Resume, LinkedIn, self-promo

The Top 10 Resume Mistakes

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The key to avoiding resume mistakes is to follow what I call the golden rule of resume writing: your “how I can help you” message needs to jump off the page in the 15 seconds or less that someone will look at your resume. The reader’s “no” or “maybe” decision is made so quickly that your key selling points really need to stand out. By contrast, the mistakes listed below make the reader work too hard to figure out how you can help them, or how you differ from the competition (this advice applies equally to your LinkedIn profile)

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Your 20 Second Pitch: Don’t Cold-Call Without It!

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Whether you’re in sales, business development or a job search, effectively cold-calling “strangers” to get the meetings you seek is a crucial skill. For jobseekers, this is called accessing the “hidden” job market, where you’re developing new long-term relationships that can lead to opportunities.

When you cold-call, you have only roughly 20 seconds to gain their interest. At that point you need to give them an out or you risk making a bad impression; they may be about to run off to a meeting and keeping them on the phone would be a no-no. So if you haven’t interested them enough by then, you’re done. That’s why you need a 20 second pitch.More

How to Write Compelling Resume & LinkedIn Profile Bullets

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resumeWhen I first look at a client’s resume, I quite often see a list of bullet points that reflect only responsibilities. One of my clients, for example, an accountant, listed a bullet point that read: “Responsible for managing the monthly close.” After we discussed the impact she made through her management, we modified the text to read: “Managed the monthly close, reducing turnaround time by at least 30% while improving accuracy.” Do you feel the extra powerMore

Resume Mythbusters: Myth #1 Busted!

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2056398799_5849080c71_oA number of resume “professionals” say not to use formatting such as bolding or underlining because it can prevent Applicant Tracking Systems from identifying formatted keywords in your resume. ATS’s are often used by large organizations to do initial automated resume screenings for job postings, before resumes are seen by a human. My take on this claim: TOTALLY FALSE.

How do I know? Simple—you can test it yourself. Get a free Google Drive account, which includes gigabytes of cloud storage, and upload your PDF (or Word) resume there. Google Drive is known for making More

How to Write Emails that Land Interviews & Meetings

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letters from morgueFile file0001515540276Many cold emails and cover letters (i.e. those sent to people you don’t know asking for a meeting or an interview) are not even read by the recipient; the email subject line doesn’t resonate, or the content is too dense, boring, irrelevant or seemingly pointless to engage the reader. Clients who have applied the following 10 rules, however, have seen big improvements in their email response rates.

Rule #1: Make your letter easily “scannable”
These days, work is too fast-paced to allow time for reading through a long, dense letter. More

When They Say You are “Overqualified”…

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What do you do if a hiring manager says you are “overqualified” for a position? First, you need to know that what they really mean is a) you’re going to want too much money, b) you’re going to be bored and will leave in six months, or c) you won’t fit into the culture. All three of these underlying issues can be addressed with these two approaches:More

Land Your Next Job with LinkedIn’s Volunteer Marketplace

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LinkedIn now makes it easier to find volunteer opportunities. Gain access by going to http://volunteer.linkedin.com or by clicking on the “Jobs” menu option, selecting “Advanced Search,” “More Options,” and then entering “volunteer” in the job title. LinkedIn has partnered with some major volunteer matching sites to make this happen. Here’s why this feature is so great. More

3 Tips for Delivering a Powerful Presentation

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How you present yourself or your work can determine a potential promotion, sale, or job offer. These three simple ideas, from my new book, Peak Presentations, can go a long way towards helping you achieve the outcomes you want.

PowerPoint Slides: Don’t Compete!
When using PowerPoint slides to support a presentation, make sure the slide content doesn’t compete with what you are saying. More

How to Find & Use Keywords for Your Job Search

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Keywords in your resume, LinkedIn profile, emails and ‘pitch’ help to communicate your value. To job prospects, your use of the right keywords tells them you are an “insider” (everyone wants to hire insiders) and that you understand the problems they face. Organizations use keyword filters for candidate searches, so your use of strategically placed keywords will improve your likelihood of being spotted.

When someone is searching on LinkedIn for a candidate with your skills (increasingly LinkedIn is the first stop for candidate searches), keywords in certain parts of your profile  matter more than others. More

LinkedIn “Recommendations” vs. “Endorsements”

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Getting a recommendation on LinkedIn can help your career. LinkedIn recommendations are valued by hiring managers. Why? 1. The first-degree connection giving the recommendation is visible, hence “researchable” on LinkedIn, 2. significant effort is involved in writing a recommendation, adding to the authenticity, and 3. the content’s often descriptive nature helps the hiring manager to understand your value. I would suggest getting at least three LinkedIn recommendations. LinkedIn considers three-plus recommendations to be a factor in “profile completeness,” which figures in it’s search rankings. More

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