1 is A | 2 is B

I had what appears to be an extraordinary lesson in the power of a resume. During my most recent job search, I went from one extreme of nobody acknowledging any of my communications to the other of companies cold-calling me offering me jobs based only on reading my resume (some of those companies were the same ones that had rejected me less than a month earlier). So here is how I did it.

I was looking for a job to start on April 1st (because hey, why not) so I decided to start early: October 1st. This would give me five months to get my resume out there, interview, and weigh my options so that the sixth month could be for filling out paper work and reflecting on how good my planning skills are. So I dusted off my resume, added some more current info and started sending it around - all standard, “looking for a job” behavior.

Nothing. I did this for almost five months. Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again expecting different results. I kept blaming other things for the lack of response, such as: poor grades, bad job market, not being well connected. I never thought that it was my approach to the process or the document that gave employers their first impression of me before we even met.

The truth is, smart people want to hire smart people. If you present yourself as such you will get hired. Too simple, I know, but think of it from the employer’s perspective: hiring a new employee is risky for them. They spend money on hiring you, your training, etc. The more you can do to lower the risk they feel in hiring you the more likely you are to be hired.

The same thing works with promotions: if you are already acting and working like a manager, the risk is low that you won’t be a great manager if given the position. Write and interview like an employee and you will become an employee.

Back to the story: I was obviously feeling discouraged and frustrated. A friend of mine who has been around this barbeque before felt like her past experiences were similar to mine and that she had some advice for my resume. We worked on it over dinner and by the end of it I had confidence to go and write a new resume for myself. I think what had bogged me down before was all this job search advice out there in magazines and the internet. Much of it is contradictory and confusing - ok you tell me this technique works but why does it work? I’m not trying to game a computer system I’m trying to communicate with a person in HR. Talking with my friend cleared up some of this and empowered me to try ideas of my own.

So let’s say that dinner was a Monday night in mid-February. By Tuesday night I had my new resume written up and had replace all my old ones on various job hunt sites. Wednesday I had a phone interview with company 1 (let’s call them), and a request for a phone interview and a request for a face to face interview for Thursday. On thursday company 1 called and scheduled a face to face interview with me for friday. On my way to Thursday’s face to face interview I had a phone interview with a company that had flat out rejected me not a month earlier. On Thursday I also got five email responses from other companies. Friday I had a very long interview with company 1. On the way to that interview I also had another phone interview. The following Wednesday I was offered the job with company 1 and accepted shortly thereafter.

So what did I do specifically to my resume already!? Everyone asks me this. What I tell people is that I created a more focused story about myself and that I formatted it in a more professional way. Here are links to the two files (old resume, winning resume) so that you can compare for yourself. FYI none of the information on either is current, they are for illustration purposes only; email me if you would like a copy of my current resume.

My recommendations for those who are in the job hunt process:

• Don’t use the same resume for over a month if it is not getting theresponse you expect.
• Talk with someone who knows what they are talking about. This will give you confidence in your own writing.
• Keep sending updated versions of your resume to companies you are interested in.
• Do your important correspondance in snail mail: thank yous, acceptance letters, rejection letters, etc.
• Know what is important for you in a job and stick to it. Do you want a desk job or a job outdoors; do you want a fat paycheck more than satisfying work (if it came down to a choice between the two). Make sure you know not what job you want, but what kind of job you want and make sure you get it!

I’m sure I have more advice which I may write about later (or just email me for it). I am also thinking of writing about interviewing because I’m good at it…and enjoy it (if you can believe it).

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