Category Archives: Resumes

Blackmail your boss?

Posted on April 12, 2012 | Leave a comment

Progress always involves risk, you can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first base. (Frederick Wilcox)

While I worked at EDS a man quit three different times.  Twice he actually left the building and went to work for someone else for a week or two.  He resigned but let his boss know he didn’t want to leave and could be enticed to stay or return.  Each time his boss finally gave him the raise and promotion he wanted. It was blackmail, pure and simple.

By the way, what do you think it did to morale?  Well, everyone started saying, “I’ll have to quit to get a raise or a promotion.”  Some just quietly started looking for another job, never to come back.

So blackmail works. Right?  Sort of.  If you want to work for a company where you have to threaten your boss, yes it works.

Try something a little different.

Get together proof that you deserve a raise.  Put together a dynamite resume that is a list of accomplishments.  Assume your boss knows your responsibilities.  Make a list of provable accomplishments.  Put together a portfolio if you can.  Do a salary survey.  Make sure you believe in it and can prove it.  Get 5 people to write references saying how well you do your job.

With this project you have gathered proof that your boss would hire you for more than he is paying you now.  Go present the proof to your boss and put it in those terms.  Tell him he would have to pay more to hire a replacement, so please pay me more right now. Don’t threaten to quit.  Give him a chance to do the right thing.  No blackmail.

See what he says.  Give him a month or two to come up with a raise and promotion.  If you don’t get it, go ask your boss, again, what he intends to do.  Don’t threaten or plead.  Just find out his intentions.

If he’s not moving, use all that material you gathered to look for a new job.  Don’t blackmail your boss.  Give him a real opportunity to reward you.  If he won’t give you what you deserve, look for a new job. Don’t look back.

Something To Do Today

Start your employment upgrade project.

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Tomorrow:     I just quit and my old boss wants me back!

Quit or be fired?

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Posted in Accomplishments, Attitude, Finding jobs, Quitting or Fired, References, Resumes

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What is your portfolio?

Posted on April 11, 2012 | Leave a comment

…rejection without proof is the fundamental characteristic of Western science. (Gary Zukav)

 I recommended Ben for a job as a programmer.  He had been programming intensely for 6 years.  He had proof of his skills with C++.  He had produced a video game that was more complex than many in the stores at the time.  I was enthusiastic and said he was a junior, perfect for a 3 month programming job.  The hiring manager agreed to an interview.  I forgot (really just forgot) to mention he was a high school student, not a college student.  The manager, out of courtesy, let the interview go on anyway.  The portfolio (the game), the enthusiasm and knowledge of the kid were so great, that he was hired.  Let’s not forget he was cheap too.

How can a high school junior get a job as a college junior?  It took an enthusiastic mistake and a portfolio.  You can create your own enthusiasm.  See my post about motivating your friends to help. Don’t try to make a mistake, just capitalize on them.  The portfolio is not as easy as it looks.

Your portfolio is separate from your resume.  Your resume is a list of accomplishments. It is a list of what happened because you were at a job, a list of improvements.  Your portfolio is concrete examples of your output.  In marketing it is letters, brochures, ad campaigns and internet links.  In programming it is websites you created or programs that actually run, all with examples of your coding.  Graphics artists often carry a huge folder of their art with them.  Some leaders actually write a book about their performance and get it published.  A network technician can dial in to the five computers in his basement from the interviewer’s office. A writer should have documents he produced.

Put proof in an envelope, on a CD, or in an internet site.  Show what you have done.

Proof can flat out get you hired.  No question about it.  Can you prove what you have done?

Something To Do Today

Ask your boss what you could put in your portfolio that proves you deserve a raise.  Put together that portfolio and see if he gives you one.  If he doesn’t, show that portfolio to other employers and get a new job.

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Coming next:     Blackmail your boss?

I just quit and my old boss wants me back!

Quit or be fired?

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Posted in Accomplishments, Attitude, Interviews, Resumes, talent

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A genius’ resume – Leonardo da Vinci

Posted on April 10, 2012 | Leave a comment

Even Leonardo da Vinci needed to look for a job.

Here’s the resume and story of one part of his job search.

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Posted in Accomplishments, Attitude, Finding jobs, References, Resumes

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Photos, logos, and fancy fonts on your resume

Posted on March 28, 2012 | Leave a comment

There is a certain majesty in simplicity which is far above all the quaintness of wit.  (Alexander Pope)

If a resume gets you an interview, it is a great resume.  That is the only measure of success.  It cannot get you a job.  It can get you an interview.

Applicants want their resume to stand out.  It used to be done by using extra nice paper.  Sometimes the resume was sent with a single crisp fold or in a flat envelope so that it was just slightly different.

With email, it is harder to stand out.  Content, readability and accomplishments are critical.  But, what about photos, logos and fancy type?

Photos

I like photos, but they can get me in trouble.  A few lawsuits have been filed charging race discrimination against companies that kept photos of applicants.  The idea was that if you had a photo, you COULD discriminate.  Of course asking for your race on the application seems a much better way to bias the reviewer.  Anyway, don’t send photos unless you are willing to take a little risk that your resume may be trashed.

Logos

If you have a certification (cert) that is highly sought after, use it.  If there is a well known logo associated with the cert, use it at the top of your resume.  Don’t go nuts.  For example, the gold standard for PC programmers is Microsoft certs or Sun Java certs.  Use those logos.  If you are a CPA, attach those letters to your name.  Don’t add your dog training certification unless you are applying as a dog trainer.

Fancy fonts

Fonts should make your resume easy to read.  Don’t mix 3 or 4 fonts on your resume.  It distracts, not enhances.  Please don’t use brightly colored fonts.  Sometimes a resume looks okay with one other color than black.  Usually 3 or font colors look terrible.  Don’t distract.

Content is king.  Bullets and bolding are usually all you need to attract attention to the most important parts of your resume. First work on content, form will follow.

Something To Do Today

Look at your resume.  Is there anything distracting?  Hand it to someone else and ask them.

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Posted in Resumes

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Resume search optimization – how to get found

Posted on March 27, 2012 | Leave a comment

How to get your resume seen online could be a book.  That book hasn’t changed in the last 5 years.  Here are the basics:

  1. Include every keyword that is in the job listing
  2. Figure out a way to repeat the most important key words
  3. Resubmit your changed resume occasionally

Keywords are critical

Computerized filters are being used more often. Monster.com has them available for all employers who pay a slight premium.  If your resume does not have every important keyword or acronym, the computer eats it and spits out a form letter. No human sees your resume.

Put a list of certifications, education, software used, tools mastered and techniques employed at the end of the resume.  Include every abbreviation or keyword in the ad.  If you are missing a minor keyword, consider saying at the end of your resume, “I understand CDF and JCL but have never used them.  It may get you past the computer filter.  If you are submitting your resume directly to the hiring manager, you might take the list off.

Repeat important keywords

Your resume will be ranked by keyword usage.  When my query brings back 300 hits, I want to see the most likely resumes first.  I sort on “relevance” and cherry pick the top resumes.  The best way to be ranked highly is to intelligently use the keywords multiple times.

Resubmit your resume

Job boards usually show the most recently submitted resumes first.  If your resume has not been submitted for 3 months, it is at the bottom.  Worse, recruiters may assume you have a job if your resume is that old.  They won’t call you. Refresh your resume every week or two.

Just these three changes may change your invisible resume to a real interview magnet.

Something To Do Today

Go read the job description of the last job you submitted your resume for.  Did your resume have all the keywords?  Did it repeat the most important keywords?

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Posted in Finding jobs, Job Boards, Resumes

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Intriguing cover letters

Posted on March 26, 2012 | Leave a comment

The best cover letter I ever heard of was a clean sheet of paper that literally only said,

“I can do that job.”

The resume beneath it was thoroughly read.  The candidate was carefully considered.  A cover letter can have no greater success.

I always read the first sentence or two of a cover letter. Unless I am intrigued, I never read more.  I don’t have time to read that you work hard, like people, are a team player and deserve a chance.  Everyone says that.  It just proves you are average.

I thoroughly read cover letters that have useful gems in the first sentence.  I keep reading sentence after sentence until it gets boring.  A cover letter masterpiece has me convinced to do an interview before I see the resume.  It extracts 2 or 3 gems from the person’s background and displays them briefly.  I want those gems.  I make a decision based on those gems of information.

If you explore beneath shyness or party chit-chat, you can sometimes turn a dull exchange into an intriguing one. I’ve found this particularly to be true in the case of professors or intellectuals, who are full of fascinating information, but need encouragement before they’ll divulge it. (Joyce Oates)

To discover gems in your background, ask yourself:

  1. Why haven’t they filled this job already?
  2. What are the most critical job skills?
  3. Which of those skills is hardest to find in the job market?
  4. What have I done that proves I am way better than average?

Now craft a single short sentence that shows you are exceptional.

Create 3 more on different subjects.

Now write several short cover letters based on those sentences.  Make sure each sentence in the letter proves you are extraordinary.

I would be intrigued by your gem filled letter.  I would decide to interview you before I even looked at the resume.

Something To Do Today

Hand your cover letter to a friend who is somewhat distracted.  See how long it takes them to look like they are slogging through the letter.  That’s where the boring stuff starts.

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Posted in Focus, Resumes

Cowardice in job seeking

Posted on February 16, 2012 | Leave a comment

A 5000 email resume spam campaign may get you a job.  That’s why there are people who will legitimately mail, email or fax your resume to a boatload of recruiters.  If you want to spend the money on it, go ahead.

Putting your resume on a hundred job boards may get you a job.  On my blog sites I have a link to Resume Rabbit, who will do it.  If you want to spend the money, go ahead.

How to REALLY get a great job is personal contact. Here’s why: if I put an ad in the paper or on a job board, 50 to 1000 job seekers will reply.  Most of those will be unqualified for the job.  Basically, I have to wade through spam to get a few gems. Similarly, last week the same resume was sent to me 5 times.  It was from a guy in Texas who tries to hide where he is from so I will call him with a job “anywhere in the US”.  It is spam.  I delete a lot of spammed resumes.  I call 1 out of 50 of them.

The people who get my attention every time are:
1. Recommended to me by their friends, or
2. Call me personally and introduce themselves, or
3. Are recruited by me when I call them directly at their jobs.

All three are guts and glory ways of contacting someone.  Getting a friend to recommend you or calling yourself is a very high risk and high reward way of looking for a job.  Sending an email or applying online is a no risk and very low reward way of looking for a job.

Cowardice is too strong of a word, but an effective one.  Email is not cowardly, it is just the least effective avenue of attack you have.

Personal calls and recommendations from friends are the most effective way to get that job you really want.  Hiring managers insulate themselves from job hunters so they aren’t bothered by unqualified and ill prepared job seekers.  If you are absolutely qualified and prepared why not use the absolutely most effective job hunting techniques you can?

Do a search for “networking” on my blog site archives.  I have written a lot of articles on how you can find the people you need to contact.  Look for a title that includes “networking”.
The easiest way, however, is just to call the company.  Ask, “Who is in charge of US sales?” or, “Who is the head of computer programming?”, or “Which VP runs commercial lending?”  Then call that person and ask them what you can do for them.  Say, “I’m Jim Tarrington.  At my company I report to the guy who does your job.  I’m looking for a job.  Is there a place I would fit into your group?”  Then listen.

Try a high contact, high risk, and high reward way to job search.  Give it a shot.

Something To Do Today

Which 3 companies would you most like to work for?  Or, which 3 advertised jobs do you want the most?  Get a friend to recommend you, or call in yourself.

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Posted in Networking, Resumes

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Trying the trick at the end of this post may get you a job

Posted on February 15, 2012 | Leave a comment

The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.  (Mark Twain)

12 words is the most that people will read on a billboard.

(That was 12 words.)

1 ½ or 2 inches of print
is what most people read
at a glance.

12 to 15 seconds is all the time a resume normally gets in a screener’s hands before it is trashed or put in the “review” pile.

3 critical words can make or break your resume.

How to get your point across in a resume

Worry about the first 3 words people read in every paragraph and bullet point.  Those are the critical words that have to drag the resume reviewer into the rest of the line.  Think of the hiring manager.  What action, accomplishment or benefit can he see in the first 3 words?

Can’t do it?  Get a thesaurus, or use the one in your word processor.  Find the main word in that paragraph, find a high impact word to replace it with, and put that word in the first 3 words of the paragraph.  In most cases it is better to break any paragraph over 3 lines long into bullet points.  Long paragraphs are intimidating.  Reviewers don’t want to read them.  Make sure you worry about the first 3 words in every bullet point.

3 words can make or break your job search.  Work on them.

Here is the real trick to having a great resume

Take an electronic copy of your resume and delete everything except for the first 3 words of each paragraph or bullet point.  Leave the spacing and formatting the same.  There will be a lot of white space and blank lines.  Print it out. Put it face down on your desk.

Come back tomorrow and look at the skeleton you created.  What is its impact?  Fix it.

 

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Posted in Accomplishments, Focus, Resumes

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Set your resume apart with the right facts

Posted on February 2, 2012 | Leave a comment

Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please.  (Mark Twain)

Facts would be nice

Stephen King, author of more than 30 best selling horror books, wrote a book on writing.  He says, “Get rid of adjectives.”  This top author refuse to write, “She stealthily crept down the spooky staircase which creaked ominously.” Instead of using adjectives, he just tells what his character does, “She crept down the  stairs.”  He says the toughest thing hehas to do in his writing is to remove all the adjectives. Just give the facts.

I’m still waiting to see a resume that states:  “I hate to work hard.  I disrupt every team. I am a pig.  I never take initiative.  I lie constantly.  I never hit my deadlines.”

The resumes I actually get have 2 to 4 paragraphs covering half a page that state: “I work hard.  I am a team player. I am neat.  I take initiative.  I am honest. I do assignments on time.”  Those paragraphs never give me any facts, so I don’t read them.

What I really want to know is: What is different because you were there?

Set yourself apart from the other 40 people applying for a job. Use every inch of your resume to state things you have actually done.

State facts like:

         I carried a beeper and was on-call for 3 years.

         I worked late for two months to help a different team finish the Simpson Project.

         I received an award for having the neatest desk.

         I kept our biggest customer from losing $500,000 by shipping their widgets overnight, without being authorized to, because my boss was on vacation.

         I estimated my last project at 715 hours and completed it in 690 hours at $4,000 under budget.

Would you rather hire someone who says, “I work hard” or someone who says, “I carried a beeper and was on-call for 3 years”?

If you write your resume like Stephen King writes his novels, you’ll get more interviews. Give the facts about what you’ve done.  Let the hiring manager use a red pen to add comments to your resume like: hard worker, takes initiative and hits deadlines.

Something To Do Today

Grab your resume and a ruler.  How many inches of text describe you without giving facts?  Many resumes have more hot air than facts.  Literally.

As fast as you can, cut your resume down to nothing but facts.  Add facts in bullet points.  Don’t worry about the relevance of the facts.  Act quickly.  See if you can create a long “facts only” resume in less than half an hour.

Now take a break until tomorrow.  Then fix that resume so that it can be used.

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Posted in Accomplishments, Resumes

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Why your resume disappears when you submit it

Posted on January 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

Great article on why resumes disappear when you submit them to large companies. It also gives you some hope for getting through all the filters. Here’s the link.

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Posted in Job Boards, Resumes

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