Let the Past Be the Past

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Open up your resume and have a quick look at your past jobs. Are they being communicated in the present tense? If so, you are not alone. I'd say that 80% of the resumes that I read (and I read A LOT of resumes) communicate past work experience in the present tense. That might seem like a very minor issue, but it can have big ramifications. Here's why:

It's a mistake – Even the smallest mistakes on a resume can undermine your credibility.

It makes your past jobs read like job descriptions – Listing past experience in the present tense makes the information you include for those roles sound like a list of items that are expected of someone who currently holds that role. 

It sends a weird message to readers – "It says here that this candidate left this job two years ago, but it also says she 'manages a team of 8.' Why is she still managing that team of she is no longer in the position?" Of course readers know that you are not really still managing that team, but you can understand the very subtle, confusing message tense issues can cause.

Average Length for a Job Search

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Q. What is the average length for an executive-level job search?

A. Like so many of the questions I answer on this blog, I have to start with a very unsatisfying "it depends." Given the myriad factors in play – candidate qualifications, professional sector, economic climate, etc. – I doubt that answer comes as a surprise. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the typical job search takes one month for each $10K in desired income. That's a very loose guideline, but it provides a way to start thinking about average job search times.

Since this questions usually can be translated into "how long am I going to be unemployed or stuck in this unfulfilling job," let's talk about ways to shorten the job search process. Here is a starter-kit of tips that will get you on a path to make your job search as short as possible.

Things to Avoid Saying in Resumes and Interviews

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Something a bit off the beaten path this week... A little PSA from Christina Desmarais over at Inc.com

“#19. Peaked my interest
To “pique” means to arouse, so the correct phrase here is “piqued my interest,” meaning that my interest was awakened. To say that something “peaked my interest” might suggest that my interest was taken to the highest possible level, but this is not what the idiom is meant to convey.”

I can attest to the fact that many of these show up frequently in resumes, cover letters, and during the interview process. Admittedly, some of them are pretty tricky. I bet that you will learn a thing or two (like I did!). Check it out.

Putting Interests on My Resume

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

A common question.

Q: Google wants to know my interests. I assume it’s okay to make them a part of my “core” resume?

Generally speaking, I recommend not including personal interests or hobbies on a resume. Most potential employers are looking for resumes that solely speak to your qualifications for a position, which usually excludes interests and hobbies. However, there are some expectations to that best practice, and Google is a great example.

There are some progressive employers who request that you include interests and hobbies on your resume so that they can gain a clearer picture of you – not just the professional you – as they go about the selection process. In cases like this, or when your interests and hobbies directly relate to your professional experience (software developers who code on the side, for example), then by all means include them.

Pesky Resume Screening Software

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Q: I have a really modern/cool resume that uses a 3-column format. My friend said that automated screeners won’t be able to read it. Please explain.

A: Give your friend a hug because he or she may have just kept your resume out of the automated-resume-screener-black-hole.

As advanced as technology is, automated resume screeners still have difficulty parsing out information contained within complex formatting, columns included. This could result in:

• Your resume not making it through the screening process because the system couldn’t effectively “read” your resume.

• Your resume making it through the screening process but delivering a jumbled mess of information to human readers after the system removes the formatting (as they are often set to do).

All of that aside, a multi-columned approach is not likely to make it easy for human readers to quickly scan your document. With just seconds to establish your qualifications and engage a reader, formatting complexity can mean the difference between an interview and an archived resume.

Is a 2-page Cover Letter Okay?

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Short answer, no.

The cover letter is almost exclusively meant to very quickly set the tone and prepare readers to “see” specific details about your experience when they move on to the resume. In almost all cases, this is most effectively accomplished with a one-page cover letter (essentially half a page when you account for addresses, etc.).

In all of my years developing job search documents for clients, I can count on one hand the number of cover letters I’ve written that extended beyond one-page. Those rare instances were for very specific positions that expressly requested a more comprehensive cover letter.

When creating your cover letter, respect readers’ time and the intent of the letter by keeping it concise and powerful.

You Cant Sell What You Don’t Know

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Imagine you are in sales (maybe you are) and you are tasked with selling the company’s brand new product. In order to learn more about this new product, you have the following dialogue:

You: “What does the new product do?”

The Product Team: “It does a lot of things! It is so versatile.”

You: “Okay, how is it going to help customers? What is the value proposition?”

The Product Team: “We believe it will have a huge impact on customers, but we don’t have specific examples.”

You: “Well, did you market test it? What did people say when they tried it out.”

The Product Team: “We did market test it and performed really well. We didn’t keep notes of what people said or of anything specific though.”

Selling a product when you have no idea of what it does, what kind of impact it will make, or how it has performed in the past sounds like a losing proposition. However, this is exactly the situation most people are in when trying to market themselves in job search documents and interviews.

Plain and simple: To sell yourself, you have to know yourself. That means being aware of how you might specifically fit into an organization, the kind of impact you plan to make, and examples of how you have made a positive impact in the past.

Knowing You

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

The best investment you can make in life is in yourself. The more you know you, the more your career will thrive, and the more fulfilled you'll be in general.

Earlier this year, I tweaked my Tandem's Toolkit package to include YouFinder – a fantastic tool for knowing yourself better. It's been a great success so far; clients love the direction it provides.

Resume on LinkedIn

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

Q: Do you recommend uploading my new resume to LinkedIn as an attachment?

A. Usually, no (despite LinkedIn making it very easy for you to do so). There are two key reasons why.

As I remind my clients, LinkedIn is public facing, which means that the information you provide in your resume – which is hopefully clearly quantifying your impact – could be perceived as over-disclosure on such a public forum.

Equally as important, LinkedIn is most powerful when it is piquing readers’ interests and making them want to learn more. If you post your resume, you remove the potential opportunity to engage with that person early in the discovery process. 

Unique Resumes

You’re viewing an archived post. This post was originally published by The Change Laboratory, which is now part of No Vacation Required — our platform for Everyday Fulfillment. While this content is archived, it’s still full of solid advice and timeless insights.

---

I often get asked about whether or not creating a unique resume is a good idea. I wrote this about a year ago:

“I want my resume to be a creative expression of my unique gifts!”

This (not uncommon) request prompts me to delicately remind potential clients that the resume is “about you but for them” and that many readers will be turned off by an overly creative approach. Most people instantly get the differentiation and appreciate the frank advice. But sometimes a potential client balks. “I don’t want to sell out to get a job. I want my resume to represent my unique personality” is usually the subtext, if not the out-and-out response.

If you feel like following resume writing best practices is selling out, let me allay your fears. Considering your audience is not selling out. And your audience – your potential employer – is what is most important when creating a resume.

I am all for individual expression. There is a time and place for communicating your unique gifts in a creative way. However, as hard as it may be to hear, an effective resume is rarely a creative resume.

While times are changing, change in the area is slow. Simply put, a majority of the employment community is not ready to accept overly creative resumes and LinkedIn profiles. 

Research shows – as does every hiring panel I've sat on – that while organizational/corporate leaders claim to like the idea of a creative resume (think, for example, one with lots of design or disruptive language), they do not respond favorably when it comes to decision time. A professional, appropriately modern, well written resume still wins out.

Speaking of disruptive language... More and more, candidates want to use statements that they feel are catchy and individualized, like "Project Management Ninja" or "I manage awesome projects. Find out how I can put my magic to work for you." You may have those skills, but that's also the language that blowhards use.

Again, though, things are changing (however slowly!). If a creative approach makes sense for your profession, I recommend leveraging the work we do to develop a complementary creative or designed version of your resume to provide as a leave behind during the interview process.