"Acute Spousal Interference"

Nick Corcodilos, in a recent Ask the Headhunter weekly e-mail, wrote an interesting article the other day that most professional resume writers can relate to. He wrote about the concept of "Acute Spousal Interference" -- the tendency of spouses to become overly involved in their spouse's job search.

Most professional resume writer recognize this type of individual. She's the wife that is calling for her husband -- not because he works the overnight shift, but because "he needs to take control of his career. He's underappreciated and underpaid."

While that may be true, you're going to get sucked into a quagmire if you don't nip the spousal interference in the bud up front. Otherwise, you'll likely find yourself working with a reticent husband while the wife tries to be the "client." And unless she's going on the job interviews too, that's a recipe for disaster. Wait a minute -- if she went on the interview too, that's even worse.

So what can you do? Take charge. Tell the wife that you really need to speak with her husband. You can provide general information about how the process works and pricing, but you need to speak with him directly to fully gauge what services are appropriate. Don't be put off by her comments, such as "He's too busy to talk to you, so he asked me to call" or "I can tell you anything you need to know." Just reinforce the need to speak to him directly, at his convenience. You might also make the point that "a job search requires an investment in time to be successful." If he doesn't have time to talk to you, will he make the time to do the things required to find a new job?

We all need clients, but we don't need all clients.

Guide for New Resume Writers

I hope to eventually turn this into a full-fledged special report, but for now, here's the outline for "Bridget's Guide for New Resume Writers."

This is your to-do list:

• Join a Professional Association (Career Directors International, Career Management Alliance, National Resume Writers' Association, Professional Association of Resume Writers, Association of Online Resume Providers)

• Decide what services you will offer (Resume writing? Career coaching? Career testing? Recruiting? Resume distribution? Job search research?)

• Decide who your customers are (Local? Nonlocal? Specific industry? By gender?)

• Decide how you will work (In person? By Phone? Through Questionnaires?)

• Consider certification (Choose a credential and get started learning the craft)

• Save up to attend a conference.
  

Think Different

In 1997, Apple introduced an advertising campaign that changed how they marketed their products. Instead of focusing on technical aspects (processor speed, hard disk size), Apple revolutionized computers by making them about their performance as a lifestyle item.

Big changes are in store for our industry in the next 5-10 years. How will the resume writing industry "Think different"??

Converting Resumes to CVs

Myriam Rose-Kohn was recently quoted in an article by James Caverly, "Five Tips for Writing CVs for Overseas Employers." It's a great resource that you should bookmark.