I think I have said this before, and I am going to say it again- I despise resumes. They are historical. They state what you've done, not what you can do and not necessarily what you want to do next.
In today's search for work, it is almost a waste of time to construct a resume without a job posting to reply to. Please consider the job posting the RFP (request for proposal). Your resume will be the proposal. You will address all the critically important requirements of the job and use as much of the posting's language as possible. Yes, the coverletter may say some of the same things, but who knows if or when the coverletter will be read. If people are too busy to read the resume, what makes you think they will have time to read the coverletter? Some always do, others never will.
I was meeting with one man who wanted help with his resume and before I even looked at it I asked him "What do you want to do?"
He said "I am an Engineer". I said, "OK, but that wasn't my question, what do you want to do?"
He thought for awhile then said "I have been an Engineer my whole life." I asked him if he enjoyed his work. "It has supported me and my family". I asked him again if he enjoyed it and he admitted "For the most part".
"Life is short" I reminded him. "You now have the opportunity to do something that you love, or at least brings you great joy. You have lost your job and have been given permission to re-evaluate how you spend the rest of your working life".
These were questions he hadn't asked himself. They were hard. I believe he did use to enjoy being an Engineer, but he was no longer passionate about his work. I began reading the laundry list of job duties on his resume. I couldn't tell anything about him from these duties. I asked him to tell me about something in his recent past he was proud of. After a long pause, he told me a story. As he told the story, I saw his eyes twinkle and a smile came across his face. Now I could begin working on his resume. In his story, I heard his skills and hidden strenghts, I saw a flicker of his passion.
Begin recording stories. Recall the times you felt proud in you work. These are the stories that make a resume. They are called Accomplishments.
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