How To Give A Resume Performance Of A Lifetime

How To Give A Resume Performance Of A Lifetime 8 Sure Ways To Give The Resume Performance Of A LifetimePosted February 11, 2014, by Marni Williams Its a given that applying for a job means selling yourself, but the reality is that it just doesnt come naturally to most of us. Hell, most of us struggle to take compliments, let alone give ourselves a whole list of them and then, if were lucky, discuss them at length with qualifikation colleagues. At Career FAQs, weve been offering career advice for over a decade, and we have our assessment of resumes and cover letters down to a fine art. When Im looking at those few pages of someones working life I often put them through what I like to call the movie test, which is to ask if this were a movie, would I understand the point and would I keep watching? Think about it. Selling yourself is similar to putting on a performance and if karaoke is on the cards then some of us will run a mile while others will need help wresting the microphone fro m their hands. But whether you love the thrill of the spotlight or the safety of shadows, the key to a killer job application performance is clear you need to think of your audience. Set the tone with a killer opener. Friends (19942004). NBC. 1. Spend time on your establishing shot We all know the one. The lone horseman in the barren landscape, the extreme-long view of a cityscape, all backed by rousing orchestras slowly prodding our emotions awake. If you set the tone right from the start, the audience wont be able to help coming along for the ride. Leading off with a one-paragraph professional profile or summary gives you the opportunity to introduce your voice. Agonise over this one because if you can distil your experience and achievements down into one killer sentence or two you will have them hooked. Rodolfo Loaiza, Blood Forest, Disasterland series. Courtesy the artist / La Luz de Jesus Gallery, Los Angeles. 2. Stick to the genre Your resume should suit the industry youre working in you wouldnt follow a horror plotline for a Disney movie so dont focus on your incredible IT skills if youre applying for a customer service role. Also understand what your genre calls for is clean, descriptive text enough to tell your amazing tale or do you also need a portfolio? Article samples? Website links? Choose the storytelling method that allows you to put your best foot forward. Every genre has its structure and I couldnt tell you how many resumes we see that are in the wrong order. Act 1 should be your professional profile, followed by either your qualifications (if recent) or your most recent job, through to earlier positions in reverse chronological order, then technical skills and volunteer roles. You should be making things as easy as possible for your audience so follow the framework that recruiters understand and that means clearly separating your responsibilities from your achievements for each job. You want them to digest your information without any effort, just like a well-oiled rom-com. Theres leidhing like getting a second opinion to pull your resume into line. Courtesy Playwriting Australia. www.pwa.org.au. 3. Workshop your script This performance is about you getting a job. Recruiters dont need to know if youre married, how old you are or whether you like baking on the weekends. Unless youre volunteering, stick to the main story. And speaking of scripts, your writing needs to be strong in order to communicate your potential. If your grammar is off, your spelling is dodgy then your audience will turn off quicker than they walked out of Gigli. And using American spelling would be like Toni Collette acting in Muriels Wedding with a dodgy American accent its just plain wrong. And dont be afraid to ask a mentor, friend or family member to workshop it with you they may know your strengths better than you do and zupflmmel up the things youve missed. Set for Love Never Dies, Victorian production, Australia. Courtesy www.thea trepeople.com.au. Photograph Jeff Busby. 4. Design your set carefully If your set is a mess then your audience wont know where to look. They need to be able to move smoothly from scene to scene (section to section, job to job) and know where they are in the story at all times. Break each section up with a simple heading and dont try to cram too much in. Choose a font thats readable on most programs (Cambria, Times, Calibri) and stick to it. And you dont need fancy graphics, or worse, standard templates. You can simply bold your section titles and use empty space to make each point sing. Know when to exit stage left. Courtesy mediabistro.com. 5. Dont hog the spotlight Most recruiters simply wont read much more than two pages so slip on your director shades and start cutting to key scenes. If you have included too much unnecessary information you will just take away from the key elements. When choosing what to include you really have to look at your story arc. Have you shown progre ssion through your roles? Have you kept it punchy with dynamic, active words to describe your experiences and responsibilities, rather than just listing them? Recruiters want to see how youve developed so give them the full back story. Forrest Gump (1994). Paramount Pictures. 6. Define your character One thing I often find is that people are good at listing what theyve done, but they struggle to define their strengths. Unfortunately there is nothing more boring to an audience than a one-dimensional character that doesnt have any reason to change. When recruiters are looking at your story, they need to be shown moments of triumph, or of going above and beyond Rocky moments like making profits, developing new systems or dealing with more responsibility. Just like a good biopic, you need to write in the first person. And if you think you dont have anything extraordinary to say, think again. It can be hard to visualise everything you have achieved in your career so if youre stuck f or ideas, take a look at other job ads to see what recruiters are looking for and check out some of your industry peers on LinkedIn. Youll soon realise you have kicked some goals along the way. Your biography also needs to make sense. There should be no gaps in years that are left unexplained. Time should always look as productive as possible, which brings me to my next tip. Make sure you read the room before you delivery your lines. Laurel and Hardy. Courtesy laurel-and-hardy.com. CCA. 7. Dont stick to the same old gags If you dont tailor your cover letter and resume to answer the ad, then you havent thought about your audience. Focusing on your IT skills when they have emphasised customer service as a requirement is be like trying to sing opera in a bikie bar it might be superb, but its not what they want to hear. One of the best things you can do is show that youve thought about the job not only what theyve asked for, but the company and anything else that might be an asse t to them. This is an audition, after all. Look carefully at the ad and use keywords at just the right moments but remember you need to show, not just tell. Give specifics, make them measurable and dont just include one-line assertions such as successful sales manager without backing yourself up. The best resumes deliver clear punchlines. Be confident to sing your own praises. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994). PolyGram Filmed Entertainment. 8. Its ok to make a song and dance Still got stage fright? Shake it off by writing a list of all the tasks you do in your current job, or have done