Resumes are a bit like car insurance. You know you have to have it. The upkeep and filing is a hassle. Maybe years go by without a need to check your details are still correct..yeah, nothing has changed. It's just the same as it ever was.
Then BAM. Suddenly you're walking out of your familiar job for the last time. You've been made redundant or the company's folded - the bottom has fallen out of your income - and you are thinking quickly now about a rescue plan for yourself - how to get back on your feet and working again as soon as possible.
Like insurance, that resume is now the most important item in your life...which file on which hard drive is it on? Do I have a hard copy I can retype? Horror of horrors, will I have to write it from memory?
Unfortunately it's pretty clear to anyone if a resume has been written from memory, especially if the writer has become a bit bored with it as they journey back in time over their employment history. A job in the distant past might be described as say, a management role which involved looking after a team, managing all aspects of the business, controlling a budget and increasing sales. That's really not doing you or the commitment and dedication you gave to that role any justice at all.
So prevention is always better than cure (or damage control). If you are employed right now and quite comfortable in your position, start recording your key responsibilities and achievements.
Come back to it every three months or so, or more often as you need to. Not only will this be a great point of reference for you on a low day as a reminder of your value to the company, it will be a simple matter of copying your excellent selling points into your resume if you do find that you need it again in the future. This is not jinxing your security in your current role, it's a record of your success however you choose to use it.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Hand me my lucky pants.
In talking to a job hunting friend last night, she was full of renewed determination to unearth and score the best hidden role out there - fast! And her plan? "I am definitely going to get a job tomorrow. I just need to get lucky pants."
Fortunately a resume, suit, shoes and interview research were also going to figure in the solution. Nevertheless, the psychological edge that the right underclothing can bring is huge. Superstitious apparel is very common among sportspeople, the right gear is vital for an "extended" night out on the town, there have even been movies made about them.
It could well be a hit for Bonds or Davenport - printing underwear with "Lucky Job Interview Pants" on the front. In this market especially, they could be immensely popular.
Seriously, an extra nudge of confidence - whether it is your favourite underwear (your best bet at feeling like an individual under that corporate getup), new fragrance, maybe even some new ink that will never see daylight - may be just what you need to carry that x-factor and nail the interview. And you were wondering how to start that tell-all autobiography...
Fortunately a resume, suit, shoes and interview research were also going to figure in the solution. Nevertheless, the psychological edge that the right underclothing can bring is huge. Superstitious apparel is very common among sportspeople, the right gear is vital for an "extended" night out on the town, there have even been movies made about them.
It could well be a hit for Bonds or Davenport - printing underwear with "Lucky Job Interview Pants" on the front. In this market especially, they could be immensely popular.
Seriously, an extra nudge of confidence - whether it is your favourite underwear (your best bet at feeling like an individual under that corporate getup), new fragrance, maybe even some new ink that will never see daylight - may be just what you need to carry that x-factor and nail the interview. And you were wondering how to start that tell-all autobiography...
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
It's different when it's your own...
We have always been marvellous filterers, tuning out the information around us that simply isn't interesting or relevant to our thoughts. Our relationship with technology has taken this skill of ours one step further however. A couple of clicks will take us to any corner of the internet we desire, from increasingly portable devices, saturating our senses.
Being spoilt for choice, it's just as easy to get rid of what doesn't appeal. If it's not personalised, it won't capture our attention. A simple highlight all and delete from the inbox will sort that out.
Yet we don't apply the same rules to our own efforts. A job application without due care to personalise it and follow the guidelines of correct address is effectively spam. The writer would be most offended to be told it was junk mail after several hours of keyboard jabbing, but the emotion of securing a job can cloud your perspective. What is important to you won't necessarily matter to someone else.
It's not a domestic chore. It's not homework or detention. Sending your resume out to 300 inboxes and hitting the off switch after another day's exertion is a waste of time. Just because this resume is about you does not make it better than everyone else's - 300 new messages could well equal 300 deletes.
A better strategy is trial and error. Ask recruiters and hiring managers for feedback and tips on who to talk to, where to go next. Don't settle for their politeness - get the hard honest facts. Get others to read through your selection criteria statements. Get serious about what your reader wants, not what will satisfy you for another day in front of the computer. If you're not sure, call and ask questions. You will end up sending out less applications, but every one will get you one step closer to the prize.
Being spoilt for choice, it's just as easy to get rid of what doesn't appeal. If it's not personalised, it won't capture our attention. A simple highlight all and delete from the inbox will sort that out.
Yet we don't apply the same rules to our own efforts. A job application without due care to personalise it and follow the guidelines of correct address is effectively spam. The writer would be most offended to be told it was junk mail after several hours of keyboard jabbing, but the emotion of securing a job can cloud your perspective. What is important to you won't necessarily matter to someone else.
It's not a domestic chore. It's not homework or detention. Sending your resume out to 300 inboxes and hitting the off switch after another day's exertion is a waste of time. Just because this resume is about you does not make it better than everyone else's - 300 new messages could well equal 300 deletes.
A better strategy is trial and error. Ask recruiters and hiring managers for feedback and tips on who to talk to, where to go next. Don't settle for their politeness - get the hard honest facts. Get others to read through your selection criteria statements. Get serious about what your reader wants, not what will satisfy you for another day in front of the computer. If you're not sure, call and ask questions. You will end up sending out less applications, but every one will get you one step closer to the prize.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Looking for a Specialist...
How good are you at making decisions? Are you ever given the responsibility of choosing a new restaurant to visit on the weekend with family or friends? Their potential satisfaction and enjoyment of the night is riding on your decision, and the more you reconsider and second-guess, the more agonising it can get. Who likes colourful places and who likes quiet? Has your choice of venue received any press lately - good or bad? And what about their signature dishes - what do they do really well that you can count on if you decide to go with them?
Imagine there is one joint which has advertised in Yellow, eatability and their own website as a bit of an all-rounder. They do lunch and dinner really well, and if you choose to eat there, they'll do their very best to give you a first class meal which includes all the main food groups. They are open to anyone who wants to dine there, and they really want to give them great food as well. Really really.
Does anyone else think that this place will be sadly frustrated with the amount of foot traffic? Despite their assurances of gastronomic euphoria, there's just not enough detail there, especially when there are so many other restaurants with important information to digest. There's no doubt that they could be astounding in their talent to provide the ultimate dining experience, but it simply has not been expressed sufficiently to the first time reader.
So, enough of the analogy. This one is about your Career Objective. Writers of the Resume must be aware that the Career Objective is the first item to be looked at when your email attachment is opened, and usually the first to be ignored if it looks like rubbish. The amount of applications we see which have something to this effect is genuinely soul-destroying:
"I would like to find a position which uses my range of skills and experience, and make a important and productive contribution to my employer company in a fulfilling and satisfying way."
It's hard to even write that. It might be an example of crazy vagueness to the extreme, but if you are guilty of making your Objective sound as though you will only be pleased with your job when your boss is pleased, that's a problem.
Researching restaurant options, you will note that no venue is asking for your approval or just begging to be given a chance. This is despite the fact that they can only exist with the continued patronage of people like you. Confidence is the key to attraction - if you get the impression that there are thousands of people keen on that restaurant, then your faith in them will be strong.
You need to write your Career Objective as though the masses are begging for your autograph, then you are establishing yourself as a object of desire. Break it down into three parts: past, present and future. A couple of details on your origins, what you do best now, and what the future holds for you. Your employer doesn't want to feel responsible for your happiness just by opening your resume - you're the best and they would be lucky to have you.
New restaurants and new staff are both very exciting and stressful choices, but they are out there for the rest of us to discover. Isn't it time everyone woke up to a new option for their company?
Imagine there is one joint which has advertised in Yellow, eatability and their own website as a bit of an all-rounder. They do lunch and dinner really well, and if you choose to eat there, they'll do their very best to give you a first class meal which includes all the main food groups. They are open to anyone who wants to dine there, and they really want to give them great food as well. Really really.
Does anyone else think that this place will be sadly frustrated with the amount of foot traffic? Despite their assurances of gastronomic euphoria, there's just not enough detail there, especially when there are so many other restaurants with important information to digest. There's no doubt that they could be astounding in their talent to provide the ultimate dining experience, but it simply has not been expressed sufficiently to the first time reader.
So, enough of the analogy. This one is about your Career Objective. Writers of the Resume must be aware that the Career Objective is the first item to be looked at when your email attachment is opened, and usually the first to be ignored if it looks like rubbish. The amount of applications we see which have something to this effect is genuinely soul-destroying:
"I would like to find a position which uses my range of skills and experience, and make a important and productive contribution to my employer company in a fulfilling and satisfying way."
It's hard to even write that. It might be an example of crazy vagueness to the extreme, but if you are guilty of making your Objective sound as though you will only be pleased with your job when your boss is pleased, that's a problem.
Researching restaurant options, you will note that no venue is asking for your approval or just begging to be given a chance. This is despite the fact that they can only exist with the continued patronage of people like you. Confidence is the key to attraction - if you get the impression that there are thousands of people keen on that restaurant, then your faith in them will be strong.
You need to write your Career Objective as though the masses are begging for your autograph, then you are establishing yourself as a object of desire. Break it down into three parts: past, present and future. A couple of details on your origins, what you do best now, and what the future holds for you. Your employer doesn't want to feel responsible for your happiness just by opening your resume - you're the best and they would be lucky to have you.
New restaurants and new staff are both very exciting and stressful choices, but they are out there for the rest of us to discover. Isn't it time everyone woke up to a new option for their company?
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