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Career Moves - The Mail Bag
By Jim Pawlak
Marc asks: Should I tailor my resume to the company and position, or should I stay generic?" Both. If you are replying to an ad (print or online), or sending (snail or email) your resume to a specific person, you should customize your cover letter and resume. Tailoring shows the reader that you've done some homework.
When working with recruiters, you should have a "brag book" in addition to your resume. Your brag book provides a-to-z details about each accomplishment in your resume. This gives the recruiter more insight into the depth and breadth of your experience, skill and ability. It also helps the headhunter present your qualifications to a client.
The brag book can be a useful tool during the second round of interviews - especially when hiring managers are asking the "How did you...?" questions. You can walk the interviewer through an accomplishment from inception to success.
Save the generic resume for online posting. If you get a "hit", be sure to ask questions about the job and the company and send along a customized version with a "based on our conversation, I thought..." cover letter before your interview.
Joanna writes: "Is it really necessary to refresh my resume on Internet job sites? It's not like anything has changed in the past week." Refresh your resume once a week because, starting every Monday, there are seven changes each week. Each day makes a difference because employers search by resume posting date. They want "fresh" resumes. Why aren't they interested in older ones? Employers assume that old postings fall into three categories: 1. the individual is interviewing; 2. he/she has found a job and 3. there must be something wrong because he/she can't find a job.
Marvin writes: "My company merged with another six months ago. I was reassigned. Maybe I should be thankful that I have a job, but this new job sucks. I dread coming to work. I am looking for a new job. Until I find one, what can I do?" Do your best. How can you play your A-game if you dread coming to work? Adjust your view of the job. Think of yourself as an independent contractor, not an employee. You are working for yourself, not a company. This develops an "I own it" attitude that allows anyone to deal with difficult circumstances over the short term.
"I own it" means you realize that only you are responsible for your performance. If you don't play your A-game, you've made the decision to let yourself down. Ouch!
What can you do to implement "I own it" and take the drudgery out of the job? Plenty. Start by setting weekly goals for yourself. These should include not only doing the job you dislike well (but also making time to find a career opportunity). As you focus on execution, do your job as quickly as possible and then ask for more to do. Why? Stretching out work that you don't like only gives you more time to dislike it. New assignments may involve work better suited to you, or at least offer a change of pace.
Make a game out of the work by challenging yourself to complete tasks (especially those you dislike) within a specific time period. Playing "Beat The Clock" leaves little time to think of your dislike of the task. There's an added benefit - it shows you what you're capable of when you operate in high gear.
Schedule "me" time - time to get up and walk around, grab a cup of coffee, socialize with coworkers, read a magazine article, etc. Anything to break the routine and refresh yourself. "Me" time includes lunch time, too; so get out of the building.
Next, re-channel any post 5PM stress. Spending time with family, going to the gym, developing a hobby, etc. should be worked into your "I've got to relax"
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