As the layoffs mount and as the job market gets tighter I often hear voices of frustration from my audiences when I speak before them. Most of my audiences consist of those working and looking for a change, those out of work looking to get back in, and often, those who are afraid that they are already on the chopping block, next in line for a round of layoffs!
When the question comes to marketing themselves, the most common refrain is that their resume does not get any attention or responses from their targets where they have sent it for consideration. When I ask them how they have constructed their message, I get puzzled looks and many sheepishly admit that they have merely documented what they have done in their jobs that they held to create a chronology of their past. By doing so, they have resigned themselves to continuing their past, albeit perhaps in a new role.
Herein lies the problem!
When the job market gets tighter hiring managers are looking for someone who can bring a new set of eyes and skills to the open jobs. Sometimes, the jobs do not even have to be open for you to be considered for a position. How? Not all jobs are identified in any company and many do not even know how they could structure new positions in a dynamic and uncertain economy to position themselves better. Here, you can define something that a company may be interested in and present it as an opportunity that the company can pursue to its advantage!
To be able to get such attention you MUST craft a message that is more than merely documenting your past and compiling an inventory of your chronological assignments in the past jobs. In fact, sometimes what you have merely done in the past can get in the way of your advancing yourself in a beneficial way.
How?
Unless you can show that you are much more than your past assignments you are consigned to the fate of all those who treat their resumes as merely a vehicle to document your past. This means that you want your future to be an extension of your past.
If you are lucky!
Why not command your own future with a message that is forward looking and that excites the reader to consider you as someone who is positioned differently from everyone else?
How is this possible?
The most dramatic example of this possibility is what Barrack Obama has done in his campaign. Here is a person who has barely got into his first Senate term, with little or no political experience, someone who has never drafted any significant legislation, who is from a minority community, who has admitted to using drugs, who has never served in armed forces, whose name raises doubts in some people’s minds about his origins and loyalties, and who has never had any executive experience. He systematically starts his campaign to run for the highest office in the country. With his current momentum I would not be surprised if he becomes our next president.
How did he do it?
- By focusing on the future and capturing people’s imagination. If he had relied merely on his resume (his past) he would not have got even to the first base!
- He told his story through his books and speeches. You can do that, too! Instead of writing dry bullets on your resume about what you boss told you to do and how you did it, tell your reader why you did what you did and how well you did it (a story of your leadership)
- Be persistent. Keep your message on target and do not waver from it. Capture the readers’ imagination by telling stories about your leadership and by showing what you can do that others cannot
- Separate your resume from your message (Barrack is the best example of this) and separate what you did from who you are. The resume is not about what you did but it is about the message that you want to send as to who you are!
- Be authentic in all that you convey and project. Without that authenticity all you have is a “campaign promise.”
- Keep tinkering. Keep your message fresh and relevant. Keep trying to gather feedback and update your message.
- Synchronize your message: your resume, your cover letter, your campaign, and your actions must all be in synch for others to believe in you!
No matter how tough the job market is there are always jobs and there are always opportunities that companies are trying to exploit. In fact, in tough times there are more opportunities than most realize!
Now go and conquer them!