http://www.glassdoor.com/blog/3-secrets-influential-resume-summary/

3 Secrets To An Influential Resume Summary

Posted by onTargetjobs • March 18th, 2013 • Leave a comment

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Writing a resume ‘summary of qualifications’ that stops employers cold and makes them realize you’re the right candidate can be challenging. After all, you’re good at what you do, but can be tricky to boil down your ROI to concise statements in hopes of standing out.

For most people, writing a summary of qualifications is such a major task that they look around at other resume examples to get ideas.

Here are some insider tips to creating a summary that exemplifies your personal brand in just a few words – making employers take notice:

1. Lose the Boilerplate Language. Today, every professional is self-motivated and results-driven (and if they aren’t, they’ll be spending the majority of their time job hunting).

Copying generic summary phrases from other resumes is one of the worst sins you can commit, because it’s a sure way to tell employers that you’re identical to everyone else.

Shake things up instead by making a list of your top value-added skills employers need. Do you complete projects faster or more accurately than colleagues?

Have you been promoted quicker, due to your business acumen or leadership skills? Are you able to spot new business opportunities and close deals that are lucrative for your employer?

This list will give you ideas to use in writing your summary—concepts and skills unique to YOU that most likely won’t show up in the resumes of your competition.

2. Pull in Quantifiable Facts. Employers aren’t hiring just to have a potential source of help – they need the ROI you can deliver. So show them your value in figures and metrics from throughout your work history.

This example of an Operational Safety Manager resume summary provides a quick snapshot of consistent value, backed up by metrics:

“Safety advocate and operational leader who influences profit (up to 20% single-year increase) by fostering productive, engaged employees. Hands-on manager with strong financial acumen, delivering regular cost, efficiency, and volume forecasting improvements throughout 80,000-square foot plants.”

As shown here, quantifiable achievements in your resume summary help to quickly distinguish you from other candidates – even in a crowded field with hundreds of applicants.

3. Drop Names. Marketing copywriters have known for years that name-dropping gets attention. Now, you can take a cue from these professionals to amp up the volume in your resume summary section.

If you’re in a sales leadership role, you can mention names of major clients, with a line such as “Closed high-value deals with Apple, Cisco Systems, and Oracle.”

Even if client names are confidential, your summary can use the information in a different way, such as “Created millions in key partnerships with Fortune-ranked corporations in the technology industry.”

Not in sales? You can still reference the names of partner alliances, past employers, or vendors to show collaboration and leadership skills, as in this example:

“Senior Vice President commended for turning around performance through sourcing negotiations with Baptist Health System, Medical Center of Austin, and the Mayo Clinic.”

In conclusion, your resume summary isn’t the place to be modest and toned-down in describing your brand value. Instead, consider boosting its effectiveness with well-placed, strategic information on your specific value-add to employers. – Originally posted on onTargetjobs by Laura Smith-Proulx

http://www.glassdoor.com/blog/10-reasons-cover-letter-sucks/

10 Reasons Your Cover Letter Sucks

Posted by Heather Huhman • March 19th, 2013 • Leave a comment

A strong cover letter could be your ticket to moving a step further in getting a new job. This relatively concise piece of information has the ability to place you steps ahead of other candidates, highlight your achievements, and showcase your personality – but no one ever said creating one would be an easy task. Writing a knockout cover letter might even be one of the most challenging parts of the hiring process.

It’s hard to nail down just one challenge that accompanies writing cover letters. Unfortunately, many poor cover letters have allowed outstanding candidates to be passed over by hiring managers. While writing your cover letter might be a scary task, doing it successfully is essential to getting hired.

Don’t let your next cover letter be a flop; consider these 10 mistakes before you hit send:

1. It’s Riddled with Errors. There are many things the errors on your cover letter will express to a hiring manager: lack of attention to detail, carelessness, and even disinterest in the position. Your cover letter deserves to be triple checked for poor grammar, punctuation, and overall structure. Pass it along to your mentor or friends to ensure you haven’t missed anything.

2. It Lacks Focus. What are you attempting to convey to the hiring manager? Writing about your professional experiences can be challenging, and it often causes job seekers to create unfocused cover letters. To write a more direct cover letter, consider creating a layout encompassing your main points.

3. It’s Too Long. Respect the busy schedule of a hiring manager by utilizing brevity in every cover letter you create. Write short and succinct paragraphs to allow for a more easily read document. Sift through unnecessary details and only present the most beneficial information for the job at hand.

4. It Doesn’t Set You Apart. Your cover letter is your chance to leave your mark on a hiring manager. Rather than reiterating what they can read on your resume, use this as an opportunity to share why you’re better for the job than any other candidate. Use a strong, purposeful statement of what you can bring to the position, and how you can positively benefit the company as a whole.

5. It Fails to Highlight Your Skills. While you certainly don’t need to highlight every single job you’ve had during your career, your cover letter should talk about your skills and experiences most beneficial to the company. Your cover letter isn’t for sharing your personal life or specific needs.

6. It’s Missing Information. Job listings often require certain information from applicants. By failing to share the necessary information in your cover letter, you’re essentially removing yourself from the hiring process. Why would a hiring manager choose you over a candidate who went above and beyond to provide the correct details? Double check the qualifications needed for the position prior to sending it.

7. Your Tone is Off. While a cover letter is a professional document, it also gives your potential employer insight into your personality. Don’t rub a hiring manager the wrong way with long-winded bragging. Be sure to leave out arrogance, unprofessional information, and keep the company’s culture in mind.

8. It’s Generic. Customization is key in every part of the hiring process. Submitting a generic cover letter presents you as an average candidate. Your cover letter is an opportunity to stand out and truly speak to a hiring manager – don’t settle for generic.

9. You’re Not Qualified. No matter how you twist and stretch your skills and experiences, you might not be the right candidate for the position. Applying to a position you’re under qualified for is an all-too-common part of the job search. Keep in mind this not only wastes the time of the hiring manager, it also uses up the time and energy you could be spending on applying to position you’re more accurately matched.

10. You Don’t Have One. Just because a cover letter wasn’t mentioned in the job listing, doesn’t mean it’s OK to skip it – they’re never optional. Your cover letter is an important opportunity to convey points you can’t in your resume. Omitting this document leaves you at a fault.

Creating a strong cover letter may be a challenging, but it’s worth the time and energy. Leave a positive first impression on hiring managers by going out of your way to create a concise, focused, and customized document.

http://idealistcareers.org/4-tips-for-staying-positive-while-searching-for-a-job/

4 tips for staying positive while searching for a job

Photo credit: Jon McGovern, Creative Commons/Flickr

Searching for a job can be a formidable task, and whether you’ve been looking for a job for a few weeks or a few years, it’s easy to feel discouraged. However, there are ways to counter self-doubt and make effective strides in your job hunt. Try these four tips for staying positive while looking for your next opportunity.

Create a daily routine.

For many people, losing the daily routine that comes with a job can be one of the most unsettling aspects of unemployment. If you find yourself struggling to stay organized or motivated, or becoming easily discouraged or anxious, implement new routines using your job search as a base. Setting up even a basic routine—perhaps a daily cocktail of one part surfing the want ads, one part networking, and one part researching your field, with a sprinkling of fresh fruit breaks and walks around the block—can really help keep you grounded.

Also, consider devoting a little time each day to journaling about your job search activities. In particular, write about what you do well and how you feel engaging in all aspects of the search. Look for patterns that help you predict when you might feel particularly stressed or down. Note the activities that give you positive energy and incorporate more of them into your routine.

Connect with others.

Think of a few people you know who have recently taken a new job and set up time to chat with them about their experiences. Even if they looked like they navigated the process with casual ease and confidence, you will probably hear a different story. If you ask your friends if they ever felt unsure of themselves, you’ll likely hear some tales of insecurity, worry, and self-doubt. Talking about these experiences can help you remember that a job search is hard on everyone, but that if you maintain a focus on self-care, you’ll be able to get through it. Also consider a job search support group to share your experiences, or even volunteering to develop and maintain new relationships while helping others.

Keep an eye on your health and stress.

It can be tempting to forge blindly ahead despite physical and emotional symptoms of stress, and transition is a time when stress can sneak up and deplete your reserves before you’re aware it’s happening. There are obvious reasons for experiencing stress during a job transition: dwindling finances, pressure from family to get a job, and mounting self-doubt about the chances of future employment. So be proactive: monitor the quality of your sleep, diet, and exercise and talk about the issues that are worrying you. Also, be kind to yourself: it’s not easy trying to put your best self out there, day after day, in difficult circumstances.

Remember that your life is more than your job search.

Your job search should be on the front burner when you’re in transition, but your life is not your job search. Support, discovery, adventure, and connection should be key elements in keeping your life balanced. Remember to stop, take deep breaths, and invigorate your mind along the way. Think of your career transition as one big exercise in self-improvement.

How do you stay positive while job hunting?