The Real Purpose of a Résumé

By: Marti Benjamin, MBA

Certified Career Management Coach

Certified Professional Résumé Writer

There are many misunderstandings about the purpose of a résumé. This single document is often expected to land a job for its owner—a lot to expect of a few hundred words.

In considering the purpose of a résumé, let us first understand why a business or organization hires an employee. Of course, the company has work to be completed, but that is not the most important reason behind the hiring process. In deciding to create a job, a business leader estimates the expected value received from investing in an employee. What return does the business expect from investing in an employee, the ROI? The hiring process is the means by which the company increases the probability of a positive ROI.

A hiring manager chooses the candidate with the strongest possible value proposition. The mission of the applicant is to demonstrate him- or herself as the best investment of all the choices available. The résumé is the first element of a campaign to show the unique value of the individual, the introductory message of a well-orchestrated marketing campaign.

From this perspective, allow me to refute some of the popular résumé misperceptions and replace them with realistic expectations.

Résumé as work history

It is true that your résumé includes your work history, but that is not the purpose of the document. No one cares about your work history—they care about what you learned and achieved, and how that applies to your next work role.

The best way to showcase your skills and talents is with an accomplishments focus. Do not tell your reader what you have done; tell them what you accomplished in the process. For example, tell me how you ensured the safety the company’s daily cash receipts with 100% accuracy, not that you balanced the cash at the end of each day. Do not make your reader guess the impact of your work. Spell it out with accomplishment statements that are measureable and demonstrate the business impact of your work.

It is all about you

You are the subject of your résumé but the object of the document is the reader, the person with the power to hire you for your next great job. Speak to the reader, not to yourself.

Typically, a manager adds the hiring process to his or her already full plate. In fact, if a position is open because an employee left the company, their work may fall to the manager on top of his or her regular responsibilities. Reviewing résumés is time consuming, not entirely fun and just one more thing to do! That is the mindset of your audience. You must capture the manager’s attention and convince him or her of the value you offer.

Research shows that your résumé will initially get 20 to 30 seconds of your reader’s time. If you fail to capture their interest in that timeframe, you have lost the opportunity to move forward in the search.

The key to getting into the pool of candidates for further consideration is to submit a résumé that makes it easy for the hiring manager to see immediately how you and your skills match the company’s needs. Speak to the employer’s need; frame everything in your résumé to the requirements of the position.

The top half of the first page is the most important real estate of your résumé. Do not bury your unique qualifications amidst the recitation of previous employment.

One size fits all

A generic résumé will probably not get you an appointment with the hiring decision-maker.

No two job postings are identical, even if the position title is the same. A generic résumé will miss the target every time because it fails to address the requirements of a specific posting. Tailor your résumé to the exact position for which you are applying.

Your résumé and cover letter must speak directly to the manager filling the position and make it clear how and why you are worth the time and effort to screen further and interview. Help your reader by fashioning your résumé precisely to the position they are filling.

How does your résumé rate?

Review your résumé as an introductory marketing brochure. Does it capture interest immediately? Is it a clear representation of the value you add to an employer? Does it pass the 20-second test—persuasive, concise and appealing?

Special offer

At Career From Here, we’ll critique your current résumé at no cost. We’ll tell you how to make it stronger and more appealing to hiring managers, and provide an estimate to have us rewrite your résumé. Send your résumé by email to Marti@CareerFromHere.com, with the words “Free résumé review” in the subject line.

 

Marti Benjamin inspires great work-lives in her career and business coaching practice. While enjoying the best possible job in the world for herself, she guides her clients to find the work that fits them perfectly. Her systems have led clients from fed-up and frustrated to fulfilled in their work-life. www.CareerFromHere.com, www.BusinessEnergetix.com.

 

College and Career Planning Season

By: Marti Benjamin, MBA

Certified Career Management Coach | Professional Certified Coach

Certified Professional Résumé Writer

For high school and college students, spring is more than a countdown to summer vacation; it’s time for them (and their parents) to think about their future education and career options.

High school freshmen and sophomores need to determine what classes they’ll take in high school to develop an attractive college application, juniors and seniors need to solidify their selection of a college major. College students need to plan for their work-life after graduation. That’s a lot of responsibility and pressure for young people and their supportive family, who, in spite of their great intentions, don’t usually have a clear picture of the student’s strengths and talents.

21^st Century Career Preparation

Career preparation has changed dramatically over the past decade. Today’s graduate will have fewer employment opportunities over the next 10 years, according to the US Department of Labor. As technology creates new occupations, it eliminates others. Making informed college and occupation choices is critical in this unstable economy.

Careers professionals recognize that today’s high school and college graduate is likely to change careers at least a couple times between their first job and their retirement. Preparing for this new world of work demands a different process, one that refines the search criteria and streamlines the career direction choice.

A good point to begin this process is to determine what the student does well and enjoys doing. Strong performance and interest are signs of an individual’s personal strength. I believe that the best way to measure those strengths objectively is with a well-designed assessment, such as The Gallup Press’ Strengths Finder® 2.0. The Strengths Finder® reports on the individual’s top talents, their natural way of thinking, feeling or behaving.

With an understanding of personal talents, the next step is to identify occupations aligned with those strengths. Again, an objective assessment is useful for this step. Some of the most common assessments are the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), Strong Interest Inventory, Keirsey Temperament Sorter and the Motivational Appraisal of Personal Potential (MAPP).

Using the Data

Objective assessments provide data on talents, motivations, interests and preferences. For some students that’s enough to confirm their hunches about career direction and they’ll proceed confidently to choose a major or an occupation. For others, more information will be useful in sorting through the thousands of career possibilities available.

When I’m coaching a young person, I ask them to describe in detail what they want their work-life to look like, considering the following criteria:

• How much money do you want to earn when you’re five years into your chosen career field?
• What’s important to you about where you live and work? Specific location? Recreational or lifestyle options?
• If you have to choose between working on a team and working independently, what would you prefer?
• Describe the type of people you want to interact with on a daily basis. What do they value? What are their interests?
• What type of work environment do you want—indoors and climate controlled, outdoors, on your feet much of the day, sitting most of the time, physical activity, and mental activity, etc.
• How much are you willing to travel as part of your job?
•  What do you want to accomplish in your career? That is, besides earning a living, what’s important to you about how you spend 40 or more hours a week for 52 weeks a year?

Making Sense of the Options

The responses to these questions help determine which of the nearly ten thousand occupations in the US labor market might fit well and which should be eliminated from consideration. That’s where career coaching can help.

Special Offer—Starting March 20, 2013

To help students and their family make sense of the college and career options available, I’m offering a discount on the Jump Start Career Planning Package. The package includes two assessments (as described above) and two one-hour coaching sessions. I’ll provide an analysis of strengths and preferences and a list of occupational titles to consider, based on the student’s talents.

Normally, $490.00 for this package, the next 10 students to register—either high school or college—will receive a discounted rate of just $439.00.

To be one of the 10 students receiving a discount, send an email to Marti@CareerFromHere.com with “Spring 2013 Offer” in the subject line, and a name and phone number where you can be reached.

Marti Benjamin inspires great work-lives in her career and business coaching practice. While enjoying the best possible job in the world for herself, she guides her clients to find work that suits them well. Her systems have led students and professionals from fed-up and frustrated to fulfilled in their work-life. www.CareerFromHere.com, www.BusinessEnergetix.com.

 

 

Feeling Strong Now!

By: Marti Benjamin, MBA

Champion for a Great Work-Life!

Certified Career Management Coach | Professional Certified Coach

Certified Professional Résumé Writer

When I work with career coaching clients, one of my first questions is, “What would it take to make your current job work for you?” The purpose of that question is to determine whether it’s the specific job, the occupational field, the employer, the manager or the work itself that has created a sense of discomfort. If it’s possible to tweak the current position, that’s usually the fastest route to career satisfaction and may be the easiest because it doesn’t involve changing jobs.

I encourage those considering a job change to take my question seriously—what would it take? Often the answer is, “I don’t know.” That’s usually not avoidance, but an honest response that means, “Right now, as I sit here, burned out and discouraged, I can’t imagine how this job could work for me.

One of the best ways to answer the question is to maintain a log of time and activities at work that feel satisfying and those that feel draining. This is a noticing exercise, and it’s one of those simple but not necessarily easy things to do. It takes practice to tune into one’s own energy level, but the effort is worth the valuable information gained.

Throughout your workday, notice the times when you feel optimistic and hopeful, when you’re positively engaged in a task, conversation or meeting. Notice when you are absorbed in work and lose track of time. Pay attention to the work that leaves you feeling masterful.

All of these thought states are signs of engagement in activities that utilizes your character strength(s). A great work-life depends on using your strengths more often. These clues are important markers for understanding what you’d like to do more.

Here are a few indicators that you’re relying on your natural talents in a particular activity:

• You feel successful.
• It gives you energy, rather than draining you.
• Doing this activity seems instinctive to you; it just makes sense to you.
• It feels easy for you; seems effortless, even if it’s challenging.
• When you’ve finished the activity you feel fulfilled, powerful and energetic.
• You look forward to engaging in this activity again.

Try maintaining a log (or journal) of the times and tasks when you experienced these powerful signs of a strength at work. Look at your log for a two-week period and identify the common themes.  Do you consistently feel strong when you’re organizing a project? Or, when you’re collaborating with a particular type of person? Or, when you’re working independently?

Once you know the commonality in the times of greatest work satisfaction, you can explore whether your current job allows you to do more of those satisfying tasks. If there is no viable option for turning your current position into more rewarding work, it’s time to consider a new position where you can use your strengths more often.

In my next post, I’ll offer some suggestions for evaluating other career options to identify positions that match your natural talents.

Marti Benjamin inspires great work-lives in her business and career coaching practice. She describes being a professional coach as, “The best possible job in the world for me.” Since she began coaching in 2004, her systems have led fed-up professionals from frustration to fulfillment in their work-life. www.CareerFromHere.com , www.BusinessEnergetix.com  

 

A CAREER THAT FITS JUST RIGHT

By: Marti Benjamin, MBA

Champion for a Great Work-Life!

Certified Career Management Coach | Professional Certified Coach

Certified Professional Résumé Writer

Heart attacks are more likely to occur on Monday than any other day of the week. Could career dissatisfaction and its resultant stress be responsible?

When you spend Sunday evening (or whatever time marks the end of your weekly time off) dreading your return to work, something needs to change. I’m not talking about a small yearning to extend the weekend or wistful daydreaming about those who can do whatever they please each day. I’m referring to that knot-in-the-stomach feeling of apprehension about walking into your workplace, greeting your co-workers and manager and repeating the tasks that you couldn’t wait to get away from at the end of the prior week.

Career Well-Being
Work provides us with something to do, whether we earn money for our labor or volunteer our time and talent. That engagement helps us flourish. In the best-case scenario, work provides a sense of meaning in our lives and the satisfaction of achievement.

Our vocation or avocation shapes our identity. This aspect of our self-image is so important that when people first meet, one of their first questions is, “What do you do?”

Research by the highly-regarded Gallup Organization shows that people with a high sense of career well-being are more than twice as likely to be thriving in their lives overall. A prolonged period of unemployment requires a longer recovery period than the death of a spouse, that’s how vital our careers are to our health.

Work that Fits Just Right
Developing career satisfaction is similar to finding clothes that fit well. When you choose clothes off the rack, the fit can range from good to horrible. To get a garment that fits your body precisely, it requires tailoring.

Similarly, a career that fits exactly is one that meets your specific and individual talents, interests, preferences and requirements. Consider your choices:
• What tasks would I enjoy for eight (or more) hours each day?
• What kind of people do I want around me?
• Where do I want to live?
• How much money do I expect to earn?
• Do I prefer working with people, data or objects?
• What tasks would I dread doing every day?
• Do I want to travel with my work and if so, how much?
• How much do I want to engage in a team environment as opposed to working alone?
• What talents do I want to develop?
• At the height of my career, where do I see myself?
Addressing these questions can clarify your career direction. You’ll have a better understanding of the necessary changes—position, employer, occupation, industry or location.

In the next post, I’ll offer suggestions for researching and testing career options.

Marti Benjamin inspires great work-lives in her business and career coaching practice. She describes being a professional coach as, “The best possible job for me.” Since she began coaching in 2004, her systems have led fed-up professionals from frustration to fulfillment in their work-life. www.CareerFromHere.com , www.BusinessEnergetix.com

When Your Career Doesn’t Fit

By: Marti Benjamin, MBA

Certified Career Management Coach

Certified “Get Clear, Get Found, Get Hired” Career Communications Writer

Champion for a Great Work-Life!

I used to have a pair of shoes that looked terrific sitting on the shoe rack in my closet.  They were a perfect match for several things I love to wear so I kept them for a long time, even though I seldom wore them.   Occasionally I would try them on, feel them hug my feet snugly and admire how stylish and smart they looked.

The problem arose when I tried to wear those shoes for more than a few minutes.  The snug fit soon turned into a cruel pinch, making it painful to walk.  Yet I kept those shoes for five years, trying them on occasionally and even wearing them out of the house when I forgot how miserable I’d been the last time.  I resisted getting rid of them because they were more than a pair of shoes to me—they were a connection to someone special.

I acquired those cruel shoes from my sister. When she tried them on in her favorite shoe store, she thought they were snug but workable.  Soon she discovered that what felt snug became unbearable after a few minutes, so she gave them to me.  We both convinced ourselves that they would stretch the tiny bit necessary to be comfortable, if we could just get through that initial agony.  They didn’t, but I kept trying because they reminded me of my sister.  Before I could get rid of the shoes, I had to understand that my link to my sister existed whether the shoes stayed in my closet or went to the community garage sale.

When it’s your career pinching you uncomfortably

I often notice similar attachments to careers that don’t fit, with coaching clients evaluating their career options.  For many, the work they thought would always be there has been replaced by technology or sent offshore; for others, the work is still there but it no longer fits.  And for some, what once seemed like a rewarding profession has turned to drudgery and going to work is as painful as my cruel shoes were. It’s hard to let go.

In the past, we chose a career direction as a young adult, prepared for it through education and experience and lived happily ever after. Not so any longer.  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, today’s average worker will have three distinct careers in his/her life and for those just entering the work force, it’s likely they will change careers five or six times before retirement.

How can you respond when your chosen career no longer fits? 

Begin with a thorough examination of what’s working and what’s not. Determine whether the current career can stretch into a better fit.  Perhaps there is another position, role or company for you.

If making the current career fit better is impossible and you need a new career direction, start the exploration with your personal strengths, those traits that have served you well in your work.  Think about the most rewarding times in your career: What were you doing? With what type of people, data and things were you interacting.  What made the work rewarding for you, beyond the compensation?

Identifying and labeling personal strengths is difficult.  We are too close to be objective and we often imagine that we have strengths we want to have, whether there is any real evidence of them or not. Career assessments can objectively identify strengths and motivations.  Armed with that information, finding a good fit is easier and faster than a trial-and-error approach.

Once you understanding your personality, talents, skills and preferences, you can begin to search databases for occupations that match. The Department of Labor’s onetonline.org website allows you to search occupations, take interest inventories and research growth industries.

You can also use job search aggregators like indeed.com and simplyhired.com to search for positions based on keywords. Review job postings to learn what companies hire these positions and the required qualifications. Think about who you know that can introduce you to people within the company or the occupation and ask them to help you.

Gather input. Talk with four or five people who know your work performance and ask them what career they see for you. Don’t debate or discount their suggestions, just thank them and go back to the research stage to learn more.

Gather information on career possibilities that ignite your interest.

At this stage, you want to generate as many options as possible. Don’t eliminate any yet, even if you think there’s no way for you to pursue a specific career.

Next week I’ll offer tips for narrowing your career choices to find the few that fit the best.

Marti Benjamin inspires great work-lives in her business and career coaching practice. In this, her third career devoted to service to others, she applies the discipline of business while executing the mission of service. Since founding Business Energetix in 2004, Marti’s proprietary coaching systems have led fed-up professionals from frustration to a richly rewarding work-life. www.BusinessEnergetix.com