How to Bring Your Resume into Focus

How to Bring Your Resume into FocusHaving trouble writing your resume? Not sure how to begin? The answer often lies in the fogginess of your objectives. If you arent sure of which jobs you want to target with your resume, it can easily become an exercise in listing everything you have ever done. Not only is this painful, but it is also supremely ineffective.FOCUS YOUR DIRECTIONBefore you even think about crafting your resume, a great starting point is researching and writing down your career goals as well as the specific positions you want to pursue.Having a focused direction will help you write your resume because resumes are all about direction You might think that they are about your background, but truly impactful resumes are laser-focused documents aligned with your target roles and industry.OBJECTIVE bewertung VS. BRANDING STATEMENTCase in point, the objective meinung vs. the career summary. Gone are the days of the objective statement, the short paragraph at the top of the res ume that reads something like thisAccomplished technology professional with 10 years of experience seeking an executive position overseeing hardware, software, and services portfolio development, revenue growth, and overall strategy.Instead, the career summary or branding statement has come into vogue. Rather than explaining what a job seeker wants, it explains what you offer a company (preferably in a powerful, non-generic, achievement-based approach.) For exampleAward-winning technology leader drives revenue growth of up to $200M through innovative strategies for hardware, software, and services portfolio. Accelerates business development by establishing streamlined client experience process, overhauling stagnant abverkauf culture, and inking deals with Fortune 500 companies.There are many differences between these two statements, but the main point is that the objective statement focuses on what you want from a job, and the branding statement emphasizes what you promise to delive r to meet the employers needs. Its a helpful way to view the entire resume writing processwhich is ultimately all about your audience.How can you even write a branding statement without knowing what the potential employers needs are?QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF BEFORE YOU STARTWhat are my career goals for next 5 years?What are my top 3 goals? (Making more money, moving into the executive level, better work-life balance?)What does my dream job look like?What is my target market?What position titles do I want?What other considerations are important to me in a new job?What is my brand/elevator pitch/area of expertise?ELIMINATE/MINIMIZE IRRELEVANT EXPERIENCEOnce you have a clear vision for the jobs you want, the companies you like, and your own brand, it will be easy to start writing, because the relevant experiences, skills, and achievements will be illuminated, and the irrelevant can now be eliminated or at least minimized.For example, our technology leader in the objective statement abo ve had a good deal of experience in sales as well as in weltweit coverage architecture. He was no longer interested in sales roles, so his early experiences as a Sales Rep could simply be removed, since they werent adding any value. Many of his positions in the past 10 years included sales or sales management, so it became a matter of limiting the emphasis on sales and re-weighting the experiences towards strategic planning and global systems integration.Keep in mind that this process of elimination might be difficult, because it can feel like you are removing important career achievements. But if those achievements are no longer relevant to your goals, the best thing to do is let them go.

Oprah, Bill Gates And Obama All Use This Rule For Success

Oprah, Bill Gates And Obama All Use This Rule For Success The 5-hour what? youre probably asking. Five-hour naps? Networking? Meditation? What exactly am I supposed to be doing for 5 hours?The answer may surprise you, but its simply this deliberate learning. For 5 hours per week. According to 5 hours per week? you might be wondering. Where do I find that kind of time?As a working mom of two little boys who also practices law and runs a business, my own answer is this in bits and pieces. And scheduled intentionally.Heres how I approach Simmons 3 buckets1. Reading No, I dont have a solid hour each day to sit and read a book. But I do have 10 minutes on the metro on the way to work, and another 10 minutes on the way home. I crawl into bed a good 10 minutes before I go to sleep, to curl up with a book, too. I focus my reading most intently on issues related to working parenthood (heres my 2017 list of inspiring reads for working moms), which helps both with my own personal life and with my business. So theres 30 minutes per day, already.2. Reflection My approach here is twofold. First, I am very deliberate about how I use my shower time in the morning. For the few minutes Im alone getting ready every morning, I set an intention for my day, stretch, savor that hot water, and enjoy some quiet thinking time. Second, I schedule days for reflection into my calendar because if something isnt on my calendar, it doesnt happen. Every year, for example, my husband and I schedule two retreat days per year to step back, reflect, and plan out the next 6 months or year. Im also a big fan of scheduled days for quiet reflection and meditation, and I do things like the Half-Day unterbrechung yoga and meditation retreat in D.C. at the change of seasons.3. Experimentation If Ive bothered to take the time to read or learn about something, Im then intentional about putting these learnings to good use. For example, I recently attended the Womens Power Conference in Maryland and attende d some fantastic, really informative sessions. One of the lectures I attended was on using storytelling to boost your presentation skills, and well-timed I had a presentation to give the following week. During my talk, I played around with the concepts I had just learned and tried them on for size. Reading and listening to lectures, podcasts, webinars, etc. are wonderful first steps. But all that knowledge does no good if you dont get out there and apply it.I know so many of us are short on time, and squeezing in 5 hours of anything seems like a stretch. But if you schedule it in first, and use the nooks and crannies of time you already have to be intentional about your learning, I promise youll see leaps in what youre able to accomplish.--Lori K. Mihalich-Levin, JD, is the founder ofMindful Return, author ofBack to Work After Baby How to Plan and Navigate a Mindful Return from Maternity Leave, and creator of theMindful Return E-Course. A partner in the health care practice of a g lobal law firm, she also is mama to two beautiful red-headed boys. Lori holds a law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center and completed her undergraduate studies at Princeton Universitys Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.

Spark a Conversation Video Interviews and Leaders - Spark Hire

Spark a Conversation Video Interviews and Leaders - Spark HireHere at Spark Hire, we want to help companies utilize the power of online video to find the best candidates. We get a lot of questions from readers about best practices for using online video in the hiring process. These posts will address those questions about how to find your next superstar employee.Question How do you use the video interview to find leaders? -Patrick from Nantucket When you are looking for a new employee, you are not always looking for someone specifically with leadership qualities. However, hiring a leader is usually beneficial to you and to the kollektiv you are managing. Therefore, whenever you run into a candidate with leadership qualities, you want to be sure you are doing what you can to reel them in. How do you know when you are talking to a leader in your video interview though?Body LanguageThe best thing about video interviews is that you can see a candidate right from the get-go. You can take a look at their video resume if they send you one, as well as their one-way video interview answers. While you are screening candidates- and even having two-way live video interviews with them- be sure to take note of their body language. Candidates that were born to be leaders will be strong and confident in their live interviews. They will likely sit straight up, give you great eye contact to show you they are engaged and will be void of the nervous jitters. Not to say that a nervous candidate is never a leader, but body language can tell you a lot about a persons personality and tendencies.Inquire About the PastIf you want to be sure that the candidate you are talking to is a leader, then ask about their past leadership experiences. When have they been in a leadership position before? What was the experience like? When they answer, pay close attention to what they are saying. A true leader will have no problem answering because they have always been a leader and generally try to assume that position any weg they get. Listen to how they handled the responsibility and how they talk about their other team members. Are they a leader but also a team player? Which leads us to our next highlight.Do They Work Well With Others?You can have an awesome leader, but if they dont work well with others then it is likely not going to be the ideal situation you were hoping for. What you want, as mentioned above, is a leader that can also be a team player. Ask your candidates questions about their past team projects and how it worked out for them. Do they prefer to work on a team or by themselves? If you are looking to hire a leader specifically, then you want to be sure you are hiring someone that can deal with multiple personality types. Someone that prefers to work alone may not be the best fit for this. Get them talking about their past team projects and listen to what they are saying with a sharp ear.You may not always need to hire a leader, but when you do you should c ertainly be looking for these things in your video interviews with candidates.Do you have a question you need answered? Spark a conversation with the Spark Hire team by submitting your question to blog(at)sparkhire.com or in the comments below.

How to Translate Your Military Experience for a Civilian Resume

How to Translate Your Military Experience for a Civilian ResumeHow to Translate Your Military Experience for a Civilian ResumeTranslating Your Military Experience for a Civilian CareerThe transition from military to civilian life doesnt have be rocky. Heres how to take your transferable skill sets and translate them to fit your next career goal. Kudos to you You recently served in the armed forces and are ready to take that next step in transitioning your military career over to the civilian sector. Often, this requires some careful preparation. Below are some steps to help ease the process.Focus less on jargon and more on transferable skills.Much of the military terminology commonly used between you and your fellow colleagues on a daily basis will appear foreign to most recruiters, depending on the field you are choosing to transition into. Take a look at your current resume that youve used to apply for military and government positions, and work to clean up the content in terms of jargon, abbreviations, etc. Find out how to translate your skills and experience in a way that makes sense to your target audience a prospective employer in the civilian sector.Take inventory of your abilities.Its easy to get caught up in the terminology, facts, and figures that, while serving in a military role, meant a great deal to your commanding officers. Those skills and achievements still mean a lot, but can be translated into core competencies that are strongly desired in almost any civilian career sector. Critical thinking, time management, interpersonal skills, communication, teamwork, project management, strategic planning, and many other qualities are found in job postings across almost all career sectors. Find ways to explain your expertise and showcase your notlageable accomplishments in civilian-friendly language that speaks to a non-military audience.Create a LinkedIn profile.This social media tool is optimal for networking and sharing ideas. Having a well-crafted p rofile not only showcases your skills in a more comprehensive manner than on a standard two-page resume, but it also demonstrates your tech savvy and social media skills, which are strongly desired across various career fields. Plus, you can create a custom URL that can be listed as a form of contact on your resume. Not sure where to start? Check out LinkedIn for Veterans.Simplify all of the training.While it is wonderful to have a litany of education and training that you acquired during your years of military service, the entire list will likely not fit within the confines of a standard, modern two-page civilian resume format. Sift through it all and list only the transferable skill sets and remarkable awards. If possible, also create a resume appendix of sorts that, if an employer asks for detailed information, you can provide in an aesthetic format that matches your resume. The PDFs and print transcripts provided by military branches are often unreadable by those not familiar wi th the military, so a more concise list of all completed trainings will highlight your talents without bogging readers down with unnecessary details.Related Changing Careers? 7 Details to Include on Your Resume Consider a professional resume rewrite.There are resume services out there to help you and guide you in developing a brand-new civilian resume and cover letter that youll feel confident using when applying to post-military positions. The benefit of a professional resume writers expertise is invaluable to the many clients they serve, so take some time and research the many products and services offered by a professional resume-writing firm some like TopResume even offer content development services for your LinkedIn profile.Take advantage of the organizations that exist to help you.Its likely that your particular military branch offers transition services for enlisted personnel that are soon to be discharged. These services are free and useful, so take advantage of them if you are still in. There are also other organizations and resources, such as the Wounded Warrior Project, The Real Warriors Campaign, and many more that offer assistance. Many of those professional resume-writing services I previously mentioned hire writers who have specific experience in working with veterans and government personnel, so if you plan to opt for that service, be sure to strongly indicate that you are a military veteran looking to switch into a new and exciting careerWhile the prospect of transitioning to a new chapter can be scary and overwhelming, with the right resources and information at your disposal, it is my hope that your transition to a civilian career will be a smooth process and exciting change. Best of luck and cheersClick on the following link for more resume advice.Need help with your resume? Take advantage of our free resume critique todayRecommended Reading5 Signs You Need a Professional Resume ReviewResume and LinkedIn Profile Writing How Different Shoul d They Be?6 Essential Job-Search Tools for Veterans Looking for Civilian Jobs

Marking the One Year Anniversary of Federal Hiring Reform, Kathryn Troutman, Federal Resume Guru and President of The Resume Place, Addresses the Great KSA Debate

Marking the One Year Anniversary of Federal Hiring Reform, Kathryn Troutman, Federal Resume Guru and President of The Resume Place, Addresses the Great KSA DebateMarking the One Year Anniversary of Federal Hiring Reform, Kathryn Troutman, Federal Resume Guru and President of The Resume Place, Addresses the Great KSA DebateMarking the One Year Anniversary of Federal Hiring Reform, Kathryn Troutman, Federal Resume Guru and President of The Resume Place, Addresses the Great KSA DebateREGISTER FOR KATHRYN TROUTMANS HIRING REFORM WEBINAR ON JUNE 3, 2011One year ago, John Berry, Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and President Obama made bold moves to improve the application process for federal jobseekers by eliminating the dreaded Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA) narratives from federal applications. Kathryn Troutman and The Resume Place, the leading experts in Federal Resume Writing and Career Consulting, witness firsthand the effects and confusion that governmen t job applicants face regarding Federal Hiring Reform and the supposed elimination of KSAs in federal applications. Receive advice and tips from Ms. Troutman and The Resume Place on how to handle KSAs in the federal resume with the newly published fifth edition of the Federal Resume Guidebook.Federal Resume Guidebook, 5th Edition by Kathryn TroutmanIts no secret that the federal application process is a daunting task for most jobseekers, especially considering that applying for federal jobs is a totally different beast than applying to positions in the private industry. The separate KSA narratives required to apply for government jobs have kept many highly qualified applicants from applying for these positions. The Resume Place provides expert advice regarding federal resume writing and how to deal with KSAs in the applications for federal positions.One year ago, President Obama published an Executive Order mandating human resources specialists eliminate the dreaded Knowledge, Skill s and Abilities (KSA) narratives from the first-time federal application by November, 2011.On Thursday May 19, 2011, Kathryn Troutman addressed the National Press Club to discuss how the lingering effects of the recession combined with the Obama administrations reorganisation of the federal hiring process, has resulted in more Americans than ever applying for federal positions.In his recent speech at a panel discussion in Washington, DC, John Berry declared, We have gotten off of KSA island. Its an amazing leap forward.The OPM Press Release published on Tuesday, May 18, 2011 listed the following hiring improvement statistics Since the launch of the Hiring Reform initiative in May 2010, OPM has supported federal agencies with 351 training sessions in 66 cities for 17,300 people involved in the hiring process. Successful outcomes from this effort have includedHiring based on resumes and cover letters 91 percent of the time96 percent of job opportunity announcements no longer require K SA essaysHiring managers now have more choicesApplicants are now seeing shorter, easy-to-read job announcements86 percent of announcements in plain language66 percent of announcements are five pages or fewer.However, today, a USAJOBS Vacancy Announcement listed KSAs as a requirement to apply for a position. This Department of Health and Human Services advertisement for a GS-343-11/12/13 position, salary $62,467.00 $115,742.00 per year, for a Program Analyst included this information for applicants Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics) 1. Ability to design and conduct studies 2. Ability to monitor grantee wertmiger zuwachs 3. Ability to communicate orally.The KSA listing in this HHS job announcement statement can be puzzling for federal jobseekers, who have heard that the KSAs are eliminated from requirements. Federal job applicants are trying to follow the directions, but there are no directions in some of the USAJOBS announcements regarding the submission of KSAs.KSAs are obviously still important to the human resources specialists when determining the Best Qualified candidates. For savvy federal jobseekers, the KSA listings in the announcement are important clues to writing a Best Qualified application.Since the KSAs are not required as separate written narratives, recommendations for including knowledge, skills and abilities competencies in the federal application are given by Kathryn Troutman, the leading federal career consultant and author of several federal job search publications including the recently released fifth edition of the Federal Resume Guidebook.Kathryn Troutman recommends that the federal jobseeker include KSA accomplishments in the work experience section of their federal resume. The KSAs can also be briefly covered in the cover letter. The job applicant can prove their KSA skill level in the questionnaire multiple-choice selections. Finally, the KSAs c ould become interview questions in the government job interview.Dont ignore those KSAs, even though they are eliminated, said Kathryn Troutman, whose company, The Resume Place, helps federal job applicants. wrote Joe Davidson in his Washington Post article on May 19th, 2011.2011 Hiring Reform eliminated KSAs maybe. They are 96% eliminated as separate written narratives but KSAs are still listed in most federal job announcements. Kathryn Troutman recommends that the government job applicant include KSA accomplishments in the USAJOBS federal resume, cover letter, best selections in the multiple choice questionnaire, and as preparation for the federal job interview.For tips on how to include KSAs in the federal resume, please read The Resume Places article on how to properly include KSAs in the Federal Resume.

Joining the US Military is Getting Harder

Joining the US Military is Getting HarderJoining the US Military is Getting HarderIf youve been planning on joining one of the branches of the US Military, but have been putting it off, you may have lost your chance. For the past several months, all of the active duty and reserve branches have exceeded their recruiting goals. Waivers are Getting Rare Up until three or so years ago, enlistment waivers were relatively common, especially for the Army. The services would routinely waive disqualification factors, such as criminal history, minimum ASVAB scores, and even age to meet their monthly recruiting goals. Three years ago, about 20 percent of new Army enlistees had a GED instead of a high school diploma, and the Army even operated a special course to help potential enlistees get a GED. Those days seem to be gone. Very few waivers are now being approved. Why should the military take a chance on a waiver, when there are hundreds of applicants, waiting in line to join, who dont nee d one? I had one active duty Army recruiting tell me that he needs to enlist only one of three applicants who walk in his door in order to meet his monthly recruiting goal. So, why should he go through the extra time and paperwork to process a waiver request? unterstellung days, if you dont meet the set enlistment standards, your chances of getting a waiver are slim. Recruiting Goals Congress funds the military, and as such sets the maximum size of each military branch each year when they approve the annual military budget. Four years ago, Congress increased the size of the active duty Army and Marine Corps. That caused a short-term spike in Army and Marine Corps recruiting and retention goals, but both services are currently up to their maximum authorized strength levels. The spike is over. Both branches easily met their new size requirements, years ahead of schedule.

A Conference Junkies Guide to Attending (and Enjoying) Conferences

A Conference Junkies Guide to Attending (and Enjoying) ConferencesA Conference Junkies Guide to Attending (and Enjoying) ConferencesI love conferences. I love the awesome speakers, the swag bags, the great connections, the food, the social media component- all of it. In fact, I went to four different conferences this past summer in just a six-week time period.However, most people I know are a lot more uneasy when it comes to conferences. How do you mingle with speakers? Whats the right etiquette when walking into a session? What should you wear? What, exactly, should you do during break time?Well, lucky for you, Im taking you through an entire conference day, all of the eignung hurdles you could endure, and how to make the most of your time there.Pre-ConferenceBefore you head into a conference, be sure you do your research on what the conference is about, where it is, what the dress code looks like, who will be speaking, and what sessions youd like to attend once youre there. This ca n save you some confusion or embarrassment later on. Scared you wont know what to wear? If the conference youre going to is an established one, check out the website and find pictures to see what people are wearing. If youre notlage able to stalk the website or the conference social media for photos, feel free to email the organizers and ask. Or, if youre just hoping to wing it, I suggest finding a go-to outfit that can easily be dressed up or dress down. Personally, if I have no idea what a conference environment is going to look like, I wear a professional dress and heels and bring a blazer just in case I need to dress the look up a little bit.In addition, pack a conference survival pack, which should contain a notebook and a couple of pens, at least 25 business cards, a small snack, a bottle of water, your conference registration information, and a phone charger (computer charger, too, if youre going to want to use that).If you want to get extra points for pre-conference awesomen ess, feel free to check the conference hashtag on Twitter and Instagram to see who will be attending beforehand. Feel free to interact with these people. Who knows? Maybe youll all meet up at the event once youre there.Morning LogisticsCheck-InConference check-ins can be extremely awkward. Many of them are somewhat disorganized, and theres usually some sort of chaos in the front of house.My one pro tip Be extremely kind to everyone when you walk in. You never know whos manning the check-in table, and you dont want to make a bad impression, especially since many conferences (especially smaller ones) have conference organizers or influential people running the check-in table and welcome area.For example, I was once in a really awkward situation where a girl in front of me at a conference check-in was gossiping about the founder of the company that was hosting the conference. Who was standing right in front of her? That founder. Whoops. Even loudly complaining about how the conference is platzdeckchen up can be a wrong move here.MealsYoull want to check and see if the event will be covering meals, but Id still recommend eating a little something beforehand and bringing food just in case you dont like whats being served or something went wrong with catering.In terms of individual meals, breakfast is an awesome time to get a sense of the energy of the conference when you first walk in. Are people sitting at tables with people they dont know? Is there any networking going on? These are things to keep track of when you first walk in. Important tip Stay off your phone, and come up with a goal for your meal. It can be intimidating to be in a room where you dont know anyone, and a phone is an easy distraction, but try as hard as you can to engage with people instead. Even if your goal is as simple as having a five-minute conversation with one person over breakfast, thats better than nothing.Presentations and SessionsChoosing SessionsIf the conference youre at has multip le sessions to choose from in one time block, I recommend going to see a session on a topic that interests you but you dont know much about. Ive seen many people get scared and just attend a session with familiar speakers or content, but at the end of the day, youve invested time and money to be at this conference, so you should be trying to expand your horizons. And if you really cant choose? If youve come with a colleague, split up and agree to compare notes at the end of the day. If not? Use breakfast to find a conference friend, and see if he or she will do a similar arrangement.Talking to Speakers and PanelistsTalking to the people presenting at the conference is often extremely intimidating- especially when theyre surrounded by a gaggle of fans right after their talks. But making those connections is crucial Not only is I saw you speak at Conference X a great opening line for an intro email, but the fact that speakers are also interested in the same things as you can make them valuable allies later on. Plus, in my experience, Ive seen the same speakers pop up at several different events, and its great to build those relationships over a series of conferences. Of course, talking to a speaker can be a lot easier said than done, so here are a couple of tips. First, position yourself so that youre near the speaker. If he or she is on the right side of the stage, station yourself toward the front right part of seating. Look engaged during the presentation (not creepy Im your biggest fan engaged just happy to be there listening). During the session, write down some interesting points youd like to ask that person about. In terms of your approach, be aggressive but not rude (Ive seen conference attendees literally push each other out of the way to talk to a particular speaker). But get yourself in there Then, introduce yourself, ask your questions, make whatever connections you wanted to make, and try to get out of there within a couple of minutes if theres a lo ng line of people waiting behind you.Another important tip Dont just go after the really well-known speakers. If someone spoke eloquently and is lesser known, these people generally have more time to talk to you and can be fountains of knowledge. In other words, dozens of people go up to Arianna Huffington and ask her about her work on The Huffington Post. But one of HuffPosts editors? He or she is probably just as knowledgeable and definitely excited to talk to conference goers. Approach those people they can make excellent connections.NetworkingIn-PersonWhen you see Break on the agenda- well, its time to put those business cards to use Remember The vast majority of people at conferences are there to mingle with like-minded individuals, so dont be afraid to chat with others and make connections. Obviously, dont be over-eager (Heres my card Were now best friends Get me a job), but definitely dont be afraid to ask for business cards and hand out your card, too.Making conversation wit h strangers is always a little scary (and very awkward) at first. However, unlike a networking event where youre thrown together in a room with little or no context, a conference gives you one topic you all have in common the conference itself If you want to start chatting with someone, its as easy as starting off with a question about what sessions they attended or what speakers they liked the most. From there, it feels more natural asking that person what he or she does for a living and why he or she is at the conference in the first place.Social MediaNever underestimate the power of using social media (livetweeting, following the conference hashtag, liking and favoriting posts) during a conference. I cant tell you how many times Ive gotten to network on Twitter and Instagram with really awesome conference goers and highly sought-after speakers. If anything, being present on social media gives you the ability to be an influencer for an event. Never underestimate the power of socia l currency.Even cooler You can meet up with people youve met on the web and make some new friends and contacts. To this day, some of my closest friends and professional contacts were people I met through live tweeting events.Post-ConferenceFollowing UpIt goes without saying, but make sure you follow up immediately (within 24 hours) with any contacts you made at the conference. Large events can be really overwhelming, so if you wait any longer than a day to follow up, people might have already forgotten your face. Dont let themTalk About ItWhether youre on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram or you just have a blog, show your love for a conference ansprechbar Personally, I love writing blog posts about conferences I go to and what I learned. Another fun thing is applying conference lessons after the fact using social media. For example, if I heard a speaker at a conference give a great talk on female leadership in the tech industry and then I read an article a couple of weeks later about women in tech, its easy to tweet that article, tag the speaker or conference organizer, and use the conference hashtag. Again, its great for making connections after the fact and establishing yourself as an influencer.Best of luck with all of your conference attendingPhoto courtesy of Brennan Moore.