Resume, Attitude, Competence and Employability

RESUME:
I have interviewed thousands of candidates, extended hundreds of job offers and reviewed tens of thousands of résumé's and one thing seems to be constant with all the people that I have hired is R.A.C.E; Résumé, Attitude, Competence, Employability. These people spend time making sure that they develop a good strong résumé that speaks to their success and accomplishments. They have a winning attitude and tenacity. These individuals have a thirst for knowledge and build a toolkit of core competencies that help make them successful and as a result they are employable. Regardless of their ethnic background, they never let R.A.C.E. hold them back.

Your perspective influences your reality. At times your reality crashes into someone else's reality and if the two realities are not common then there in lies the rub. There has been much written about Diversity in the workplace. There are legal mandates around EEO and Affirmative action etc... Well this has nothing to do with those types of issues. Regardless of your racial background, socio-economic status or national origin, I would like to explore "R.A.C.E." in these terms: Résumé, Attitude, Competence and Employability. I believe that when these areas are strong and in tact, your job search becomes easier and you then have choices. You no longer have to settle for the first opportunity that comes along, you can then take a close look at organizations to ensure that there is a mutual fit.

Your marketing collateral (résumé) must allow you to shine. It is your chance to brag on yourself. However honesty is very important. Again going back to the two sections above for the flight attendant, both are true simply worded differently. In this instance this is a person who is transitioning out of that line of work. Because so many people don't think about or necessarily understand many of the things that go into being a successful flight attendant, then it is important to speak in language they understand but more importantly share things that relate to business and service that the reader can relate to.

1. The résumé is not a place to tell the interviewer everything you've done. It is a place to hit the highlights while focusing on results. The résumé should get the reader exited about what you delivered and get them interested in speaking with you so that they can determine how you can do these great things for their company.
2. Bullets are effective. It allows a reader to skim the résumé yet still get pertinent information
3. Be honest about dates, jobs, education etc...companies do verify these things.
4. Make sure to state an objective so the reader clearly understands what you are interested in. Too many times recruiters see very vague statements that lead them to have to make a decision for the candidate e.g., I'm looking for a career opportunity where my leadership and interpersonal skills will be valuable to the company. Gag! Big deal! So what do you want to do? If you don't know, then I don't know
5. Know your résumé intimately and be able to talk to and defend each point

There are many books written on how to write an effective résumé there are also many résumé writing services that will write one for you (obviously for a fee). However you choose to do it, make sure that your résumé does not stand in the way of you landing a job.