Resume Help Blog

Archive for the ‘Changing Careers’ Category

Hiring managers routinely receive hundreds, perhaps thousands, of responses from applicants for any given job. To avoid having your resume sink into this sea of paper, it’s imperative to stand out from the crowd and make a good first impression. A compelling cover letter that meets five essential requirements will convince a hiring manager to read an applicant’s resume.

Rule #1: Create appealing appearance
The resume and cover letter must be aesthetically pleasing and consistent in appearance. This includes using the same heading and fonts for each.

Rule #2: Target your audience
Always use the hiring manager’s name in the salutation. If the contact’s name isn’t provided in the job posting, a bit of Internet research or a well-structured phone call can produce results.

Rule #3: Produce a strong opening
A dynamic opening paragraph is essential to capture and retain a hiring manager’s interest. Pared down to essentials for a quick and effective read, it should reference the position you are seeking and include a brief statement as to why you believe you are qualified to fill the job.

Rule #4: Showcase accomplishments
Include a bulleted area to emphasize accomplishments pertinent to the targeted job.

Rule #5: Close with a proactive statement
Always initiate further action at the end of a cover letter. A proactive closing indicates that you will call within a few days to see if a time might be scheduled to meet. Then, be sure to follow through on the action you include in your letter.

You have been out of work for quite awhile and it doesn’t seem that you will ever get another job again. I know it’s frustrating because I like you read the newspapers and listen to the news and know that you are just one of many. So what are you to do?

First let me say that the purpose of this article IS NOT to sell you something just because I might think you are desperate enough to buy it. This is an article to give you some ideas.

I was listening to the Rush Limbaugh program Friday and he had a call from a landscaper in Florida who said that his income had been cut by over 50% due to the new home foreclosures. The gist of the call was Rush’s suggestion that the caller approach the banks who now own the homes and make them a deal on maintaining the lawns rather than have them sit unattended until they sell. Since the banks don’t want to own them and really want to resell them it makes sense that they would want to keep the appearance looking beautiful.

That got me to thinking. Look around you and find a need then see if you can think of some way to fill that need. Back in 1976 I worked in aerospace and had a job that I hated. At that time I came across a company that offered training for repairing vinyl in restaurants. The cost was modest so after looking into it, I went for some training and bought the equipment to do this. The training consisted not only repairing the torn or cut vinyl but color matching so it would look presentable and the tear wouldn’t get larger. In a couple of weeks I was ready to begin. Well I thought I was but it turns out that I needed more experience, so I went to work at home practicing what I had learned. All told it took me about a month and the cost for training and equipment was modest. Incidentally, I made a good living from this.

There are many things like this that you can learn or maybe you already have what you need to begin. Start by brainstorming with your wife/husband/friends/relatives etc., and see what ideas you come up with.

Doing that is 1000 times more productive than waiting for “something to happen”. Think about it and see if you can come up with about ten ideas then delve into the possibilities. If you have trouble coming up with ten ideas do some research but don’t quit. Even if it took you some time, what else are you doing?

You are not beaten unless you absolutely give up.  Never do that!

You just graduated and think the world is just waiting for you to leap on life’s stage. Don’t be so smug, every graduate feels the same way. But now comes the next challenge; finding the right position that you have been planning for so long. Where do you start?

I don’t want to burst your bubble or prick your ego but competition is fierce especially now during this current recession so let’s just start with a couple of ideas to help you get started.

First—always the best place to begin is with your friends and neighbors; friends that you have known for some time especially if they have a pretty good position in a major company. Possibly someone in your graduating class that you have become friendly with who may have a relative or good friend that can give you a hand up. That may take a while to run down the list of people you know and have known over the years, especially if you have lived in the same place for a while. If you have moved around a lot it will take more time.

Second—consider having a professional resume company help you work your resume to your best advantage. If you are a person that believes that a resume, is a resume, is a resume etc. then you are in for a rude awakening. That isn’t so, a professional resume writer is just what the name says – “a Professional”! Who is most qualified to help you find the perfect position that you have worked so hard for – the professional resume writer!