Give This to The Person Who Reviews Your Resume

I’ve reviewed the resume of lots of people. About 25% of the time, it’s 20-30 minutes into the process of reviewing the resume and asking the person some questions that I come to the realization that the person’s resume isn’t going to help the job seeker to land the job he/she wants.

As a consequence, I designed a form with a handful of questions that I ask a person to fill out and bring to the resume review session. This has proved to be effective. Not only does it help me suggest changes to the resume that will help lead the person to the right job, it gets the person to think through his/her job objective again and firm up what he/she wants to.

Below is a link to the form I designed. Copy the link, paste it into your browser, download the document, print it, fill it out, and take it with you when you meet with someone who is going to review your resume.

We offer the form to the members of the CVJS.

You may be thinking, “Doesn’t my resume explain the kind of job I am looking for?” Maybe, but you will find questions on my form asking for information that is rarely, if ever, found on a resume.

I hope this helps you out.

Let me know how it works for you.

http://cid-f881afcf1774fca8.office.live.com/view.aspx/.Documents/Job%20Desired%20-%20V6.doc

The Timidness of Job Seekers

A large majority of job seekers I come across have one thing in common. They are timid.

They are timid about asking an employer questions. They are timid about calling back after an interview. They are timid about negotiating for more compensation. And so on.

I frequently get questions from job seekers that start with, “Is it OK if I……….” – - – It is a rare situation in which I suggest “No.”

I realize that you may perceive that these are challenging times for job seekers. I realize that you may have been out of work for an extended period of time and that you may think you can’t take a chance and say/do something that will lose an opportunity for you – - – and for all of that you have my sympathy and empathy.

But, I have to say that too many job seekers I come across are too timid. It is as though they feel that they have to roll over and play dead when dealing with employers. They seem to feel that they have to play the game exactly according to the employers’ rules – - – If you play exactly by the employer’s rules, you will, no doubt, get ruled out. – - – The system is set-up to rule you out.

Besides, have you considered that maybe the employer is looking for someone who is proactive, perseverant, aggressive? – - – Not all bosses are looking for employees who sit around waiting for someone to tell them what to do.

There are different levels of freedom. Ranging from low to high, some examples are:
     * Wait until someone tells you what to do.
     * Ask someone what to do. (Ask for permission in advance.)
     * Do something without asking. (If need be, ask for forgiveness later.)

It is rare that I encounter a job seeker who lost his/her job because of his/her performance. The vast, vast majority of job seekers out there were laid off because of business problems that had nothing to do with the employee.

It is not your fault that you were out of work. There is nothing wrong with you. You are a capable and valuable employee.

Take care of yourself. Evaluate employers as much as they evaluate you. Be proactive. Get control of your job search. – - – Don’t be too timid.

Don’t be afraid to make a mistake. If you lose out on a job opportunity, do you want it to be because you did nothing or because you took action? – - – If you take action, you will likely learn from that for the next time.