Friday, August 05, 2005
Why Can't You Even Get in the Door? Image Building Resumes!
Not too long ago some of my new Ohio clients had a fashion show. I was the moderator. On Saturday I asked that everyone wear their best interview suits to my office; you should have seen it! My 20 clients, both male and female, looked marvelous in their suits by Misook and Armani. Everything was tasteful and color coordinated. Their accessories were perfect and each could have done a fashion shoot that very day! They had been taught well, but not by me! These clients had been with me less than 10 days and we were just getting started.
Nevertheless I was impressed... until I requested their resumes! What a difference! These very same clients, with their Nordstrom's wardrobes presented flea market resumes, and what worried me most was how this fact had never occurred to any of them! So there we were in my training center with phenomenally qualified, well-dressed candidates who, for an average of 6 months, had been attempting to get in the interview door and repeatedly failing.
Why had these candidates, a collection of Chief Technology Officers, Marketing Directors, Brand Managers, Administrators and Business Developers been failing? And why was the obvious answer not quite so obvious to them? Did we have a "can't see the forest for the trees" problem? You bet we did and it was so serious that these executives could easily have been sentenced to terminal unemployment. They all believed they had power resumes.
Why had these candidates so miscalculated, believing that the mediocre presentations that would precede them to be acceptable while they chose top of the line wardrobes? What is ironic is the fact that without an exceptional resume, none of the candidates would ever get the opportunity to model anything! Why is the resume so neglected while we are so careful to coordinate shirts, ties and shoes? Here's my take:
Candidates go all out for image believing that qualifications will suffice. They received a degree, they became certified, they secured experience and did good work. Therefore they are entitled to get a job. Unfortunately there are no entitlements!
Job seekers with at least 10 years of experience remember when getting an interview was not so challenging because of a healthier job market and fewer candidates. Herein lies the problem. Times change and people prefer to avoid this fact out of fear. For some reason the concept of competing for a job is difficult for those in our country to accept. We feel far too entitled and one thing we should know in this age of off-shore exporting of jobs is that no one is entitled and competition lies at the very core of career building. So if you are shut out before the competition even begins it's time re-strategize your job search. You can't win the game if you haven't learned to play the game and the first competitive event that must conquer all others is that resume.
Here's a quick litmus test: Is your resume one page and does it look like everyone's that I critiqued at the CareerBoard Job Fair last March? If you answered yes to either of these questions, stay tuned to CareerBoard. We will be focusing on Resume Remedies both in our Webinar and articles for the next 30 days!
Nevertheless I was impressed... until I requested their resumes! What a difference! These very same clients, with their Nordstrom's wardrobes presented flea market resumes, and what worried me most was how this fact had never occurred to any of them! So there we were in my training center with phenomenally qualified, well-dressed candidates who, for an average of 6 months, had been attempting to get in the interview door and repeatedly failing.
Why had these candidates, a collection of Chief Technology Officers, Marketing Directors, Brand Managers, Administrators and Business Developers been failing? And why was the obvious answer not quite so obvious to them? Did we have a "can't see the forest for the trees" problem? You bet we did and it was so serious that these executives could easily have been sentenced to terminal unemployment. They all believed they had power resumes.
Why had these candidates so miscalculated, believing that the mediocre presentations that would precede them to be acceptable while they chose top of the line wardrobes? What is ironic is the fact that without an exceptional resume, none of the candidates would ever get the opportunity to model anything! Why is the resume so neglected while we are so careful to coordinate shirts, ties and shoes? Here's my take:
Candidates go all out for image believing that qualifications will suffice. They received a degree, they became certified, they secured experience and did good work. Therefore they are entitled to get a job. Unfortunately there are no entitlements!
Job seekers with at least 10 years of experience remember when getting an interview was not so challenging because of a healthier job market and fewer candidates. Herein lies the problem. Times change and people prefer to avoid this fact out of fear. For some reason the concept of competing for a job is difficult for those in our country to accept. We feel far too entitled and one thing we should know in this age of off-shore exporting of jobs is that no one is entitled and competition lies at the very core of career building. So if you are shut out before the competition even begins it's time re-strategize your job search. You can't win the game if you haven't learned to play the game and the first competitive event that must conquer all others is that resume.
Here's a quick litmus test: Is your resume one page and does it look like everyone's that I critiqued at the CareerBoard Job Fair last March? If you answered yes to either of these questions, stay tuned to CareerBoard. We will be focusing on Resume Remedies both in our Webinar and articles for the next 30 days!
