Resume Advice from Mark Stevens – Part 1
The more I learn about resume writing, the more I realize that a lot of it is a matter of taste. There are some universal standards that I will discuss in later articles, but there are also some things that most people will say turn them off, but one or two others say are okay. So, I recently sent out a query to get more information on just what turns employers off and what gets their attention when reading resumes.
One of the experts who answered my query is Mark Stevens, an image consultant, marketing/management expert, and CEO of MSCO. Although he isn’t as radical as Seth Godin, who recommends doing away with a resume altogether, Stevens does suggest breaking away from the rest of the pack. The following are his thoughts:
Most resumes suck.
Stevens recommends NOT TO follow the rules that everyone else does. Dare to
be different – you’ll stand out from the crowd…
Stevens’ Resume Advice:
Putting your worst foot forward: The toll of the cookie cutter resume. In
the annual ritual that begins with high school summer jobs then college
graduation – hopefully, with a job in hand, millions of students appear to
do their best to squander a costly education. Why? Because they forgo even
an iota of creativity and send out cookie cutter resumes that camouflage
whatever intelligence, innovation and personality they may have.
Why the cookie cutter resume sucks:
+ALWAYS SEND A COVER LETTER..don’t just regurgitate your educational
experience here or duplicate your resume. Sell yourself. Talk about an
experience that changed your life, or an epiphany that came to you one day
while sitting in the classroom. Or an incredible trip you took somewhere
that opened your eyes and taught you a real life lesson. Stand out from the
crowd. Put your self in the person’s shoes who is reading your resume.
Picture them reading 50-100 resumes. Will yours get picked or will it end up
in the circular file?
+Forget the “rules” about keeping it to a page or even writing it. Get the
decision maker’s phone number and leave your resume as a voice mail. You
have become a living, beathing voice. Who would you hire?
+ Most resumes follow all the “rules” giving your name, address and school.
Certainly if you’re laid off after a long career who really can get excited
about where you went to school?
+It doesn’t start with your most prominent accomplishment. It is linear.
+As a newcomer to the job hunt – if you wrote a play, developed a piece of software or spent a summer learning Manchurian in China – say that first and
say it big. Who cares about your name when you made things happen.
+You don’t need to win a Pulitzer to do big things. If you ran a charitable
event, tell what motivated you and how you got to run it. Grade scores don’t
hold a candle to this.
Research the company and imagine what they could do better. And use this
knowledge to write “What I would do on day one.”
If you follow these rules, everyone you know will wonder how you landed a
job.
As always, any information pertaining to a successful job search can also be applied to your search for a quality internship. Just think, if you master the art of resume and cover letter writing during internship searches, when it comes time to start looking for an entry-level job after graduation, you’ll be a pro.
Article courtesy of Mark Stevens, bestselling author of Your Marketing Sucks, Your Management Sucks, and God Is A Salesman.
