Job Search Advice, Resume Writing Tips from a Career Consultant

Ever see the Drew Carey show titled "Who's Line Is It Anyway?" It's all about impromptu stand-up comedy which amounts to having to think of jokes on the spot with no advanced warning. The guys are wonderfully funny but more important, they are able to put together great responses upon demand. Are you?

I've noticed that many of my clients ramble on endlessly when asked critical interview questions. They are unprepared so they over-answer, sending the interviewer into a sound sleep. Just as cloudy resumes are passed over by impatient readers, so rambling responses suffer the same fate by attention-deficit interviewers.

The theories regarding why folks who should know better go all over the road on interviews are many. Some need to begin way back at the beginning when relating an accomplishment and others simply enjoy reminiscing about the past. Some believe that the more detail the better their chances. This assumption couldn't be further from the truth. Here are some tips:

• Imagine that your interview will only last 10 minutes. How would you bottom line your impact while in your jobs?
• How does each accomplishment attract this specific employer? Challenge yourself to describe, in just two sentences, why the accomplishment is important to your target.
• Think about the strategic impact of the accomplishment. What was the result? How did you make it happen? What were the initial problems / challenges?
• Imagine that to get an interview you are required to write an accomplishment on the back of a business card. What would you say in that small space that would have enough sizzle to get that interview?

Have you ever lost the attention of someone at a party when you suddenly saw his eyes looking past you toward the wrapped cocktail wieners? That's the best example of interview crash and burn around! Beware!