This weekend was a big deal at my house.
My soon-to-be 1st grader got to pick out school supplies and my 3-year old got a big boy bed. It was excitement all around. Happy, smiling faces. Self-assured, confident walks. Mutual admiration for each others milestones.
I watched these two strut around the whole weekend cocksure and grinning, all the while my husband and I continued to praise them for their accomplishments, increasing their excitement and joy. I wondered, “Gee, do we grown ups celebrate little victories as robustly as kids do?”. I don’t think so. At least, I don’t, nor do the folks I know around me. We more or less brush them off. Oh well, big deal.
So, why is that? When you get a promotion at work do you celebrate? If you’ve recently run a race, taken (and passed) a test, been awarded something, etc. do you celebrate or tell people? I know most people definitely brag about their children’s victories before they do their own.
It’s important to pat yourself on the back or give yourself credit. When you’ve worked hard for something, you DESERVE to be rewarded or praised. Just as we treat our children, friends, and family with praise when they succeed at something, we should do the same with ourselves. Praise yourself and live joyfully in your moment.
Cover letters seem to be difficult for people, even resume writers. Why is that? What makes a good cover letter? Cover letters can be fun to write. There really aren’t many ‘rules’ to writing them. You can let your personality shine through. They allow you to positively present your skills, accomplishments, and credentials in a way that will encourage the reader to want to read even more about you (and then move on to the resume). There are lots of things I can get into in more depth (types of resumes, scope, presentation, who your audience is, etc.) but for now, I am just going to touch on the basics. In future posts, I will dissect cover letters more closely. Here are some easy ideas to keep in mind when writing your cover letter:
Make sure your intention is clear. In other words, what is the job you are applying for? Clearly state it. Don’t make the reader guess. You could say something like, “…and this is why my qualifications make me a perfect match for the Sales Management position”.
Highlight your top achievements. You don’t have to rewrite everything you wrote in the resume, just summarize some of your top accomplishments. Wow them with what you have done.
Add your relevant skills or qualifications. Let the reader know what you excel at and what you are capable of. This is a great place to talk about any extra credentials or training you’ve had that relate to the position.
Write toward the position you are applying for. When preparing the cover letter, keep in mind the requirements of the position and add your qualifications that match them.
Explain what it is you like about the company. Remember, you are trying to woo the company, so tell them what you like about them. Is it the reputation, products/services, location? Let them know why you like them.
You are not writing your autobiography. Keep it short, simple and factual. You don’t need to go into why the last job didn’t work out, “…my boss had unrealistic expectations of the staff, so I decided to check out my options…:. Don’t air your dirty laundry or obvious dislike of your most recent employer. Keep it professional.
Double check the entire document for accuracy, errors, and syntax. You don’t want to miss a great opportunity because you wrote, “Dear Hiring Manger”.
Another tip is to save that cover letter, copy and paste it onto a new document, and tweak it for another type of position you may be interested in. I encourage clients to have several “focused” cover letters for different positions they might have in mind. This way, if an opportunity presents itself, you are ready!
I realize as I write this that I am crabby and tired. Probably not the most optimal time to write a blog post. Whatever. But wait, maybe this IS the best time to write this because later, in my defense, I can just say ‘Oh, well, gee… I was just going on 3 1/2 hours sleep, over-caffeinated, and bitchy irritable. What can I say?’ However, for the sake of my readers, I will be gentle. Dear New Client, it is not necessary, through the process of our resume writing collaboration together, to send me over 65 pages of information. Yes, this is not the norm, and yes, it is probably my fault that I didn’t turn off the fax machine as it sent through 48 pages (52 to be exact, but it ran out of ink on page 48) of your performance evaluation over the last 25+ years. I should have, but it came through at night. Performance appraisals are a good thing. Summarizing what was said over the past, oh, 5-10 years might be a better idea.
Your 10-page, white space-deprived, executive IT resume is a tad on the long side. It truly isn’t necessary to list all of your technical experience dating back to the early 80’s, especially since your role now is an executive one and you hardly get your hands wet anymore with the “meat” of the projects.
I appreciate that you took the time to compile all of your hobbies and interests, but employers usually don’t want to review your various scout awards, high school GPA, birth date, wife’s favorite color, or a link to your personal website filled with just plain weird different pictures of your ceramic turtle collection.
The information in your resume should be relevant to your job search and your personal brand. However, you don’t want to load down your resume with too much information. I know there is a fine line for some people, and it’s hard to distinguish what should stay and what should go. If you are unsure, you should always ask a professional.
On that note, I bid you good night, Gentle Reader. I must get back to work and finish up this whining resume advice session. I hope I was able to help clarify the good, the bad and the not needed of information gathering.
In today’s competitive market it is vital that you have a resume that will stand out and catch the attention of the reader. Creating a resume from a Microsoft Word template won’t do. Neither will copying off your co-workers resume. You need a branded, unique resume that defines who you are, your accomplishments, your credentials and what you can do for them. A certified professional resume writer will do this for you. They know what it takes to get you noticed. So, the question is… who do you choose? There are new resume companies popping up all over the place so you need to get picky and have questions ready to ask the resume writer. Here are some questions you should always ask: 1. Are you a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW)? Does being certified really matter? YES, YES, YES! Before 1990, there wasn’t a standard to which a resume writer could be judged. Now, all CPRW candidates must go through a comprehensive set of tests before achieving certification. Testing consists of 4 modules that cover several areas including industry knowledge, resume knowledge, grammar/punctuation/spelling and proofreading, strategic thinking, content use, focus, ethics, and more. NOT EVERYONE PASSES. If you are not sure, you can check: parw.com or careerdirectors.com and check to see if the writer is certified. Advanced resume certifications are also available (CERW, MRW, CARW) and offer similar types of training followed by rigorous testing. Do your homework. Think of it this way: would you want a Dentist to replace your crown or someone who “knows a lot about teeth”? 2. How long have you been writing resumes? There are so many mom-and-pop resume writing companies popping up out there that it is blowing my mind. Because of this recession, I’ve heard of many people who got into resume writing recently because they were laid off from their sales job and “was told by friends I can write a good resume”. While that may be true, writing two resumes and writing several hundred, or even thousands are much better. Practice makes perfect. I am the first one to admit that when I first started, my writing was less than perfect. Way less. There is so much more to understand about resume writing than just putting words to paper. It can take me up to 2 days to decide the right strategy for a client–the best way for them to be positioned for optimal results. It takes time to learn this. I’m not saying someone has to be writing for 10 years to be a good writer, but I think they need actual practice before working on your resume. 3. What association(s) do you belong to? This is important for the obvious reasons. Belonging to a professional association keeps you up-to-date on so many things including resume writing strategy, client focus, new trends, industry updates and much more. In my opinion, I couldn’t imagine NOT being in them. They are a wealth of knowledge! I get to interact with other writers/business owners/career coaches, share information, pose questions and more. My favorite organizations are CDI (Career Directors International) and PARW (Professional Association of Resume Writers), but there are several others that are good, too: National Association of Resume Writers (NRWA), Career Management Alliance (CMA), and Association of Online Resume & Career Professionals (AORCP). 4. What is your process? Most resume writers have a process i.e. information they need from you, resume strategy, structure, and time line. It’s good to know ahead of time what the writers process is. You might have developed a great rapport with a writer only to realize they won’t have it ready for 2-3 weeks and you need it in 2 days, etc. Or they may require more from you than just your existing resume and you don’t have time for that (although I wouldn’t advise that– if you want a great resume, you have to do a little work). 5. What do you need from me? Some writers do a lot of listening and not a lot of talking, or vice versa, as do the clients. Ask the writer what information they need from you. It’s important that the process is a collaborative one with mutual information sharing. Your writer has to literally be you in order to create an effective resume that is unique and branded. So give them as much information as possible, no matter how busy you are.
These 5 tips should get you started in the right direction and hopefully help you find a writer who is the perfect fit for your needs. Good luck!
Cover letters seem to be difficult for people, even resume writers. Why is that? What makes a good cover letter?
Dear New Client, it is not necessary, through the process of our resume writing collaboration together, to send me over 65 pages of information. Yes, this is not the norm, and yes, it is probably my fault that I didn’t turn off the fax machine as it sent through 48 pages (52 to be exact, but it ran out of ink on page 48) of your performance evaluation over the last 25+ years. I should have, but it came through at night. Performance appraisals are a good thing. Summarizing what was said over the past, oh, 5-10 years might be a better idea.