Candidate,
10 seconds.
You'll recall from my email yesterday that that's how long you have to make an impression with your resume.
There's a way to make sure that anything you write gets instantly noticed and stands out — even in the 10 seconds you get!
Lifeless, boring, and ordinary resumes aren't just ineffective — they're "job killers." If you're ready to start a new job, how do you plan on doing this when your resume keeps sabotaging your first impression?
In my extensive resume research — not to mention all my hiring experience as a business owner — I've identified the top 3 reasons most resumes become job killers. I want to share those reasons with you today, as well as give you tips on how to avoid them.
MISTAKE #1: Thinking of a resume as a list of chronological facts
A resume is just a list of where you worked and what you did, right?
WRONG.
I made this mistake and got rejected time and time again, until I finally figured it out.
Listen up. A resume is NOT a chronological list of facts. This is the #1 weakness of the hundreds of resumes I see every year.
If you know that you have 10 seconds of the hiring manager's time to capture his attention, do you think it's going to be some random FACT that captures it?
In fact, try to use the "10 Second Hiring Manager" test: If a hiring manager looked at your resume RIGHT NOW — if he gave it the standard 10 seconds — what would he remember about it?
Would you be memorable? Would he know who you are and why you're right for the position? Would you get the job?
Facts matter — they'll want to know where you worked and what you did, of course — but to truly create a world-class resume, you need something else besides simply a list of facts.
You need a NARRATIVE. You need a STORY of who you are, and why you're perfect for the job. Why it could only be you, and nobody else. Something that forces the hiring manager to "float" your resume to the top of the pile.
You don't need more facts, dates, or fancy words.
I put together a new video for you called the "10-Second Narrative" test to help you get started.
Here's the video:
"10-Second Narrative" test
MISTAKE #2: Worrying about font size, length, and margins
We love to worry about the design of our resume...the margins...and obsess over whether it should be 1 page or 2 pages.
Do you know why? Because it's something we feel we can control!
Does it make a difference? Hardly at all.
Hell, I spent probably 30 hours on this as an inexperienced college student.
The truth is, you could have the technically most beautiful resume with perfect margins and fonts...but if it doesn't connect with the hiring manager, you didn't get the job. End of story.
Just like people who obsess over saving $2 on their daily latte, worrying about margins and font size and design is a pointless task that makes us "feel good" about ourselves...but won't get us the job.
MISTAKE #3: Thinking about a resume like a spoiled 14 year old
Imagine the worst, most spoiled 14-year-old kid you can. What's her favorite word?
ME! Me, me, me. I, I, I. It's always about HER.
We scoff. But we do the exact same thing with our resumes. We write what WE did...what WE want...what OUR educational background is.
Did you ever take the time to think about what the HIRING MANAGER wants? What are his hopes, fears, dreams? What would the PERFECT candidate look like?
What would the perfect candidate say? Where would she have worked? What would her key responsibilities be there?
Note: The "fears" part of that paragraph above is really important. We almost always focus on ourselves or what we "think" someone else wants...but we rarely focus on what they FEAR. For example, someone hiring a new college graduate is wary of an entitled young person who has 0 work experience....and will take tons of time to train.
How can you combat that fear?
How can you pick up on what their hopes and dreams are...and turn your experience into their exact desires?
The good news — how to improve your resume overnight
If you're curious how to avoid these mistakes and use your resume to land interview after interview, I have good news.
I put together the best end-to-end material on turning your resume and cover letter into interview magnets. I stuffed it with actual resume templates, word-for-word scripts, and videos of me tearing down real resumes...and showing you the before-and-afters right there on camera.
This is a SYSTEMS approach to writing your perfect resume. This is the same system I used to get job offers from Google, Intuit, Sun Microsystems (as a sophomore, beating Stanford MBA students for the job), a venture-backed startup, and many more. And it's the system I refined while recruiting people who earn 6 figures.
I packaged this system into a program: Overnight Resume Makeover. The program includes the exact words to use...and how to turn your experience into something that deeply "connects" with your hiring manager. Totally ethically.
Plus, case studies and interviews with students who used this with great success.
You can't control the economy or the job market, but you can control what goes on your resume.
Here's the link:
Overnight Resume Makeover
Talk to you soon,
