Helping Clients With "Thin" Resumes

While Googling to see if any of my colleagues received any visible publicity from a previous blog post about lying on resumes, I came across a couple of blog posts that were from college students who were blogging for a class. They had apparently read an article about lying on resumes and were writing their response.

I was particularly interested in this post by Amy, who mentions a "sparse" resume as one possible motivator for people to lie on their resume. I agree that this is probably a big reason for lying on resumes. When confronted with a job posting listing a laundry list of "requirements," some job applicants become intimidated, feeling their work history or experience is inadequate. So they "embellish" it.

I think we need to do a better job as an industry of educating the public about how to transform their life experience (including volunteer work, internships, and educational credentials) into useful material on the resume.

As a personal example, I am working on a resume for a woman who is seeking a nonprofit position after being out of the workforce for several years. I was able to secure information from her on her early work history (not relevant, except for one internship at the Red Cross), and educational background (including a Masters Degree in Public Administration). But it wasn't until I was almost finished putting together her resume that I found out that she manages her husband's non-profit foundation (and that he's a professional athlete).

Maybe we need to get better at asking questions too! *smile*

The Ketchup Strategy

All right, to be perfectly fair, today's post is really about the "Catch-Up Strategy," but I so rarely get to put pictures with my blog posts that I took a little liberty with the name of it.

Do you ever find yourself so swamped with current projects that you get behind in closing out some of the older ones? Every so often, that's the case for me. And with my "mild ADD" personality, I get more excited about new projects than I do about burning CDs and creating ASCII text files and so, inevitably, every once in a while, I have to implement the Catch-Up Strategy.

That's when I go through the file folder on my desk labeled "Awaiting Finalization," and I sort through the pile of paper on my desk to find the projects that made it out of the "Awaiting Finalization" folder but never got finalized, and I double-check that with my daily planner, where action items like "Finish Jones Project!!!!!!" languish unchecked off.

And I clear my calendar, ignore the ringing phone and the pinging e-mail ... and just focus on sending off those digital files, burning the CDs and printing the laserprints (for those clients who choose to get paper packets -- which is still surprisingly a large number).

And so, today, I finished three of those long-awaited finalizations. But tomorrow, alas, more tomatoes will be harmed as I put the "Catch-Up Strategy" in motion for a few more stragglers.

Maybe you can do the same. (And have a hamburger with fries for lunch ....)

Ugh! Tax Day 2008

It's no secret that April 15 isn't my favorite day of the year. Not far behind it are Jan. 15, June 15, and Sept. 15 -- the dates that estimated taxes are due.

In talking with lots of other self-employed resume writers, they feel the same. There's just something about writing a hefty check to the IRS (and likely, your state department of revenue) four times a year (quarterly estimated tax payments) that's depressing.

At the gas station today, the clerk's sister came in bearing the clerk's finished tax return. She was getting a $700 refund. I think the last time I got a refund (at least one that I didn't have to apply to next year's taxes) was 1995 (the year before I started my business). A friend of mine is used to getting a $5,000 annual refund (he and his wife have a bunch of kids, which = tax deductions). Last year, he became self-employed for the first time. This year, he had to write a small check to the IRS. That's painful ...

Every year, probably like you, on April 15, I vow to:
1) Make more money next year (yes, I make this resolution on New Year's too)
2) Pay less in taxes by being smart with my deductions and contributions (for example, to my retirement account).

We'll see how it goes this year. But I got a head start by taking a look at this article about 2008 tax issues. I'll let you know if I come across any other good information throughout the year -- or feel free to post a comment on this thread with your suggestions.

Guest Article: Six Interview Tips

By Michael R. Neece, CEO of Interview Mastery

1. Interrogation versus Interview:
Most candidates expect they will be interrogated. An interrogation is when one person asks all the questions and the other gives the answers. An interview is a business conversation where both people ask and respond to questions. Too many job seekers believe an interview is an interrogation. With this attitude, candidates do not ask questions and hence do not make their best impression. You need to ask questions throughout the interview. If you don't, you force the interview to be an interrogation.

2. Making a Positive out of a Weakness:
Unskilled interviewers frequently ask candidates "What are your weaknesses?" Conventional interview advice recommends you highlight a weakness like "I'm a perfectionist" and turn it into a positive. Interviewers are not fooled. If you are asked this question a highlight skill that you wish to improve upon and (most importantly) describe what you are proactively doing to enhance your skill in this area. Interviewers don't care what your weaknesses are. They want to see how you handle the question and what your answer indicates about you.

3. No Questions:
Every interview concludes with the interviewer asking if you have any questions. The worst thing to say is you have no questions. Having no questions prepared indicates you are not interested and not prepared. Interviewers are more impressed by the questions you ask than the selling points you try to make. Before each interview make a list of 5 questions you will ask.

4. Only Researching the Company, What about You?
Candidates intellectually prepare by researching the company. Most job seekers do not research themselves by taking inventory of their experience, knowledge and skills. Formulating a talent inventory prepares you to immediately respond to any question about your experience. You must be prepared to discuss any part of your background. Creating a your talent inventory refreshes your memory and helps you immediately remember experiences you would otherwise have forgotten during the interview. Interview Mastery gives you a talent inventory template and many other job search downloads.

5. Leaving Cell Phone On:
We may live in a wired, always available society, but a ringing cell phone is not appropriate for an interview. Turn it off before you enter the company.

6. Waiting for a Call:
Time is your enemy after the interview. After you send a thank you email and note to every interviewer, follow-up a couple days later with either a question or additional information. Contact the person who can hire you, not HR (Human Resources). HR is famous for not returning calls. Additional information can be details about your talents, a recent competitor's press release or industry trends. Your intention is to keep their memory of your fresh.