Resume Strategies

Posts Tagged ‘Resume Strategies’

A Crisis!

Monday, January 10th, 2011

Let’s take a little trip back in time.

Before I started my coaching business, I was one of the top recruiters in my company, and the number one biller out of six offices in a down economy. The pressure was enormous and the hours brutal, but the money was great and I enjoyed the work, so I put up with it.

One day, my new manager wandered into my office. (our company was acquired by a large franchise staffing firm) “Hi Dawn,” she said in that chirpy voice. “I see you’re married.” She literally picked up my hand, said, “nice ring”. I nodded, confused. “Well,” she went on, “I hope you’re not planning on getting pregnant. I’ll be putting pills in your OJ, Hah, hah” and she walked away. This is no joke.

The truth was, I hadn’t been planning to try for a baby anytime soon at the time. But I knew I wanted a family, and this lady was NOT going to tell me I couldn’t have one.

That day, I reached what I call a “crisis point,” and I knew it was time to get out. It was the push I needed. I had been talking about with my associates and husband for the last 6 months. I couldn’t work for a company that that didn’t value me except as a golden goose.

I’d known for a while this was no longer my ideal work environment. The boss that had promised me a BMW if I hit my target two years in a row. Never followed through and I learned the hard way, that I should have gotten it in writing. I’d seen the people around me burn out under the pressure, and I’d had more than a few tough days myself. But it took that comment from my new to be boss that truly make me realize how unhealthy the situation was.

Many of us know that it’s time for a change, but instead of initiating that change ourselves, we wait around for something to push us into it. We don’t change the problems in our marriages until divorce is looming, and we don’t change the problems in our careers until the only options are burn out or get out or it’s too late and you are laid off. Sometimes, not even burnout will stop us from holding on — we’ll keep showing up anyway, hoping that they’ll kick us out. In other words, we give our choice away, because owning it is too big a responsibility.

I know a woman who hates her job in the marketing department of a construction company. I mean, truly loathes it. A graphic designer of her caliber should have no trouble at all starting up as a freelancer, but she won’t do it. When you ask her why, she’ll mutter something about benefits, and a weekly paycheck. Sometimes, she says that she hopes her boss will fire her, because that would force her to do something—but right now, she’s too drained by the end of the day to even think about putting a resume together. She’s waiting for a crisis, hoping that someone (or something) will make her choice for her.

For others, a major life event is what sparks change: a birth, a death, a divorce, a wedding, a layoff. But do you really need such a major shock to wake up? The tighter the crunch, the fewer options you’ll have — so why not act now, before things build to a head?

One of my most important jobs as a coach is to help people in transition. If you’re feeling a career crisis coming on, don’t wait — take the reins now, and take control of your career.

This quote sums up my story — “If you can’t be a good example — then you’ll just have to be a horrible warning.” Catherine

“Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.” Eleanor Roosevelt
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WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEBSITE? Please do, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Dawn Quesnel, CPCC, PCC, known as Coach DQ, is a professional coach, radio show host and workshop leader. Through the use of her B.R.I.D.G.E. programs she helps marketing, advertising, and creative entrepreneurs navigate career or business transition while maintaining a healthy career-life balance. Her core belief that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to, consistently leads clients to uncover hidden resources and strengths. B.R.I.D.G.E. the gap and accelerate your career so you can love your life now! Visit www.CareerLifeBalance.net or http://www.coachdq.com today or for more information email me.

Itching to Get Out of Your Job?

Tuesday, September 28th, 2010

“Start With the End In Mind” ~ Coach DQ

If you’re like many of the people with whom I communicate on a daily basis, you want to make a move. You’re practically itching to get out of your job. But you’re worried about the economy, and the availability of positions in your field or salary range. Or, you cringe at the very thought of the job search or resume development process. Or, you’re worried about the fact that you’ll end up in the same unsatisfying situation in your new job, with the same unreasonable or manipulative boss and the same ill-fitting work culture.

“Do not wait; the time will never be “just right.” Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.” Napoleon Hill

Well, don’t despair. The economy is starting to rebound, and now is the time to start becoming clear about what you want from your new position. Do you want to make a lateral move to a company with a culture you admire? Do you want to advance to an executive or high-level position? Do you want to change careers, or start your own business?

Becoming clear about what you want and need from your job is also important to avoiding career déjà vu — when you wake up in a new job to find that your new boss is the same as your old boss, your stress level hasn’t gone down, and you’re dissatisfied with the same elements of your new job as the old. Often, our unconscious patterns lead us toward specific types of people and situations. But we can break that cycle through careful planning and creative visualization.

Remember that there’s a solution to every problem—you just have to find it. You’ll never get out of your rut if you don’t take action.

Today, and over the next few weeks, we’ll be looking at solutions to help you break out of your rut and start moving forward. If you’re unhappy with your current job but aren’t sure what to do about it, I invite you to create “An Ideal Week in My Life.”

An Ideal Week in My Life. I’m sure you’ve been asked at some point in your life to describe your ideal day. But an “ideal” day is hard to come by, even in imagination-land. Instead, I will request you to take 20 – 60 minutes to sit down with a pen and paper, and describe your ideal week. Here are some elements to consider when envisioning this ideal week in your life.

•Where are you living? Are you in your current home, or elsewhere?
•What is your schedule? Are you working 40 hours? More? Less?
•How long is your commute?
•What time do you wake up? What time do you get home from work?
•What is your job like? What field are you working in? (You can be pretty general in this area, since we’ll delve into more specifics next week.)
•What do your nights and weekend look like? What creative and social activities do you make time for?

Imagine that you are a character in a novel. What emotions do you feel in each situation in your ideal week? What goals are you pursuing? What things do you look forward to? Once you have everything down on paper, take a moment to close your eyes and summon the emotions you would feel during your ideal week. Since we attract what we think about, visualizing yourself in a space of contentment, joy, creative inspiration, and forward momentum can help you attract those things.

If you’re not sure what your ideal week looks like, start by making a list of the things your ideal week would NOT include. Maybe you’d write, “My boss would not engage in manipulative behavior,” or “I would not have to drive sixty miles each way to my job.” Knowing what you don’t want is just as important as knowing what you DO want!

If you still need help getting clear, take the time to Ideal Day Exercise, which can help you identify your strengths, goals, and common life themes. Next time, we’ll take a look at your ideal week’s ideal job, and delve into your ideal company culture. Stay tuned!

“It’s the job that’s never started that takes longest to finish.” — J.R.R. Tolkien (1892−1973) Writer

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My BRIDGE strategy and job search coaching services are designed to help you identify and zero in on your target company, salary range, location, and other vital factors. Like following a track in the woods, you’ll know exactly what you’re looking for before you’re ready to aim. When you’re prepared and focused, you’re more likely to capture the opportunities that are out there waiting for you.

They say that for every $10,000 in salary you’re asking for, you should add one month to your job search. But my BRIDGE for Job Search “hunting” strategy is proven to cut job search time by 50% or more.

Now that summer’s over, the hunting season is in full swing. Don’t miss out on your ideal job.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEBSITE? Please do, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Dawn Quesnel, CPCC, PCC, known as Coach DQ, is a professional coach, radio show host and workshop leader. Through the use of her B.R.I.D.G.E. programs she helps creative professionals and business owners navigate career or business transition while maintaining a healthy career-life balance. Her core belief that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to, consistently leads clients to uncover hidden resources and strengths. B.R.I.D.G.E. the gap and accelerate your career so you can love your life now! Visit www.CareerLifeBalance.net or http://www.coachdq.com today or for more information click here or email me.

Is Your Resume SEO Compliant?
Wednesday, August 25th, 2010

Those of you who’ve taken my BRIDGE tele-class or followed my BRIDGE strategy for Job Search, you already know that when you’re clear about the role you’re after, it takes less time and effort to land your ideal position.

I’ve heard it said many times that when you’re applying for jobs on-line and you send your resume, it may as well have been sucked into a black hole. With the increasing intelligence of search engines, company web site databases, and online applications, it’s easier than ever to get lost if you’re not on top of the latest web strategies. First on the list: make sure your resume is SEO-Compliant (Search Engine Optimization).

The “B” in my BRIDGE for Job Search Strategies method stands for “Become Clear.” As a Coach, part of my job is to help my clients with this first, deceivingly complex step. What do you want your career to look like? What do you want your life to look like when you’re in this career? Where and for whom do you want to work?

When a client has trouble with this step or if “B” is too heavy for you to handle right now, we move to “R” — Research. We Research together to “I” — Identify — your skill set, likes, interests, motivators, values, unique attributes, target titles, target companies, and target key words. While we’re doing this, we’re also “D” — Developing— your resume, your career positioning, new contacts and “G” Getting a game plan, while “E” — Executing and Evaluating — on these strategies to help you reach your ideal position faster. This takes us back to “B” — Become Clear — at which point, you’re ready to progress to the next level.

As you Research and Identify, you’re not only creating a list of your skills and values; you’re creating a list of key words and phrases. These can be very helpful when creating an SEO-Compliant resume, since they are likely also the words and phrases which will be searched by hiring managers. You can then use these key words when researching on LinkedIn and other online resources to Research and Identify your ideal target employer.

“We have too many high-sounding words, and too few actions that correspond with them.” — Abigail Adams

Here’s how you can use SEO and key words to optimize your resume using LinkedIn.

Let’s say you are targeting a position on the client side as a Director of Marketing in the computer software industry. Go to LinkedIn.com, and in the upper right-hand part of the screen, click “Advanced” which is just to the right of the Search box for “People“. This will take you to the screen below:

LinkedIn Director of Marketing Key Word Search

In the Keyword box, type the title you are targeting (for this example, Director of Marketing). Note: You are typing Director of Marketing in the Keyword field not the Title field. Next, for Location, select “Located in or near” and then enter your Zip Code. Next check off under Industries, Computer Software, and click Search at the bottom.

Drill down on some of the profiles that come up in the search, and take note of the titles, the companies and the key words used to describe the position held in each profile – keeping in mind that some Profiles contain much more information than others. Use these key words and phrases to refine your target search, and then look at the LinkedIn Profiles of your potential competitors — then look at your resume. Is it compliant relative to the types of positions you’re targeting?

As you’re reading job descriptions do you notice some of the same key words? Are those key words present on your resume? It’s as simple as that! Use these words and phrases and get your resume SEO-Compliant! What most people don’t realize is the biggest value you get from LinkedIn and other job boards is the information you can obtain with simple Research.

As the saying goes, people don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan. Brian Tracy, in a recent interview said…”You can’t hit a target you can’t see… and more people spend more time planning a picnic than they spend planning their careers.”

Start planning your career today by taking advantage of my no-obligation complimentary coaching consult.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEBSITE? Please do, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Dawn Quesnel, CPCC, PCC, known as Coach DQ, is a professional coach, radio show host and workshop leader. Through the use of her B.R.I.D.G.E. programs she helps creative professionals and business owners navigate career or business transition while maintaining a healthy career-life balance. Her core belief that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to, consistently leads clients to uncover hidden resources and strengths. B.R.I.D.G.E. the gap and accelerate your career so you can love your life now! Visit www.CareerLifeBalance.net or http://www.coachdq.com today or for more information click here or email me.
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Need help with your resume? Enter your name by September 7, 2010 by e-mailing me at DQ@CoachDQ.com win a free resume strategy coaching session! (Valued at $350)

Resume Strategies
Tuesday, May 26th, 2009

Creating the Perfect Résumé

A great résumé is one of the most important tools you’ll use as you work toward your career goals. Not only does a résumé convey information about your accomplishments, it can convey aspects of your personality, your style, and your capacity for creative thinking.

Here are my top five rules for résumés:

1. “B” Clear: Many of you are familiar with my BRIDGE process. “B” stands for Becoming clear about your direction. If you’re not clear where your career is going, your résumé will show it. Have your goals firmly in mind before you start writing. To learn more about my BRIDGE course visit http://coachdq.com/career-coaching/

2. Go for the bull’s eye: A good résumé should be targeted — not just to the general field you’re interested in, but to each specific job position, and even each potential employer. For example, if you’re interested in both graphic designer and art director positions, you will need two separate résumés: one to focus on your visual art skills and experience, and the other to focus on your directorial skills and project management experience. That doesn’t mean that the two résumés can’t overlap, but their individual focuses should be clear.

3. Know when to bold: I’ve seen résumés where literally every other line was in dark, bold typeface. This is a big mistake. Too much bolding on a page makes everything hard to read. Use bold type (or if you’re using two fonts, your header typeface) only when it’s truly necessary.

4. Avoid font overkill: Your résumé’s layout should be unique and eye-catching, but you can easily go overboard with flowery, hard-to-read fonts and bright colors. Remember that, first and foremost, your résumé needs to be legible. If a prospective employer can’t read it, they won’t read it. Examples of good résumé fonts include Times New Roman, Arial, Verdana, Georgia, and Garamond.

5. Use snail mail: I know it seems like a relic from the Dark Ages, but the postal service is still a great way to send your résumé (unless your prospective employer has specifically requested that résumés be submitted electronically). Sending a paper copy eliminates any hassles with file conversion and formatting, and ensures that your résumé will look exactly the way you intended it to when it lands on your new boss’s desk. If you are required to submit electronically, make sure to find out what file format the company prefers. On a side note: most recruiters prefer Word documents, so they can edit if necessary.

You can use the tips above to perfect your résumé no matter what field you’re in. When it comes to getting more creative, the rules are different for every profession — but a truly creative résumé can easily make you a star candidate. Here are some tips for creating a truly stellar résumé.

· Make a video résumé: According to a recent article in Time Magazine, video résumés are the new tool for the YouTube generation. If you’re job-shopping in a field where personal appearance and mannerisms are vital (think sales, marketing, and advertising) video résumés can give potential employers a taste of your charisma.

· Set up an online portfolio: If you’re in a field where it’s necessary for you to showcase a portfolio, you need a website. Period. Paper copies of your work, no matter how pretty, don’t measure up to an online presence, and they’re much harder for prospective bosses to share with other company members. If time or money constraints prevent you from setting up your own website, consider utilizing a free online gallery service like ArtistPortfolio.net or Artist-Listing.com. If you have other resources that have worked well for you, please let me know so I can share them!

· Use testimonials and quotes: If your old boss wrote you a glowing letter of recommendation, excerpt it on your résumé. Same goes for client reviews and coworker evaluations. These can be included as sidebar items or can be spaced throughout the résumé. Just be sure to use them sparingly: you don’t want your résumé to read like an infomercial!

· Use online tools: Twitter, LinkedIn, and other online networking tools can be a great way to get your name out there. If you have a website, ask your friends and networking contacts to link their sites to yours. The bigger your web presence, the better the chances that the right someone will notice you.

Remember that when it comes to crafting a great résumé, the finished product needs to express not only what you’ve accomplished but who you are as an individual. If prospective employers can see you on that piece of paper, they’re more likely to feel connected to you, and call you in for an interview.

If you need help formulating your creative résumé, give me a call: I’ve recently partnered with a local résumé service, and I’m happy to put you in touch. Also, I can offer advice for targeting your résumé — in my former life as a recruiter, I reviewed thousands of résumés (some great, some awful), and I know what works. Finally, if you have a creative resume you’re proud of, send me a copy — I’d love to see it!

CoachDQ

Posts Tagged ‘Resume Strategies’

A Crisis!

Itching to Get Out of Your Job?

Is Your Resume SEO Compliant?

Resume Strategies

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