Recently, someone had come to me with their problems in finding a new job. They are smart, have a few years working at the same company, and they were looking for their next assignment to be a challenging one.
After four or five interviews, there still was no traction. I asked to see their resume and found it to be lacking. There was way too much detail and not enough of a unified story focusing on the talents that this person possessed.
What this discovery validated was that we are a much larger participant in our future and our outcomes than we believe. We are quick to blame others but rarely spend time reflecting on ourselves.
It doesn’t help that we “don’t know, what we don’t know” either.
A half hour search on the internet led me to resume templates that were more modern and compelling. After a couple of hours, I rewrote this person’s resume in a more compelling way, with less detail. This allowed their talents to be seen quicker when read.
While not knowing the outcome or benefit yet of this crisper resume, what I do know is that we are always at the center of our life and its outcomes. Everything begins with us. Not others.
It’s true, we don’t know where or when an opportunity will appear. Nor do we know if our work is still good enough to resonate with someone to give us a chance.
But we have to keep trying and improving. Our resume should be continually evolving.
For we never are a finished project, No matter what our age.