A friend of mine's been out of work for a while now. After helping two others land jobs, I finally had a chance to see his materials, which are 100% out of date... but I just wish he'd felt comfortable sharing them sooner. It's a whole other skillset, presenting one's career to stand out in the slush piles today.
So if any of you are ever entering the market after a long time stably employed?
PLEASE reach out for CV help from job centres and market-savvy friends.
Your life story should SHINE.
A good resume is an art form. You are so right. As former headhunter, a good resume can take weeks to write. ✍️
You should always have one ready/updated.
After you’ve lost a job is not the time to write resume.
@LnzyHou @MLClark Agree but also I don't know any/many who have done that unless they were actively shopping anyway. (Many argue you always should be actively shopping)
It is a tedious task to undertake proactively when you feel stable. But that feeling of stability can be misleading in a world of acquisitions and mergers.
I bought into keeping current after my last job change. But my resolve waned over time.
These are tough times for companies and employees. Old school marketing doesn’t work. Financial backing/stockholders can dry up. Tried and true business models no longer work with the online explosion.
Nothing is guaranteed. The most important thing employees can do is be fully aware of their worth and able to communicate it in writing.
Trying to dig oneself out of an unemployment hole is the worst time to write a resume.
Sing it, sister! :)
One of my English students, when I first took her on, still believed that company was "family" - and was shocked and deeply hurt when a wave of downsizing left her without work and "friends" all at once.
It sounds like you have been a WONDERFUL advocate for people knowing their professional worth, and acting on it. Thank you for knowing your own, first and foremost, and building out a pragmatic approach to career from there. đź’Ş
đź’Ż! This part especially:
"What can you do for my company?"
I come across so many cover letters and CVs that read a little like a child emptying their pockets and showing you all the neat things they picked up along the way.
But whether with grant-writing, admissions essays, or job-hunting materials, one *needs* to reframe their life story as if the whole journey up to this point has been priming them for this latest pitch.
A critical life skill, but rarely well taught!
Too true.
I am watching a friend’s company disintegrating from afar. It’s 30+ yr old family business. Very specialized retail in health industry. Father/owner is debilitated with stroke. Grown kids all fighting over revenue with no skill to run the company. After they have failed, they will sell it. Very likely leaving my friend who is essentially the operating manager with P & L responsibility out in the cold.
He doesn’t see it happening for 2-3 years.
He’s wrong.
Oh, what an agony to watch and not be able to help.
I've been working with people in denial as investment streams dry up and margins tighten. They're buoyed by a dangerous sense of entitlement ("but I like this! I'm good at this! why won't people pay me for it?").
My own approach isn't always fruitful; I keep trying to find different ways forward & always have a few revenue streams on the go. But at least I'm clear-eyed about the problem. Tough times! We have to be ready for change.
(And do take care of that heart of yours, while you're trying to be present for a friend you can't help the way you probably wish you could, with all the experience you have to at least cushion the blow. Your friend's lucky to have you, even if they're not yet in a place to listen. đź’™)
Experience does have its merit.
You are an invigorating powerhouse to witness in action, Lindsay! đź’Ş May you be heard, and your hard-won experience recognized, in every personal and professional community through which you move.
Aren’t you kind?
We must be ready for change. And understand that 10+ yrs at any company is not considered an asset unless an employee is working their way up the ladder in job description and compensation.
@MLClark @S_r_stone
Former headhunter here. I know how to write a great resume.
But if the job candidate doesn’t understand/believe in their own worth, they will not be able to sell it while interviewing.
It’s really important folks write their own, starting with a list of all the things they did to improve each company’s bottom line.
That’s what employer’s want to know. What can you do for my company?