Get RID of Those Resume Cliches!

While perusing the Web, I came across the following example of a profile by a resume "expert." My comments are in parentheses.

Talented professional (so he says) with a solid academic foundation and cross-functional training in business and marine management. Demonstrated analytical, research, quantitative, and problem-solving skills (I don't see him demonstrating these qualities) . Excellent communications (if he has to say this, he doesn't have them!) , detail/follow-through, (by doing what?) and organizational skills (when and where and how?) ; excel in fast-paced, demanding environments (again, so he says) . Customer service- and team-oriented (clichés ). Recognized (by whom? ) for productivity and dependability (by doing what?) . Advanced computer skills (he shows me these skills in a separate heading, so why mention them here?) ; adept in quickly learning new technology and applications (again, he doesn't have anything to back this up; it's only a claim) .

What I see in this resume are a number of items that could have come from anyone else's resume. There's nothing here that distinguishes this job-seeker from any of the thousands of others seeking a position. There's nobody home in this resume. This profile is a lot of air.

And yet, there could be so much more here. All of the items I've pointed out could (and should) be quantified by stories. There's a wonderful book entitled Tell Me About Yourself: Storytelling to Get Jobs and Propel Your Career by Katharine Hansen, which you can pick up at any bookstore, that shows you any number of ways your resume can be improved by storytelling. Show, don't tell is one of the first rules of writing. When you or I read something, regardless what it is, we want to be told a story. We don't want a lot of dry, lifeless adjectives and adverbs.

But some "experts" still keep painting the example above as "the" way to write a profile. So there must be an awful lot of look-alike resumes out there. Are they suggesting to these individuals that they should look and sound like everyone else? And if so, why? Does Star-Kist tuna market itself like Chicken of the Sea, after all? Does Sears brand itself like Macy's?

Don't let your resume look like everyone else's. Remember that your resume is a marketing document, and the "product" is YOU. Write your resume to show the IMPACT you've had wherever you've worked. Demonstrate your accomplishments, not your duties, and make sure the resume is about the future, not the past.

Jack Mulcahy has written hundreds of resumes for people from all walks of life. Each resume he writes shows the unique selling proposition so necessary to market the job seeker. To learn more about Jack and how he can work to help your resume gain interviews, visit his website at http://www.resumesbyjack.com/.

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YOU'RE HIRED! How To Hear Those Two Precious Words!

"You're Hired!" People wait all season to hear Donald Trump utter these two very precious words.

But... the drama in someone's real life when they are looking for a job is more than intense than you'll ever find on a in a TV reality show.

People looking for a job eat, sleep, and dream (literally) about hearing these two little words. Hearing these two precious words can change their life more than just about anything else.

I work in a job center and I've had clients who used visualization methods to help them get a job. It's sometimes hard to understand how the human brain works but it seems if you visualize yourself getting job you'll find a way to do so. Part of this visualization technique seems to revolve around focusing on hearing those two precious words.

I've shared this technique with many of my clients and I have seen it positively affect their attitude which of course is going to positively influence their ability to get a job. This is especially true when it comes to performing well during the interview.

However, FIRST, we have to get you some interviews don't we?!

I often work with people who have been looking for work with no success for months. When I get them in the door they often already have a well-written and well-formatted resume and they've often already started the process of networking. However, as good as things look on the surface, they still don't always get interviews.

Instead of changing the whole game plan, I often focus on making "simple" changes that can bring about a a big difference. I talk with them and look over the application and determine what we can tweak in order to help them start getting called in for the interviews.

By far, the most effective change I have found is CHANGING the cover letter.

Most people, when they come into my office, already have a cover letter and they've already learned that it needs to look and sound professional and it needs to be formatted neatly. Most already understand the importance of brevity and not restating what's on the resume.

However, what most of them DON'T realize is the importance of making their cover letter completely unique and unlike any of the other candidates' cover letters! Usually they've used some kind of template and modified it to create a cover letter that, while professional, is actually rather dull. It literally bores the hiring manager because it looks and sounds like all the others in the stack of applications. The "template" style cover letter, even when it has all the elements most talked about, will never inspire the hiring manager to pick up the phone and call the applicant in for an interview.

Given how busy hiring managers tend to be and also the fact that they get so many more applications now for every job opening, if you just include a "professional" cover letter that isn't totally unique and full of some pizazz, your chances of actually getting noticed by the hiring manager is close to zero.

Because it can be exceedingly difficult to write a really unique cover letter and still maintain a professional tone, I started looking around for some help.

I discovered a very effective tool for my clients that you can also use to easily write a unique cover letter. Best of all, it only takes a few minutes with this tool!

It is cover letter software that was creating by one of the most talented sales copy writers in the marketing industry. You answer some questions and it will produce you a cover letter that is sprinkled with marketing magic and tailored to your specific job industry. The resulting letter is one that really sets you apart from all the other applicants.

Read more ...

YOU'RE HIRED! How To Hear Those Two Precious Words!

"You're Hired!" People wait all season to hear Donald Trump utter these two very precious words.

But... the drama in someone's real life when they are looking for a job is more than intense than you'll ever find on a in a TV reality show.

People looking for a job eat, sleep, and dream (literally) about hearing these two little words. Hearing these two precious words can change their life more than just about anything else.

I work in a job center and I've had clients who used visualization methods to help them get a job. It's sometimes hard to understand how the human brain works but it seems if you visualize yourself getting job you'll find a way to do so. Part of this visualization technique seems to revolve around focusing on hearing those two precious words.

I've shared this technique with many of my clients and I have seen it positively affect their attitude which of course is going to positively influence their ability to get a job. This is especially true when it comes to performing well during the interview.

However, FIRST, we have to get you some interviews don't we?!

I often work with people who have been looking for work with no success for months. When I get them in the door they often already have a well-written and well-formatted resume and they've often already started the process of networking. However, as good as things look on the surface, they still don't always get interviews.

Instead of changing the whole game plan, I often focus on making "simple" changes that can bring about a a big difference. I talk with them and look over the application and determine what we can tweak in order to help them start getting called in for the interviews.

By far, the most effective change I have found is CHANGING the cover letter.

Most people, when they come into my office, already have a cover letter and they've already learned that it needs to look and sound professional and it needs to be formatted neatly. Most already understand the importance of brevity and not restating what's on the resume.

However, what most of them DON'T realize is the importance of making their cover letter completely unique and unlike any of the other candidates' cover letters! Usually they've used some kind of template and modified it to create a cover letter that, while professional, is actually rather dull. It literally bores the hiring manager because it looks and sounds like all the others in the stack of applications. The "template" style cover letter, even when it has all the elements most talked about, will never inspire the hiring manager to pick up the phone and call the applicant in for an interview.

Given how busy hiring managers tend to be and also the fact that they get so many more applications now for every job opening, if you just include a "professional" cover letter that isn't totally unique and full of some pizazz, your chances of actually getting noticed by the hiring manager is close to zero.

Because it can be exceedingly difficult to write a really unique cover letter and still maintain a professional tone, I started looking around for some help.

I discovered a very effective tool for my clients that you can also use to easily write a unique cover letter. Best of all, it only takes a few minutes with this tool!

It is cover letter software that was creating by one of the most talented sales copy writers in the marketing industry. You answer some questions and it will produce you a cover letter that is sprinkled with marketing magic and tailored to your specific job industry. The resulting letter is one that really sets you apart from all the other applicants.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Cynthia_Baxter

Read more ...