By ensuring your information flows naturally allows the reader to focus on the details of your resume instead of focusing on finding the information they’re looking for.
Too many subjective assertions make the reader doubt all of your assertions. Ideally subjective assertions should be relegated to those for which there is no data or information to substantiate them. Thus making it the only way to convey them.
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The most powerful resumes share one trait, they lead the reader to make the very assertions the writer would like to make without ever mentioning them.
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This is a new series providing little nuggets of content on subjects related to career management, career development, self-branding, job search, resume writing, and interviewing skills.
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This article elaborates on a comment attributed to me in a column written by Eilene Zimmerman in the Business Section of the New York Times in March 2008.
Counting on a few hundred resumes you sent by mail to land job interviews is so old school. This kind of “push” strategy is like walking a well trodden path in the hope of finding a few remaining berries that haven’t already been picked by the hordes ahead of you; or like shooting buckshot in the air in the hopes of bagging a bear. Today it takes creativity to get off that well-trodden path and a more powerful weapon to bag a bear.
The simple fact is that the old-school approach results in infinitely more misses than hits and it leaves people frustrated and scared that they’ll never stand out in the crowd.
That’s a justifiable concern.
However, today there are so many creative ways to market yourself and the beauty is that these creative endeavors can live on and continue to help hone your reputation and visibility for years to come.
Social media tools give people the ability to vastly increase their visibility and credibility in ways that were unimaginable even five years ago. Thought leadership, forward thinking commentary, analysis, etc, allow you to connect with others in a powerful way. There is no telling what’s possible.
I know a successful marketing executive who has been writing an insightful and entertaining blog for nearly two years. At a recent Facebook-themed conference, he met a social networking acquaintance who was working for a world-class marketing organization.
When his acquaintance forwarded the executive’s resume, an amazing thing happened. The hiring VP had already heard of the executive, and had been reading his blog for months. In that instant he turned from just another applicant to a rock star. It turned out several people in the organization had already been following the blog as well. His candidacy ended in a job offer and he now has the job of his dreams.
This is reality today. An example of what’s possible in today’s world. Were it not for his blog he may never have gotten an interview. His blog gave him a competitive advantage over other candidates. It not only made them aware of him, but also gave them insight into his thinking and knowledge of marketing. It created both familiarity and credibility. How powerful is that?
Today there is no limit to how people can build their visibility and credibility and much of it is literally at our finger tips. The use of these marketing tools actually constitute a “pull” strategy that can draw company interest and develop a candidate’s credibility to such a degree that opportunities can come to the candidate without the candidate ever having to pound the pavement with a resume in hand.
Start by thinking outside of the box. Your “pull” strategy is limited only by your imagination. Anything that draws people to seek you out can be considered part of a “pull” strategy. I recall a story Ann Rhoades tells about a highly motivated individual who wanted a marketing job with Southwest Airlines and sent the founder and CEO at the time, Herb Kelleher, a bottle of Wild Turkey which he was known to drink. It looked like a normal label, but if you looked closely the label was actually their resume.
Wow, talk about creative. There really are no limits.
I believe that developing thought leadership and forward thinking commentary and analysis is a good way to go. Why? Because it allows you to share how and what you think in a setting that is not in any way related to a job search. It’s you putting your thoughts out in the world to help and advise people. It gives people the opportunity to gain insights about you they otherwise would not have.
Wordpress, Twitter, Utterli, You Tube, are all ways to get your message out. And best of all - they’re FREE. But first you have to do something absolutely essential. You need to reflect on who you are. What you stand for. What you believe in. Because this kind of “pull” strategy relies on you creating a unique voice not just yada-yada-yada.
Yada-yada-yada will fall on deaf ears, but an original voice will not. It will create music for all the people who connect with your message and who are looking for the insights you have to share with the world. It’s important to realize that you do not have to connect with everyone. For that matter, not even with most people. You only need to connect with people who resonate with your message. After all, that’s what a good “fit” is all about.
Wordpress is free and priceless, what a combination. This blogging tool is great. They have sharp, professional, looking templates and it’s simple to use and edit. When you write a new piece it’s online within seconds. If I can do it - so can you. This very blog is written with Wordpress.
But be cautious. Review your entries, check for typos, and be certain you stand by what you are writing, because once it’s out there - it’s really out there. Even if you decide to edit or redact the material later, good luck, anybody who has an RSS link to your material will have your original entry and there is nothing you can do to get it back.
Twitter is an “out of this world” kind of tool that is less about the tool than the community that uses it. I heard of a person who put a request for job opportunities on his Facebook profile and after two months had one opportunity come his way. He then made two “tweets” (messages) on Twitter and received seven or eight concrete opportunities in less than a week. What makes Twitter so different is that its community operates in real time. When a “tweet” is sent it’s read by people that very moment. While an entry in Facebook or LinkedIn requires members to check their account or email to actually get the message.
While I can’t speak to the Twitter “community” I can speak to a few interesting benefits of Twitter. One is that search engines love it. You can write the most inane thing like “Right now I’m eating a Pinkberry frozen yoghurt on Melrose Avenue.” And lo and behold I can actually find that entry with a Google or Yahoo search even months later. It’s amazing how such comments can stay alive online. So imagine the value of “thoughtful” messaging that can take on a life of it’s own.
Second, Twitter can be used to disseminate your messages to various locations without you having to enter them at each site. For instance, Twitter comments can be set up to publish directly to your Plaxo account, Facebook, and a host of other online sites. Additionally, people can subscribe to your posts using an RSS link and have them go directly to their browser or feedreader.
But again, be cautious. Even though it’s just a micro-blog with a maximum 140 words -once it’s out there, there is no telling where it’s going to end up.
I believe Twitter will become much more prominent in the coming years.
Utterli (formerly Utterz) is my current favorite even though I do not yet use it. Utterli is an audio-blog. Instead of writing it, you can speak it over your cell phone or upload an MP3 to your account and the world can hear your thoughts and ideas. I would describe it as an audio version of Twitter. For a perfect example of how it can be used, check out David Petherick’s Ten Tips to Creating a Powerful Online Profile. When you hear it, you’ll get the idea. Imagine what you might be able to share about your area of expertise?
Utterli also allows you to disseminate your entries all over the web to Facebook, Twitter, Wordpress blogs, even your website, you name it. Additionally, just like with Twitter, people can subscribe to your entries so that whenever you post one it immediately goes to the subscribers’ email or feedreader.
The power of these tools is that they can take on a life of their own. They can be picked up by all the search engines and be nearly impossible to get off-line. So be sure you stand by what you are posting. It should represent the real you and what you proudly stand for. Always think about what you are going to post and ensure it’s not anything you will regret.
Given all the benefits, I still urge people not to rely entirely on high-tech solutions, but rather to mix it up. There are non-technology opportunities to develop visibility and credibility as well. Get involved with public speaking. Participate at conferences, sit on discussion panels, etc. Engage a PR firm to introduce you to journalists looking for subject matter experts in your field. Again, you are limited only by your own creativity.
The purpose of this article is not to push you into anything. But rather to give you a sense of what’s possible. It should be exciting that you no longer have to rely entirely on a boring resume to make yourself known. The sky is the limit and the idea that there are all kinds of creative ways to become known and to share the “real” you with the world should be invigorating and most of all - liberating.
The benefits these alternative marketing tools have is cumulative and they take time to develop. So the greatest benefit goes to those individuals who realize that you can’t wait until you are out of a job to start using these tools. They should become part of what you do on an ongoing basis, regardless if you are actively looking or not. What you will find is that over time, opportunities will come to you.
Now go!
Setting yourself up for success in a new job is all about addressing a few key aspects. Among the most crucial aspects is fully understanding the expectations the organization and your boss will have of you; getting along with new co-workers and colleagues; understanding the unwritten rules of your new environment; and, creating positive patterns in terms of how your position relates to key colleagues within the organization.
Communication is the key to integration. And some of these communications should be performed well before you accept the job. For instance, you don’t want to wait until you’ve already accepted the job, to learn what their expectations are. What if the expectations are impossible to meet? Likewise, exploring the culture and operating dynamics around this new environment should be done before accepting the position, because it might materially impact your ability to fit in and/or perform the job. And finally, smart professionals want to speak with key colleagues before accepting the job to ensure there’s a good fit in terms of personal compatibility. Such communications will increase the likelihood of a good fit and easier transition once you do accept the job.
After you accept your new job, there is plenty you can do to improve the transition. One crucial key is to create a feedback mechanism for yourself. Tap someone at your new job that you connect with well on a personal level and who is knowledgeable about the organization, but who ideally is not directly vested in your appointment. This individual can share the ins-and-outs of the organization, answer questions that pop up, provide suggestions about how to maneuver through the organization, tell you where the land-mines are buried, and finally, provide you with feedback about how you are doing.
Of course it’s important to immediately work on developing a rapport with your boss and hopefully receive similar help from your boss as you are from your “feedback” colleague.
You need to be extra sensitive at the start of your new job to recognize the subtle dynamics at work in your surrounding environment, so as to avoid becoming the proverbial bull in the china shop. Most of all, people appreciate individuals who are respectful of an organization and its legacy. While new ideas and impulses are desired, it helps to show that you are interested in being part of the team and not just a rogue newcomer with little respect for the people who are already on board.
Perhaps the most important advice is to establish yourself as competent and confident as soon as possible, without alienating people. Voicing your opinions in a respectful way is important from the very start.
What most people don’t realize is that the patterns that are set within the first 3 months of starting a new job, most often become permanent patterns. For example, if in the first few months it becomes common practice to have your superior sign off on your decisions, it will easily turn into a pattern where your boss will expect to have your decisions continuously run past them.
It’s more difficult to change existing patterns than it is to establish positive patterns right from the start. This is crucial. While initially it may seem like a good idea to run decisions by your boss or watch and listen the first few months, you have to learn how to respectfully establish yourself, so as not to become marginalized simply because of your good intentions.
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