. 

• The feedback related to your intrapersonal skills will come from within, and how you understand and respond to your own thoughts and emotions. 

• Intrapersonal skills are developed through self-reflection and assessment. 

Interpersonal skills are externally focused on how you interact with others - your outer world. 

• The primary goal of developing interpersonal skills is to build strong relationships and interact effectively with others – think: active listening, teamwork, effective leadership, verbal and nonverbal communication, conflict resolution, and negotiation.

• The feedback related to your interpersonal skills will come from external sources through various forms of communication. 

• Interpersonal skills are developed through engagement and social interactions with others.

Why are strong intrapersonal skills vital for your career?

Solid companies seek out employees who have the internal fortitude to see obstacles as a potential for improvement. Team members who know how to focus their attention, set priorities, and revel in purposeful thinking are immense assets to an organization. For that reason, it's easy to see why strong intrapersonal skills can make you valuable to an employer.

Someone with strong intrapersonal skills takes personal responsibility for their own feelings.  They're open to new ideas and eager to find innovative solutions, independent of ego. Their motivation is driven internally and rubs off on others.

7 examples of intrapersonal skills

1. Self-esteem

Self-esteem, or self-worth, is confidence in one's own worth or abilities. Put another way, it's how much you value yourself, regardless of the situation. It also affects motivation, since people who have a healthy, positive self-image are more aware of their capabilities and may be motivated to take on new challenges.

You can boost your self-esteem and, if you do make a mistake, attempt to confront any negative thoughts. A decent rule of thumb is to talk to yourself as if you were talking to your friends or someone you like.

2. Perseverance

Perseverance is the ability to pursue a course of action with energy and consistency, while overcoming challenging circumstances. It can entail the frustrating process of working through technical issues, grappling with tough concepts, and completing projects while surrounded by distractions. 

It can also mean resolving issues with challenging co-workers, putting in the time to research source material, or remaining focused on long-term goals that never seem to get closer to realization.

Perseverance requires patience and maturity – two highly desirable qualities in an employee.

3. Resilience

Resilience is the ability to adjust quickly and bounce back rapidly from adversity. Challenges in the workplace arise in many forms: projects that hit roadblocks, deadlines that can't be met, and team members who fail at their tasks. 

Personal stress can also manifest in various ways, including family issues, health concerns, and challenges in the work environment. Any of those can affect your work. 

Everyone has gone through their fair share of difficulties. But how do you respond to those? You can react with anxiety and negativity, or you can remain calm, rational, and in control of the situation. Forging resilience will help you to adapt to change and rebound from stress.

4. Adaptability

Adaptability is the quality of being able to adjust to new conditions. In other words, it's the ability and resolve to deal with abrupt alterations, unpredictable environments, and rapidly changing industries. 

An employee with a high degree of adaptability can handle crises in the workplace with ease, transition into new roles, and integrate new technologies or processes. 

Adaptability begins with:

• Leaving your ego at the door and focusing on the team, rather than personal accolades

• Keeping an open mind, as good ideas can come from everywhere

• Learning to embrace change and letting go of the need to control every aspect of the process

5. Focus

Focus is one's ability to concentrate on a single task, even while other stimuli might demand attention. A person who commands focus can channel their attention effectively to complete the task at hand. A person who lacks focus might be easily distracted and prone to procrastination. Less obviously, however, they might also become overwhelmed or attempt multitasking unsuccessfully.

Some ways of improving your focus are to:

• Actively eliminate distractions in your environment

• Set daily task priorities and checklists

• Learn to focus on the moment rather than prior or upcoming issues

6. Self-awareness

“To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom.” - Socrates

Self-awareness is the ability to monitor your own emotions and reactions. It's knowing your strengths, weaknesses, triggers, and motivators. Being self-aware requires a deep and honest assessment of how you respond to specific situations and the underlying cause behind those responses. Achieving this level of self-awareness can be an uncomfortable process, but the result is a powerful tool to fortify your self-command. 

The ability to “know thyself” is the first step in behavior regulation. It allows you to embrace or avoid certain stimuli, position yourself with the best possible motivators and tools for success, and even know when it's time to venture outside of your comfort zone.

7. Time management

Effective time management involves knowing yourself well enough to accurately estimate how long tasks will take to complete, ensuring you meet your goals and expectations. It also means you can focus and develop self-discipline to ensure you manage your time effectively, allowing you to meet those goals and expectations. 

How can you improve your intrapersonal skills?

For some, intrapersonal skills come naturally. But for others, not so much. They might even seem unattainable to some. However, in fact, intrapersonal skills can be dramatically improved with some effort. For example:

• Keep a journal. Journaling can be a valuable tool to increase self-awareness through reflection and introspection. Take note of how you behave in or respond to situations, and you might find a new sense of value for yourself. Make note of areas you’d like to improve and give yourself credit for areas where you responded well. 

• Be kind and cultivate compassion. Beating yourself up is not a positive intrapersonal skill. Instead, be gentle and kind with yourself as you learn and grow.

• Set achievable goals. When you set achievable goals, you’re setting yourself up to succeed. Accomplishments have a strong effect on self-esteem, and the more you meet your goals, the more that self-esteem tends to improve. Consider using the SMART goal method for success. 

• Prepare and adhere to a daily schedule. A daily schedule can help improve self-awareness, time management, focus, emotional regulation, and self-discipline. By preparing a schedule, you have a tool to guide your day that helps to avoid stress and mishaps by missing an important task or deadline. 

• Try meditation. Meditation has been proven to offer several benefits, including stress relief and improved heart health. It also helps to improve emotional regulation, self-awareness, and introspection through increased understanding of one’s motivations, emotions, and thoughts. 

• Build healthy habits. It can take some time to lock in healthy habits, but once you do, you tend to feel better, with a sense of accomplishment. Not to mention, healthy habits like journaling and regular self-reflection are excellent ways to support the improvement of your intrapersonal skills. 

These are just a few ways of building up your intrapersonal skills. Although it may seem daunting, just a bit of effort can go a long way in developing these vital abilities, which will not only make you a more valuable employee but can also dramatically improve your own well-being. 

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How to show intrapersonal skills on your resume

To stand out to employers, it’s essential to showcase your intrapersonal skills on your resume. However, it’s not as simple as just listing them. Intrapersonal skills are often inferred based on the accomplishments and results you share. 

The two most important places to highlight intrapersonal skills include your resume summary and work experience section. 

For example, the intrapersonal skills of time management, adaptability, and self-awareness can all be emphasized indirectly so that anyone reading your resume can deduce that you possess them. 

Resume summary: intrapersonal skills example

IT Specialist with over 6 years of experience providing frontline technical support, troubleshooting complex issues, and implementing system upgrades. Known for maintaining focus under pressure and resolving challenges efficiently, with a track record of reducing average ticket resolution time by 30%. Experienced in hardware, software, and network maintenance, with a reputation for reliable follow-through and clear communication.

Work Experience section: intrapersonal skills examples

• Supported care for an average of 30 patients per shift, maintaining accurate records with zero charting errors.

• Facilitated communication between stakeholders, decreasing project scope changes by 20%.

• Coordinated recruitment and onboarding for 60+ new hires annually, reducing time-to-fill by 25% while maintaining candidate quality.

Intrapersonal skills = enhanced day-to-day interactions

You probably complete most of your day-to-day tasks on some form of autopilot mode. Heightening awareness of your emotional and cognitive states enables you to improve your situational reactions and interpersonal interactions. Use the above information and tips to support you in improving your intrapersonal skills today for long-term career and relationship success. 

Does your resume highlight your most significant interpersonal skills? Submit it for a free resume review to find out!

This article was originally written by Robert Lyons. It has been updated by Ronda Suder.