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What would happen if you did NOT immediately send a resume? World class job searches need not depend on boiler-plate documents. Invest in you and reflect that in your resume. Curb humility and market you. Seek trusted views of what you write. It's easy to tell when you press or try too hard. 1) You are your resume - Hat tip to Seth Godin When someone asks my opinion of their resume I can tell in a nanosecond that they have not read the classic Don't Send A Resume (And Other Contrarian Rules to Help Land a Great Job) authored by Jeffrey J. Fox, former award-winning Marketing VP of Frito-Lay. I notice resume content painfully self-centered, dated, generic, devoid of detail-rich statements of accomplishment, and lacking language of the target reader. 2) Get in the habit of investing in you Working the past 22+ years with more than 4,000 professional men and women in career transition, most of them shut down the minute they gain a new position internally or externally. No attention to branding, marketing, and no added value. Worse yet, no archiving detailed awards, recognition, quotes, e-mails, letters, performance evals, and personalized memos of praise. I see warts in an orphaned resume by someone who has resorted to tweaking. 3) Don't be so humble, you will not appear that great Humility has its place, but not in a job search. When I see bullets telling what you did (Key Job Requirements or Responsibilities) instead of detailed performance-based results, I see someone lifting corporate-speak from an antique job description. 4) Take you and your resume "on the road" before opening night OMG, you can't find free or nearly free, validated, juicy, contrarian resume advice on or off line? You know you can, but you, like many others, prefer to interact with a human being you know, like, and trust, instead of webinar replays or 22 CDs. Don't go it alone. Test drive with others you trust what you are doing before shipping. Typos, confusion, poor grammar, embarrassing errors always jump out at me. 5) Resumes don't get jobs, you do When your resume and your full-page, three dense paragraph cover letter are each written in 10pt type on one page with ruled lines, you're trying too hard. Tie your resume behind your back, write a short script, and use a decent, fully charged telephone. Practice on dreaded former contacts first. Keep notes to warm up your document. As Jeff Fox says, "Don't Send A Resume". I asked my colleague why she sent in such a sloppy resume, she said, "I thought I had no chance of getting an interview." She got an interview and the job, but at a lower starting salary, because of her poor first impression. If you are forced to send a resume before it's ready, don't. Ask what problems the prospective employer is facing. Customize your resume to match employers' challenges. How To Write A GREAT Cover Letter
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