Why You Should Work On Your Resume NOW plus 1 more | Career Rocketeer

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Why You Should Work On Your Resume NOW Posted: 12 Jul 2011 03:30 AM PDT Are you currently employed but want to look for a new job in, say, a few months, for whatever reason?  Perhaps you’ve decided that you don’t want to go back to work until the kids start school in the fall.  Or maybe you want to spend time with the spouse while he or she is off of work for a while. If you’re not ready to go back to work and therefore aren’t searching for jobs, it’s still a good idea to work on your resume now.  It may seem unnecessary, but here are some benefits you get from taking this route. 1. You Have More Time to Build Your Resume While you’re taking time to manage your life, it’s a good idea to work on your resume little by little so that you can actually build it into a stellar document.  Oftentimes, we spend just a few hours on the resume, hoping that it will impress employers.  But writing an impressive resume isn’t usually accomplished in a short period of time. So while you’re not seriously searching, you can take your time to decide exactly what message you want to send to employers through your accomplishments—and maybe even remember additional bits of info from the past that you’ve forgotten about.  This way, when you’re ready to apply, you will have a solid document to submit. 2. You Have the Ability to Edit and Perfect Working on your resume now also allows you to edit and perfect the resume’s design, ensuring that you have eliminated typos, spelling problems, or grammar issues.  You can create just the right amount of white space and arrange your sections to help managers flow through the document exactly the way you want.  (Not to mention that you get the opportunity to keep up with new trends in resume writing so that yours doesn't look dated when the time comes to start submitting them again.) 3. You Can Streamline Your Career Path Sometimes, developing your resume without actually submitting it gives you a chance to take a good look at your career and decide whether you’re on the right track.  As you look at the jobs you’ve worked and the positions you’re likely to apply for, you may realize that you’re moving laterally, when in reality, it’s actually time to start climbing the ladder. When you’re actively searching for a job, it’s hard to see the changes that you could make to advance your career.  But as you take weeks or months to slowly build your resume, you may find that you’re ready to guide your career in a new direction. There’s nothing wrong with taking time away from a job search to manage other areas of your life.  But if you want to make sure you’re still in the game and up to speed when it’s time to start applying again, it’s good to keep working on your resume while taking your break. For additional resume tips and advice follow Jessica Hernandez on Twitter @GreatResume. Author: Jessica Holbrook Hernandez is an expert resume writer, career and personal branding strategist, author, speaker and President/CEO of Great Resumes Fast. She creates high-impact, best-in-class resumes and cover letters that transform job searches into interviews and ultimately job offers. For more information about professional resume writing or to read more career and job search related articles visit http://www.greatresumesfast.com or call 1.800.991.5187. Advertise on Career Rocketeer

Definition of Job Search Insanity Posted: 11 Jul 2011 04:00 AM PDT "What is the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing time after time and expecting different results." Wall Street – Money Never Sleeps As I watched this movie on HBO today it got me thinking how this applies as much to college grads looking to get started in the job market as it does to the Bulls and the Bears looking to make a killing in the stock market. You see once again it's the time of year that my in-box fills up with dozens of resumes from recent graduates taking advantage of my offer for a free resume critique; and unlike the dozens of professional and executive resumes I critique each week for free that are written using varied styles and formats but are for the most part mediocre at best, I continue to be amazed that year after year 8 out of every 10 entry level college grad resumes I see (BS, BA, MS, MA and MBA) are carbon copies of one another. And this is true if whether the student graduated from NYU or Hostos College, UCLA or East LA College, Harvard or Podunk U, the names of the candidates change but the basic format and facts remain the same. One reason for this I found after talking with college career and placement counselors over the past few years is that they, not unlike certain resume mills, are under the assumption that there is only one way recruiters and hiring authorities want a resume to look and read. A second reason, one that is troublesome to me and should be for all new grads, is they desire continuity for all the resumes that are placed in the Career Book which they provide to on-campus recruiters. The reason this bothers me is that less than 25% of graduates (and I imagine in most school the number is considerably lower) are recruited directly off campus. I disagree vehemently with this premise. After all when screening 30-330+ entry level resumes for the same position, which I did for at least 5 years during my career, and to all intents and purposes the vast majority look and read the same, how can any screener differentiate your resume from others in the pack. Do we use quality of the school, GPA or other criteria that eliminates you if you were not a top student or you were a bad test taker; or worse yet if your family could not afford to send you to a prestigious or well known university? This is a dilemma I talk to students about all the time. So what is a frustrated college grad to do? Once again I'll tell you that your resume must be written to separate you from the crowd as apposed to placing you smack dab in the middle. If your resume comes across to a screener as a recycled version of 80% of the resumes a they read every day your chances of being noticed and called in for an interview are very low, especially when you submit it or post it on a job board among tens of thousands of other candidates' resumes. I can tell you this with assurance, creativity works exceedingly well in my practice and it will work for you. Once I convert a recent grad's old resume to my Bio-Rez or MBA style format the 'submit to response' ratio for most candidates has increased substantially. So if after a few months of sending out the same tired old version of your resume and expecting to get different results is driving you crazy, I suggest you forget what your college advisers told you and try something new. Be creative and remember what I say to everyone I meet; "a resume is not a one size fits all document" because just like funk pioneer Sly Stone said "different strokes for different folks." This advice is not only meant for recent graduates, it's meant to aid anyone who is not getting results. Author: Perry Newman, CPC CSMS is a nationally recognized executive resume writer, career coach, AIPC certified recruiter and SMMU certified social media strategist known for his ability to help his clients get results. You can view his sample resumes at http://www.perrynewman.com, and email him your resume at perry@perrynewman.com for FREE resume critique. Advertise on Career Rocketeer

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