“It’s not you. Your resume just sucks.”
That’s usually my first thought when someone asks me to look over their resume. The truth is, though, I already know that is the problem when they tell me that they’ve been applying and haven’t heard back.
These are the standard resume equations I follow:
Your Resume Sucks | 1 resume + many applications = no invitations to interview
Your Interviews Suck | 1 resume + many applications + many interviews = no job offers
You suck | There’s no way this is possible.
Simple.
Having spent nearly 10 years in the recruiting industry has given me more clarity on the experience of the job seeker, the recruiter, and the entire recruitment process. I’ve been fascinated by human capital management for years. After I started working at a bank (right after high school) I began to question the entire recruiting process and employee mentality. This has become my obsession. It’s why I’m a life and career coach.
There is so much that happens in the mind and soul of an employee that affects how they perform at work, how they write their resume, how they interview, and how they job hunt. It’s really an emotional experience for many, but people tend to make it seem like it is always just an easy, quick process. Most people spend more than 6 months finding the ideal job. More people tend to give up and stay stuck in a job they hate.
Let’s say you have been fortunate enough to stay gainfully employed at one company for more than 3 years. You probably did not update your resume during your employment so when it comes time to look for a new job (voluntarily or not) you feel like you don’t know what to put on your resume. You don’t know what you bring to the table. You don’t know how to show the impact you had in the role(s) you filled. You worked unconsciously and now you’re conscious of how purposeful and consciously aware you should have been while in the role.
Working on your resume can be an emotionally taxing experience. If you can relate, then know that you are not alone.
Job hunting and resume writing is a mental and emotional adventure through the dark, rocky, scary spaces of your mind & soul.
Your job title doesn’t matter. Your take home pay doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter if you quit, want to quit, got fired, or got laid off. You are about to put yourself in front of others to judge and that is usually a scary situation.
Our culture tends to make us crave the validation of others and fear their rejection. So, taking a risk to not be validated…to be rejected…is ultimately the most difficult part of the resume writing / job hunting process.
Neutrality is key here. Being unmoved by someone rejecting you and being unmoved by someone accepting you is EMPOWERMENT.
Having to redo your resume means you to have to self-reflect. Most of the people I’ve worked with hate this part because they have self-worth and confidence issues that originate from earlier experiences in their lives.
Your issues tend to show up when you have to talk about your value, what you bring to the table, and what positive impacts you made in the role(s) you held. It becomes especially tough to see anything positive if you’re leaving involuntarily.
So much of our identify and value is tied up in job titles, salaries, and length of employment. It shouldn’t be, though. (I’ll save that blog for another day.)
You are enough. You are valuable. You are an asset. Your skills are usable. Your talents are appreciated. Your dedication to being employed for the success of any organization is in high demand. You are wanted.
Job hunting and redoing your resume is a time in which you have to validate yourself. You have to show your confidence and belief in you and your abilities. Your lack of understanding who you are, what you want, and what you bring to the table can be seen in how you write your resume & how you show up in an interview.
In your resume and during your interview you should be confidently communicating, “You’d be a fool not to hire me!” You have to know and believe that first, though.
You have to become a walking, talking billboard for why you are the best candidate for the job. Your job title and current employers’ names aren’t all recruiters care about. You could be President of the USA. You will not get a job based on that.
It just doesn’t work like that. You can bold, underline, and italicize your job titles all you want. Even if your title is CEO, you will have to SHOW why you are a qualified CEO. CEOs on the hunt for a new executive role have to sell themselves, too. You’re no exception.
The person hiring wants to know what positive impacts you’ve made before in a similar capacity and what you could do if they decide to hire you.
When it comes to resume writing, job hunting, and interviewing you absolutely have to sell yourself.
Selling yourself is the most important part of the entire process. It’s probably the scariest part, too. Is this true for you?
Doing self-work, building up your confidence, and practicing your pitch can help you get over this fear of telling anyone why they should hire you.
I coach hard-working employees through the adventure of redoing their resume, job hunting, and interviewing. I started to sound like a broken record when it came to having the resume convo. So, I packaged up the information I share with my clients and now it’s available to everyone through a digital training and workbook.
If you’re not happy with your resume and want to make impactful changes to your job hunt, check out my Resume Rebirth Training.
If you remember nothing else from this blog, please remember this:
You are enough. You are valuable. You are an asset. Your skills are usable. Your talents are appreciated. Your dedication to being employed for the success of any organization is in high demand. You are wanted.
