Category: resumes

The Same Old Song and Dance?

Recently, while in the company of a handful of young adults, of course the topic of job search came up. Four of the five were gainfully employed, while one was “exploring his options.” Believing it would ok to inquire, I asked, “How long has it been since you last worked?” Apparently not interested in discussing…

Watch Your Q’s and A’s!

Without minimizing the importance of being able to answer tough interview questions with concise answers, today’s column is about the other Q’s and A’s: Qualifications and Accomplishments.  Qualifications and Accomplishments are the resume headings misused most frequently during job search document preparation. This happens primarily because the information revealed by both these and other headings…

Patience Is …

Patience is a virtue, and a necessity!  The hardest part of any job search is the waiting.  After dutifully contacting numerous employers with openings well suited to your skills and experience, you hear … nothing.  Nada.  Zip.  Bupkis!  No calls, no emails, no smoke signals.  You have followed every instruction, sent every required document, without…

Holding On To Yesterday

It is not uncommon for adults to take pride in their personal histories and the experiences that have shaped them into who they are at this point in their lives. Our accomplishments and the goals we have attained empower us to continue our careers, try things in new and different ways and continue to grow. …

Resumes: Used And Abused!

Ah, the resume.  The most used and abused document in one’s job search arsenal.  I’ve seen great resumes, and I’ve seen really poor ones.  You can have the best skills, and the most extensive work experience, regardless of your industry, but if the written content of your resume is not organized and presented properly it…

The More Things Change …

You’ve probably heard the expression, “The more things change, the more they remain the same.”  Well, when it comes to job search, and the self-promotion required to successfully obtain work, we’ve seen a tremendous evolution in the ways we apply for employment.  Newspaper classifieds have given way to the online job boards, industry-specific sites and…

Top 10 Job Seeker Resolutions For 2012

Ah yes, the end of the year.  Now is the time year when almost anyone with an audience looks back on the past twelve months to reflect on the best of this, and most important of that.  Brief perspectives such as the “top ten list” can be very handy in providing a close-up view of…

Prospecting

There was a time not too long ago when job seekers routinely sent out their job search documents to unknown recipients. More times than not job announcements instructed job seekers to send their resumes and cover letters to blind addresses – Post Office boxes or routing numbers in care of the newspaper that ran the…

Submission!

Questions about the best way to submit your resume and application documents are as common today as they have always been.  Despite all the ways technology has provided for submitting these necessary documents, is there a single best way to make sure the right person sees and considers your materials?  The answer is, “It depends!”…

Length!

An old friend with more than 10 years in nursing needed to create a new resume because she wants to find another job.  Having worked at several hospitals, in a number of specialized areas, she has a wealth of experience and accomplishments to convey to the medical professionals who could employ her.  Not wanting to…

Listen And Repeat

Listen and repeat! For many years, high school students had that phrase drilled into their heads when they were learning a foreign language.  Regardless of the foreign language being studied, the prerecorded voice of the instructors in the widely used ALM series preceded each expression with “Listen and repeat.”  In those days, students learned key…

Accomplishment Clarity

Recently while providing feedback to job seekers about their resumes at a local job search preparation event, I was surprised by the overall quality of information delivered by many of those in attendance.  It seemed that many candidates I spoke with were trying, often successfully, to convey not just what they did on their jobs,…