Author Archives: jakelindsay

10 Things to Know About Your Interviewer

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interview-comic

They’re going to Google you. You need to Google them. Most candidates miss this step of the interview process. Gathering this information about your interviewer can give you huge leverage in the actual interview. It takes some extra time and effort, but it’s well worth it.

To make this work, you need one small piece of information, specifically, your interviewer’s name. The best time to get this information is when they call to set up the interview. At some point during the call, you can ask something like, “Do you know who will be conducting the interview?” They’ll probably give you the name. If not, at least you asked. Another place to check is on the appointment invite. They might send you an Outlook appointment, which might include who will be in the room.

Here’s your pre-flight checklist:

  1. Google: This is where I start my investigation. A quick Google search will help you discover a few initial leads for your hiring manager’s background. It’s probable that you won’t find much right off the bat unless the person is a CEO or for some reason has a significant web presence already set up.
  2. LinkedIn: One of the first things you’ll probably find if you look up “Person’s name” and “location” and “company” in Google is the manager’s LinkedIn page. LinkedIn lets you see a public profile. It doesn’t have everything, but it has enough to get you started. Most working professionals these days have a decent profile on LinkedIn. You might have to go through a few different profiles to find one that matches who you think is your hiring manager.
  3. Current company: LinkedIn is very likely going to tell you where that person currently works. It’s not just enough to know what company it is. At least go check the company’s website, a few of their recent press releases, their Wikipedia page, and even potential competitor’s pages. Get to know their industry. Be prepared to talk about it, but don’t try to teach them about it. I guarantee they’ll know more about it than you do.
  4. Previous companies: This step is more about seeing your hiring manager’s past. Have they bounced around a lot through different companies and industries? Have they been promoted recently? Have they been in the same job for the past ten years straight? Do you have any companies or jobs in common? Knowing this information will help guide your answers to content that they will resonate with.
  5. Coworkers: When you look them up on LinkedIn, do you have anyone in common? The world is a lot smaller than we think it is, especially if you are in a specialized industry. If you do have a mutual contact, give that person a call. Tell them that you’re applying for a position with his or her former coworker. Ask a few questions about the hiring manager’s style, background, and interests. If you know your mutual friend very well, you might consider having them put in a good word for you. Be careful not to have more than one or two people put in a recommendation for you. This can get annoying for your hiring manager.
  6. Schools: Most schools take 2-4 years to get through. This is usually a fond memory for most people. You might be able to reminisce about campus life. You might share a love for the same basketball team…you might also be rivals. Just be aware. 🙂
  7. Articles/Books: Some people are published authors. They might have these papers or books listed on their LinkedIn page. You might try a couple Google searches just to make sure. This can give you some deep insights into your hiring manager’s personal style and what they’re really interested in. It will also really impress them if you go in and tell them that you read his or her book, and you really liked some particular principle.
  8. Blogs: This is the less formal version of an article, but it’s usually more personal. Again, this helps you understand what they care about, and gives you a couple additional talking points.
  9. Groups they follow: LinkedIn shows you the groups that your hiring manager is a part of. A single group probably won’t give you a very reliable answer. They may have just signed up on a whim. On the other hand, if they’re signed up for 25 different stamp collector groups, you might have just struck gold.
  10. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instragram, Tumblr, Jelly…: And then everything else. Sometimes your hiring manager won’t have a Facebook page, or it will be closed to outsiders. Sometimes it’s a life history. It’s worth a look. Twitter is good for helping you see who your hiring manager follows (news organizations, industries, influencers, etc.) and who is following them. Pinterest might tell you what kind of cookie recipes they like… 🙂

Bottom line: The more you know about your hiring manager, the better. If you’ve done your homework, you’ll find that you’ll be able to connect with your interviewer more quickly and at a deeper level. Knowing their background will also give you some ideas about what kinds of questions they might ask, and what answers they may be looking for. If you’re getting ready to go into an upcoming interview, give me a call or send me a text.

What if My Interviewer Doesn’t Give Me the Chance to Present My Portfolio?

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I believe the best time to present your portfolio in a first interview is at the very beginning of the meeting. Most interviewers will start with a question such as “In 3-5 minutes tell us about yourself.” This is your cue to respond with something like, “I’ve prepared a visual portfolio to do just that. Here is a copy for each of you.” And then you’re off.

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But occasionally I hear from clients that the interviewers skip the introductions and go straight into the scripted questions. What do you do then? Don’t despair. You’re still in control. You have four options.

  1. Stop the interview and insert your portfolio. This probably isn’t a good idea. Interviewers want to feel in control of the conversation. Disrupting the flow, especially with interviewers who skip the chit chat, will turn into an awkward situation really quickly. But at least know that it’s an option.
  2. Don’t use the portfolio at all. This is ok, but you’ll probably feel a frustrated because you had a secret weapon that they didn’t let you use. It might throw off your grove through the rest of the interview, unless you have a backup plan like option 3.
  3. Slip it in at the end. Even if your interviewers skip the get to know you questions at the beginning, almost every panel will ask you at the end, “Do you have any questions for us?” If you feel like you can only ask one question, say “I’ve prepared a portfolio for you to review. I would love the chance to spend a few minutes with you in a future interview to walk you through it and show you why I feel I’m the best candidate for this position.” If you feel like you could ask a couple questions, ask about wildly successful projects first, and then tease the portfolio.
  4. Include a link to it in the thank you letter. If your interviewers are super hard core, or they run out of time, they might not even give you the chance to ask questions at the end. If this is the case, there’s still hope. When you send your thank you letter to your interviewers the day after, include a link to your portfolio. I recommend that candidates put the portfolio in the public folder of their Dropbox, and put that link into a link shortener like Bitly.com. You can shorten the Dropbox link to a custom URL like http://bit.ly/jacob-lindsay-portfolio. This is short enough that you could also write it out on a physical thank you card. The best part about Bitly is that you can track if anyone has clicked that custom link. If you see a click on it, then you know your interviewer has at least opened it.

Bottom line: If you don’t get to present your portfolio at the beginning of the interview, don’t lose heart. You still have a couple ways to get your wildly successful projects in front of your interviewer. If you would like to talk more about interview best practices, give me a call, or send me a text.

9 Tips for a Killer Cover Letter

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Sometimes I get asked by my clients about when it’s appropriate and/or necessary to write a cover letter. The general answer is that it almost never hurts, “almost” being the key word there. Getting a job is all about scoring more points than the next candidate. Lucky for you, it’s really not that hard to win, because many candidates go in with nothing more than an average resume. Everything else that you do above and beyond the typical resume shows that you are polished, prepared, and that you have a real passion for the job you are applying for.

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A well-written cover letter scores you more points. A poorly-written, misinformed letter hurts you. Cover letters are especially useful when you are applying for a job with a company that you don’t currently work for. It helps you build a conversational relationship with your hiring manager and helps you highlight the top few things that set you apart from the other candidates.

Here are nine tips to guide you as you write your cover letter:

  1. Keep it short. I can’t emphasize this enough. Long and wordy paragraphs will not get read by your hiring manager. Don’t go any longer than three-fourths of a page. If you can keep it to half a page, even better. Don’t use a small font to cram everything into it to still meet the length restriction. 🙂
  2. Put your contact info at the very top. Just like everything else that you give your hiring manager, it needs to have your name, phone number, and email on it. You want to make it as easy as possible for them to call you at any time.
  3. Be gracious. Be assumptive, but not pushy in the letter. You want your hiring manager to know that you’re very interested in the job, but don’t let it feel like you have a sense of entitlement or that you deserve the job. Let them make the decision. Thank them for taking the time to read the letter.
  4. Introduce yourself. Briefly. Take one or two short sentences to tell them what you’re currently doing. Include your name and job title.
  5. Highlight your top three qualification for this specific job. Quickly state why you’re the top candidate for the position. Focus on the results you’ve achieved, rather than just on the things you’ve done. Use phrases like “I increased online sales revenues by 325% in under six months by integrating A/B testing into our email marketing strategy.” Keep it concise.
  6. Show that you know the company and their industry. This is where it gets a little more difficult. You want to show him or her that you have done your research. Google the company. Read some of their press releases. Find out about their industry. Find out who their competitors and allies are. Try to summarize this briefly in a few sentences. Don’t speak like you’re their next CEO. Just keep it simple and show you’re informed.
  7. Give them a couple suggestions for improvement. This is the most difficult part. It’s a fine line between criticizing and showing that you want to contribute what you’ve learned in the past to their organization. Just be careful that you’re not stating the obvious. If you are not 95% sure that you have a solid suggestion, just skip this section.
  8. Restate that you hope to get an interview. If you’ve shown you have what they’re looking for, you know their company, and you have something valuable to contribute, this part should be easy. Tell them you would love to work with and grow with their company. Tell them you would like to talk more about how you can contribute to their organization.
  9. Sincerely, you. Sign it. Easy peasy.

Cover letters, more than anything else you submit during the application and interviewing process need to be specifically written for each particular job. If you’re applying to a lot of jobs and don’t have time to write cover letters for each one, in my opinion, it’s better to not submit a cover letter at all. If it’s generic, it’s probably not going to get read.

If you would like suggestions or help writing your next cover letter, give me a call or send me a text.

20 Book Titles to Drop in an Interview

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From one of my favorite business books Paid to Think by David Goldsmith: “Various studies have indicated a link between reading business books and earning more money…fifty-one percent of leaders spend more than four hours a week reading to stay informed.”

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So two things to takeaway from this. First, if you want to earn more money, read more books (I recognize there isn’t a direct correlation here). Second, you should be aware that your hiring manager probably reads a lot. Most of their good ideas that got them into their management position, probably came from books they read. You will likely win some extra points if you drop a few (not all twenty) book titles or related concepts during your interview. Be prepared to be able to discuss any of them that you mention though. They might start digging and you will want to be prepared to answer tough questions. Mentioning books like this shows a hiring manager that you are interested in consistently learning about new ideas and applying them to your work.

This isn’t a comprehensive list of books that can score you points in an interview. These are just a few of the books that I’ve stolen ideas from. 🙂

  1. Winning, Jack Welch: Jack was the CEO of General Electric for many years. He’s a no-nonsense leader with a lot of great practical advice.
  2. The 5 Levels of Leadership, John Maxwell: Another classic leadership book. John was originally an Christian minister, who later became a leadership evangelist.
  3. The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, John Maxwell: More great stuff. Everybody loves lists, right?…
  4. Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell: Malcolm highlights some interesting concepts about how people stand out from the crowd. Tipping Point is also a great read.
  5. The Gamification Revolution, Gabe Zichermann: Gamfication is pretty trendy around the office these days.
  6. Tribes, Seth Godin: Godin is one of my heroes right now. This book inspired me in part to start this website/book adventure. The book focuses on helping you see the need to lead people with similar interests.
  7. Platform, Michael Hyatt: Another famous blogger. Michael talks about leadership and online blogging/marketing.
  8. The Innovator’s DNA, Jeff Dyer: The foundation for this book is Clayton Christensen’s book Innovator’s Dilemma. Jeff’s book takes these concepts and uses them to discuss how leaders can become more creative.
  9. The Innovator’s Dilemma, Clayton Christensen: Read the original book. Any of the others in the series will make more sense if you do. Basically, mature companies continue to use the same technology because it works well. Then some other little company creates a new technology that helps them grow very quickly. The big company ignores them, because they think their size will save them, and it’s hard for big companies to change.
  10. To Sell is Human, Daniel Pink: Daniel is known for studying motivation in the workplace. Drive is a nifty book too. In this book he talks about how we should all spend some time learning how to sell, not used car salesman selling, but authentically providing real solutions to people’s problems.
  11. Paid to Think, David Goldsmith: A handbook for leading in a large corporation. This is where I first encountered the concept of wildly successful projects.
  12. The Lean Startup, Eric Ries: This book describes how to create and grow a successful startup business. It focuses on iterative product development and testing with users. You pivot your product design based on feedback from from users.
  13. Never Eat Alone, Keith Ferrazzi: Keith is the master of networking. He teaches readers how to reach out to their friends, family, and colleagues in order to advance their careers.
  14. Great by Choice, Jim Collins: One of the business classics. Jim has done extensive business research to determine the key qualities of the leaders who guided their businesses through tough times and beat out the competition. Well-known concepts from the book include the twenty-mile march, 10Xers, leading above the death line, and SMaC recipes.
  15. Influencer, Kerry Patterson: This book helps leaders understand how to build and organize centers of influence to drive change within an organization.
  16. Crucial Conversations, Kerry Patterson: Another book by Patterson. There is some crossover in the concepts, but this book focuses more on best practices for approaching and holding difficult conversations.
  17. Multipliers, Liz Wiseman: This book does a great job of describing how leaders can either hoard power and isolate their employees, or instead empower their employees to become problem solvers. The latter multiples the capacity of the organization to get much more work done.
  18. The First 90 Days, Michael Watkins: This book works especially well for interviews because it shows that you’ve studied how to get up to speed quickly in a new job and start delivering value to the organization.
  19. 12: The Elements of Great Managing, Rodd Wagner: One of my personal favorites. The Gallup Organization conducted over 10 million interviews across 114 countries to find out what helped employees feel satisfied and motivated. Applying these 12 principles will revolutionize your team and change your career.
  20. Getting Things Done, David Allen: Hiring managers want to hear that you can deliver results. This book discusses how you can prioritize the work and maximize your output.

I would highly recommend all of these books. I’ve enjoyed each of them for different reasons. These and other business books have made me the manager I am today. I don’t claim to be the source of good ideas, but I know where to go to get them. If you would like more book recommendations, give me a call or send me a text.

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14 Things to Put in Your Career Portfolio

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In meeting with my clients, I often get asked questions about what they should put in their career portfolios. Here’s a short list of things to consider. This doesn’t mean that you have to include all of them. For some jobs, these things might not be appropriate. Also, if you don’t have experience in a given area, don’t stretch the truth.

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Your portfolio should be no more than 10 pages long. You can include two slides per page. You should be able to get through it in no more than five minutes. Don’t try to pack everything you’ve ever done into the portfolio. This is only your best stuff.

  1. Education: Your education is the beginning of your story. Hiring managers want to know that you have a solid foundation in the discipline in which you will be working. Include a recognizable logo from your school. Include some interesting pictures of your thesis, capstone project, or key projects that you did along the way as a team. Include a slide for each degree you have obtained.
  2. Work experience: I recommend that you have at least one slide for each organization that you have worked for in the past five years. Organize them in chronological order. Focus on highlighting your wildly successful projects. This doesn’t mean your day-to-day work. These are the projects that both you and your manager are proud of.
  3. Volunteer service: For most people I know, the most significant volunteer experience they’ve had was an LDS mission. I encourage people to include one slide for this. Use an image of the country or state where you served. Include a picture of you with other missionaries and one of you with the local residents. As you talk about the experience, make sure to mention that you learned and are still fluent (if that’s true) in your mission language.
  4. Awards: Think back over your lifetime. Were there any significant awards that would mean something to your hiring manager? What about academics, sports, or performing arts awards? Did you receive a scholarship for your undergraduate degree? Did you make the dean’s list? Don’t spend a lot of time on these things unless they directly relate to the job, but they show that you can go above and beyond.
  5. Languages/international experience: Have you completed internships outside of the US? Did you serve an LDS mission? Did you serve in the army? Did you perform some other kind of volunteer service? Have you traveled outside of the US for a business trip? More and more, companies are looking for candidates with international experience. Make sure you highlight it if you have it.
  6. Presentation experience: Most jobs will require you to present ideas to your team or clients. List the presentation software that you’re familiar with. This could include logos of PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi, Reveal.js, Impress.js, etc. If you have presented to groups of 100+, include a picture of you at the pulpit with a picture of something you presented.
  7. Writing experience: In most jobs, you’ll find yourself sending a considerable about of emails on any given day. Employers want to know that you can communicate effectively. Sloppy writing can sometimes destroy your credibility with your stakeholders and clients. Do you have a blog? Have you published any articles?
  8. Software tools: What software tools is your hiring manager looking for? Do they want you to know the Adobe Creative Suite? Perhaps Microsoft Office? PeopleSoft? Maybe project management software like AtTask, Basecamp, Asana, or Microsoft Project? Make sure to include logos for the top five that you think they might want.
  9. Hobbies: One slide of your hobbies outside of work is OK, as long as it meets three standards: it’s relevant in some way to the job you’re applying for, it’s not weird (this will vary from job to job), and you keep it really short.
  10. Books: This is a form of informal education. It shows you are interested in constantly increasing your knowledge and skills on the job and off the job. Include a few books that are relevant to the job. Business books are preferred. Don’t put up cover images of the latest teen fiction fad. This is also a good slide for other learning resources like Lynda.com, Codeschool.com, etc. that you frequent.
  11. Leadership experience: During almost every job interview I’ve been in, one of the interviewers has asked the candidate about his or her experience with managing people. If you’ve done a lot of management, include a slide or two about your efforts to develop your people and try innovative things. If you haven’t, find ways to talk about leadership in your other projects. You’ll preemptively answer the question.
  12. Project management experience: Same as the above. Everybody wants to know if you can deliver results. This means scope, schedule, and budget. Include something about you managing budgets and completing projects ahead of time. If you have received a certification in project management like the PMP or Agile, include the logo.
  13. Strengths and weaknesses: Ever gotten this question? Yep, me too. Anticipate the question by talking about it briefly during your portfolio presentation. Theoretically, everything in your portfolio is a strength, but think about what could be a weakness too. The best way to approach this is by talking about some new thing that you tried recently for the first time and succeeded. Tell your interviewer that while it was a success, you know that you still have a lot you would like to improve.
  14. An opening and closing slide: Just like every essay or project you turned in during college, you need to put your name on it. You want it to be very clear for your interviewers who this awesome portfolio belongs to. Try adding a tagline with your greatest strengths. Something like “Innovative leader, dedicated student, technical specialist” that targets the job you’re applying for. This anticipates their last question, “What makes you the best candidate for the job?” You already have your three bullet points right there in front of you.

I hope this gives you some ideas of where to start. The two most important things to remember as you’re creating this portfolio are to first, focus as much of your content as possible on the work you’ve accomplished that relates directly to the job you’re applying for, and second, keep it short. You don’t want to take up too much time in the interview that prevents the interviewers from asking their standard questions. They’ll get frustrated.

If you’re ready to create a portfolio that will help you confidently answer that time-old question, “So tell us about yourself” at the beginning of almost every interview, give me a call or send me a text.

Don’t Forget Your Sleeping Bag: 9 Things to Take to an Interview

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When I was in scouts we used to go on a lot of camping trips. About once a month we would go with the other young men up to the canyon for an overnight adventure. About 20 minutes after we left our scout master’s house, inevitably one of the scouts would say that he had forgotten some critical item such as a sleeping bag, a coat, or even heaven forbid, toilet paper. At some point along the way, our scoutmaster gave us a checklist of things to review before we left our house. This helped prevent many uncomfortable and avoidable experiences. 🙂

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Here’s my pre-flight checklist before I go into an interview:

  1. A suit and a tie. Dress to impress. You should always try to be one level above your interviewer in regards to clothing. It’s an easy way to quickly capture their respect. If you walk in and feel like you’re way overdressed, you can always take your jacket off.
  2. A leather folder. It can be fake leather…but just make sure it looks nice. This is another easy way to look polished in an interview. It also prevents your documents from getting wrinkled.
  3. A pad of paper and pen. When you open up your folder, have a pen and paper waiting. I always appreciate it when candidates take a few notes during the interview about the things we discussed. It makes it clear that you as the interviewee are engaged and passionate about the job. Make sure to jot down the names of each of your interviewers and what they do so that you can write a good thank you note after the interview. Just don’t write too many notes that it’s distracting.
  4. Six copies of your resume. Most interview panels have five or less people on them. You should be safe with six copies so that you can have one for yourself to look at. Remember that they’ve already looked over your resume prior to the interview. That’s why you got the interview. But it’s a time-honored tradition that you bring resumes to an interview. You might consider bringing in a more creative version of your resume that catches their attention.
  5. Six printed copies of your portfolio. The career portfolio is the number one way to win an interview. It gives your interviewers a chance to see visual evidence of your wildly successful projects. It also focuses the interview so that they ask questions about the things you’ve done in the portfolio rather than about things you haven’t done. Print a copy for each person so that he or she can take it with them. Bringing in a portfolio also shows your panel subconsciously that you’re going to go the extra mile in your future position too.
  6. Six classy business cards. Set yourself apart from the competition and make sure that your interviewers have a very easy way to get a hold of you. Hand them out at the end of the interview on your way out the door.
  7. A silenced cell phone. Don’t forget to turn off your cell phone before the interview. An obnoxious ring tone can really disrupt the vibe of your interview.
  8. Quick, but engaging stories. If you’ve done your homework, you’re going to know a lot of the questions that your interviewers are going to ask. Make sure that you have a quick and powerful story to answer each one. The story should take no longer than 60 seconds to share. Engaging stories are the evidence behind your resume.
  9. Ten extra minutes. Get to the interview ten minutes early to give yourself some time to cool down and relax. Make sure you’re in the right place so that you’re not late. Also, if the previous interview gets out early, you’re ready to go. Take a few minutes to look over your resume and portfolio one last time and do a quick run through of your answers.

If you walk into an interview with these nine things, chances are very high that you’re going to leave a very positive impression on your interviewers and they will likely give you a call back. If you’ve got an interview coming up that you would like some coaching for, let’s get together.

Polish Off an Interview with a Classy Business Card

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What should be your number one objective for an interview? Get a call back! How do you increase your chances that they won’t lose your contact information (it happens, they’re people too) and miss your chance? Leave them with a slick business card. To get extra credit points, make sure it’s heavy. Studies have shown that the perceived value of heavy objects is greater than the value of light objects. My favorite business card company right now is Moo.com. Check them out.

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Now lots of people have business cards and a lot of them give them away like candy. But how many have given me their card at the end of an interview? Very few. And how many have given me a glossy card that makes me want to call them five minutes out of the room? Well, so far just one. And he got the job.

The bottom line is that the interview process is all about setting yourself apart from the pack. You can’t have a terrible interview and then suddenly win over your hiring manager with a business card. But that little glossy card could be the one extra point that puts you ahead of the next guy or gal. And after all, in almost all job interviews, there is only one winner. Make sure it’s you.

If you’re ready to start planning how you’re going to win over your next hiring manager, let’s get together and talk.

Success Stories

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Helping someone get their dream job is really satisfying for both me and the candidate. Here are a few of my favorite stories.

Chante“I honestly cannot thank you enough for your willingness to meet with me – I was grateful for the best big-picture explanation I’ve ever received as well as for the chance to learn from your inspiring example. You’re a really good teacher. I left that meeting incredibly motivated – exactly what I needed. Where have you been all my career?”

– Chante

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“Jake’s passion for people is unparalleled among his peers. He is constantly asking, “What can I do for you?” I have attended various workshops put on by Jake, and have learned everything from portfolio creation to resume building to proper interview techniques. His goal is to help everyone to reach their full potential. Anyone who works with Jake, in any capacity, will benefit from their association with him.”

– Zak

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“Tried, Tested and Approved! I was not only able to get the job I wanted, but I was even promoted multiple times with in a year.   I’m so glad Jake made the process painless, simple, and successful.”

– Carl

If you’re ready to get started on your next promotion, let’s talk.

10 Tips for a Solid Resume

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Your resume is often your first contact with your potential hiring manager. You need to make it spectacular in order to leave a positive impression. Most hiring managers, myself included, usually only spend about 10 seconds or less on each resume. I quickly scan to see if the candidate has the qualifications that I’m looking for. I’m not necessarily looking for the best candidate at this point. I’m only looking for those individuals that meet my minimum standard for an interview. You have 10 seconds to catch my eye. How are you going to do it?

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Well, I’ll tell you. Here are ten tips for a solid resume:

  1. Make sure that your name and contact info is easily located. I know, this is just like going back to elementary school, but it happens. Either the name is too small that it gets lost in the text or people leave off important information like their email or phone number. I recommend including at least your email and cell number. Remember that you want the hiring manager to be able to contact you as easily as possible by whatever medium they prefer. Also, make sure you test your phone number and email. I’ve tried to call phone numbers before on resumes that were disconnected. Don’t miss the opportunity because you’ve recently changed cell numbers.
  2. Use a simple file name. 90% of the time you submit your resume through a website or email. That means the first thing the hiring manager is going to see is the file name for your PDF or Word document. Please make sure it’s something professional. I recommend something simple like “Jake Lindsay Resume 2014-03.” This way a hiring manager can quickly search for your resume on their hard drive and it will pop up. If you name it something like “My Resume,” or “Project Management Resume,” or “3-4-14,” it will be lost forever.
  3. Add some color. Don’t go crazy. Find a tactful way to include it to highlight key points like job titles or section headers. It helps guide the hiring manager’s eye to important places on the resume. Most of the resume should still be black and white. It’s easier on the eyes and easier on your printer.
  4. Add a logo. Again, keep it simple. I recommend some kind of watermark or simple logo. The easiest thing to do is use your initials. If you are self-employed or own your own business, you might consider using your company logo. Don’t use someone else’s logo. You’re only giving them free advertising.
  5. Leave some white space. Leave some space on your margins. Your hiring manager will likely have your resume in front of him or her in your interview. Give them some space to take notes so they can remember the awesome things you’ve done.
  6. Create clear section headers. This is where most people go wrong. They try to fit so much onto the page that things tend to get smashed together. Create a clear flow that is consistent throughout the resume. You might consider including lines that go the full length of the page to separate your sections.
  7. Align your acronyms. If you want the best chance of getting an interview, make sure to tweak your resume for each individual job that you apply for. Read the job description several times and circle keywords. Then go through your resume and make sure you have all of the same keywords in easy to find places. The first place to start is acronyms. If they have something like HTML/CSS or PMP on the job description, you better have HTML/CSS or PMP on your resume, preferably in a few different places if you want to get called in for an interview.
  8. Use results language instead of activity language. In reviewing my clients’ resume I often find that their bullet points describe actions that they performed rather than things they accomplished. Managers are looking for people who don’t just go through the motions. They want people who are going to drive results. For example, instead of “Posted content daily on social media accounts” use “Increased likes on company Facebook page from 2,000 to 200,000 through daily posting and frequent review of social analytics.”
  9. Include data points. It’s not enough to say that you’re a team player or have a strong work ethic. Everybody says that. Go the extra mile and prove it to me. Give me some numbers that show how hard you worked. Numbers make your argument more convincing.
  10. Set yourself apart. What makes you different from everyone else? Why should I hire you over the next man or woman? If you look like everyone else, then you’ll end up in the reject pile with everyone else. Take some time to gather a list of your wildly successful projects from past jobs. What are a few assignments that you really knocked out of the park, so much so that your manager told their manager about it? Gather your top three to five WSPs and make sure that they are placed in high-profile places throughout your resume. You might even put them right at the top to catch the hiring manager’s attention. Also consider including any awards you may have received like “employee of the month” that show you have a pattern of excellence.

buy-resumeSometimes we get too attached to our own resumes. Don’t worry. I do it too. They are the product of many years or even decades of work. We’ve been adding new bullet points to them each year as we get a new job or finish degrees. It’s almost too hard sometimes to look at them objectively. We tend to miss typos because we’ve read it so many times. Before you apply to any job, make sure to have at least two or three people look it over. One person should be familiar with the industry that you’re applying to work in. One should be unfamiliar with it. That way you can make sure it’s both accessible and targeted. If you’re ready to spice up your resume, let’s talk.

Go from Unemployed to Self-Employed in 60 Minutes

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From my experience in my current job as a hiring manager, I’ve seen that it is almost always a bad idea in any interview to say that you are unemployed, or to have a gap on your resume from your last job to now. This tells the interviewer unconsciously that nobody else wants to hire you so they don’t want to hire you either. It’s a steep uphill climb from there.

But…the beautiful thing for you is that it is a very fine line between unemployed and self-employed. It’s your choice to cross that line. No hiring manager can stop you. Saying that you are self-employed always looks better on a resume than unemployed.

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How do you become self-employed? It’s surprisingly simple. Pick something you’re passionate about that is closely related to the job you’re applying for. Set up a couple social media pages on Facebook, Twitter, etc. so that a hiring manager can find evidence of your business if he or she goes looking for it. Create a blog about your business, write a couple articles, and post links to them on your social media sites. Take 10 minutes to join a website like oDesk.com and start bidding on jobs related to your new business. Set up an account with Square so that you can start taking payments from a mobile device or through your blog. Call your ten best friends and tell them about it. Ask them if they want to be your first clients.

Congrats! You’re now self-employed.

Guess how much this all cost? Zip. You just set up a business for free, and now your getting experience in the job field where you’re trying to get hired, and you can talk about it in your next interview. Pretty cool, huh?

If you’re ready to go from unemployed to temporarily self-employed, let’s talk.