What will get your resume read?  What are some key things that it may be missing, or "missing the boat" on that are contributing to a lack of interest by hiring managers and few call backs from recruiters? Here are some questions from active job seekers that may also be questions that are on your mind.  What they boil down to is this:  What will get your resume read?  

Way too often, we still see candidates for jobs submitting resumes that go on and on and on and . . . . . .  6 or 7 pages is not uncommon. These lengthy resumes as often as not also contain big blocks of paragraphs, filled with technical jargon and acronyms, in 8 or 9 point type, that are daunting to get through. The problem . . . .Even for the most skilled readers of resumes 

Build your resume while you search!  It makes good Sen$e. After searching for a while, most job seekers come to understand that the more you tailor your resume for a position, the higher the chance that you will be seen as a possible candidate and contacted for an interview.  This DOES NOT MEAN fudging experience or embellishing accomplishments.  We never do that!  It DOES MEAN

Follow-up any networking meeting you have had with a heartfelt Thank You.  Whether you are following up a phone call, an in-person meeting, or a really informative e-mail exchange, take the time to thank your contact. You may be following up with a member of your own network.  Or, you may be following up a conversation you had with a person to whom you were referred, who, incidentally,

Referrals open doors . . . . . that might not open any other way.  Treat them with care.  People who would not take your call, respond to your e-mail, or agree to meet with you, generally do, IF you are referred.  So . . .  treat referrals with care and . . . the referrer with utmost care! Why do they take your call? Professional courtesy!  It's as simple as that. 

Didn't get the job?  Came in second choice?  What do you do?      Write a thank you to the employer who rejected you. "Are you kidding me?" you ask.  "Why would I write a letter to an employer who just rejected me?"       Because you might just end up with the job anyway - that's why! Over the years of coaching job seekers, I have had this

Thanks for the interview.        Thanks for the great tip on who's hiring!   Thank you for the helpful article.      Thank you for taking the time to meet with me. Thanks for the referral.        Thank you for the useful information. Thank you for inviting me to attend the _____ Association meeting as your guest. Make

Thanks for the interview! Follow-up every interview with a thank you letter.  Send thank you's following initial phone screens, first-level phone interviews, video interviews, and in-person interviews.  No exceptions!     Your thank you letter is not a dissertation.  What it is is one last opportunity to state  --  and sell  --  your capabilities

Thank You Letters  – Send thank you letters to everyone who assists you in your search.      I repeat . . . . EVERYONE!   Thank you letters should ALWAYS be sent following any helpful interaction, including interviews.  Use a formal format, if you are sending a typed standard letter, or a less formal format for an e-mail or a hand-written note-card. Your

Below is a template showing how to write a cover letter in 8 steps.  This format shows an alternative to the traditional paragraph style for a cover letter.  It uses a 2-column style of presenting qualifications in Step 5.   This alternative style cover letter is preferred by some recruiters and human resource professionals because it makes their job easier!  It makes

Below is a template showing how to write a cover letter in 8 steps.  A cover letter is a formal letter and should be written as such, with attention to correct format, spelling, and grammar. The template illustrates the 8 Steps that are described in my article:  "How to Write a Cover Letter - 8 Steps to Writing an Effective Letter that Moves the Action Forward."** Just follow the steps

Resumes may be the marketing tool that open the door, but cover letters get you invited in.  While a resume shows what you've done, a cover letter allows you to specifically tell what you could do, and how, for a future employer.   Format of a cover letter First, note that your cover letter is not a dissertation.   It should be fairly short, rarely over one page or 1 ½ pages

I’ve written my resume and I think it’s pretty good.  It tells everything I’ve done – and even shows some accomplishments.  So why do I need a cover letter?  Isn’t a resume enough?      Unfortunately, the answer is No.  It is not enough. A well-crafted cover letter gives you another opportunity to make the sale for you as a potential employee and

Writing letters is an integral part of a successful job search - more than you might think. Job seekers find themselves producing lots of letters.  Those who run a really active search find themselves writing . . . .    -  letters to accompany their resumes,      -  letters to request assistance,        -   letters

Writing letters is part and parcel of the process of finding a job.  While composing letters may seem uncomfortable if you're not much of a letter-writer, keep in mind that letters provide you with another opportunity:        (1) to show what you can do, and        (2) sell a prospective employer on the benefits of hiring you! While

Identifying a few folks who will speak on your behalf, and then listing their names on a sheet of paper seems like a simple enough task.  When your list is complete, voila', you have a reference list to be given out to prospective employers.      Right? . . . . .  Wrong! Compiling your reference list, called an Annotated Reference List, is anything but simple.  Just

Referrals open doors.  References get you invited in! References are golden.  Treat then like the gold they are!  In an article entitled Referrals are Golden – Handle with Care I noted that referrals can open doors that might not be opened any other way.  Once opened, references can get you invited in! References should be handled with care.  Names and phone numbers

When asked for references, most job seekers just plunk down a list with a few names, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers on it. It meets the request, but it's nothing special.   It certainly doesn't make a job seeker stand out from the crowd.  Stand out from the Crowd! But, you can stand out from the crowd by supplying an Annotated Reference List whenever you're asked for references. 

So many companies!  So many people to contact!  So many meetings to attend and network.   How do you keep it all straight?        With a plan . . . a Job Search Marketing Plan. Your marketing plan creates order out of chaos!  I have seen it happen for job seeker after job seeker.  I have watched them go from being overwhelmed to feeling in

There is no one way to write a resume.  Resumes can be organized and written in several formats.  Although you may, from time to time, hear opinions expressed to the contrary, there are several acceptable formats.  And, each of the formats has helped job seekers be successful in finding their new role or position.  The key is to understand the best uses of the various formats, and

Advertisements    in newspapers          Job Fairs        Employment agencies     Monster.com        Indeed        Linked In     Face book    Tweeting Search firms        Federal employment   

The dreaded 'L'vator speech!  That short speech you need to make when one of your network contacts You're 'L'vator speech does triple duty! or an interviewer asks: . . . . . . . . “So what do you do?” or “What do you want to do?”          A rambling response or unclear and non-focused answer can stop the conversation in its tracks. Why? Because

Over the years, I have asked many, many job seekers after they landed a new job or role:     “If you had it to do over again, what would they do differently?                Their answer:  follow up.  To find a new position quicker, follow-up is a must!  It is not enough to just submit an application or resume

You've decided to look for a new position.  You’ve written your resume.  You are ready to go!   Right? . . . .  Wrong.  Your resume is only the first of several tools you will need to market yourself in today's employment marketplace.  After all, if finding a job is all about selling yourself  -  and it is  -- then you will need all your sales tools

Resumes get seconds  --  not minutes  --  on the first read-through by a recruiter.  Make them count!  The numbers vary - some say they get 30 seconds of a recruiter's time; some guesstimate it as low as 6.  Wherever it falls on the scale between 6 - 30, the fact is that you have a short amount of time to impress a recruiter.  So make the most of that time to

Your resume is a key marketing tool and your sales brochure.  It “sells” you in the employment marketplace. To make your resume as strong a sales tool as possible, it should be what we call "Accomplishment-Based,"showing how you achieve results. . . . . That means that you write not only what you did but how it turned out.  You show on paper what you did, meaning the duty or task your

Question:  Tired of writing and writing and re-writing your resume for every job you apply for?  Answer:  If you are, Craft a Master Resume.  It will save you time and the aggravation of writing and re-writing your resume! Today, any savvy job seeker knows that in order to stand the best chance of being viewed as a viable candidate, you must customize each resume you send out for

There is no one way to do a resume.  There any many formats.  However, what is important is a format, and any variations of that format, that clearly shows a job seeker's skills, experience, and accomplishments in an EASY-TO-READ way.  The chronological format shown here does that.  It makes it easy for any recruiters and hiring managers to read about you and see if you might

A Guide to Crafting the individual Parts of a Resume. A resume is synergy.     When you think about it, a resume is the perfect illustration of synergy. The parts of your resume combine to paint a picture of you.    "Synergy" is defined as the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.  Each part is important, . . . no question about it.  But when

There is no one way to prepare a resume.  Resumes are organized and written in many different formats.  And job seekers have been successful using all different types of formats.  The important thing to keep in mind in going through the process of writing your resume is your GOAL.  It should be the driver of the format you use and the content you include. Simply put, your resume

Your resume is a lifeline to your next position!   It is a particularly acute lifeline if you are out of work or miserable in your current position. Yet I’ve talked with job seeker after job seeker who delays producing this all-important marketing tool.  Why?  Why is it so hard to get started? Why is it so hard to get started? There are lots of reasons job seekers put off writing

Here is a quick look at some truths about resumes as evidenced by their use and role in today's employment marketplace. Resumes get seconds - not minutes - on the first read-through.  Some recruiters now say as little as “7" seconds for a first-time read-through!A resume presents a “snapshot” of you. Resumes should be focused and tell the reader what you want to do.Resumes should be relevant

What is the job of your resume?   When you think about it, . . . . . its job is simple: To get you into the employment game and keep you there until you land your ideal job! However, a well-crafted resume that is a strategic, focused, future-oriented, relevant, and succinct written representation  of you and your career history is anything but simple!  It is quite a complex document. 

Everyone knows what a resume is –  Right? . . . . . . .  .. . . Wrong.   After 20 years of teaching and preaching about resumes, and the role a resume plays in a job seeker’s success, I still see job seeker after job seeker producing resumes that are too long, unfocused, and irrelevant to the position for which they are applying or to the company they are targeting. I still meet