Are you getting the results you want from your Resume?

There is good news and bad news about resumes. The good news: Resumes are powerful marketing tools that can open doors to exciting job opportunities. The bad news: Resumes are powerful marketing tools and are usually the first - and maybe only - glimpse an employer gets of you.

In my experience, people who feel the most confident about their resumes demonstrate plenty of results (both quantitative and qualitative), position themselves for the job the want NEXT, and have little trouble lifting the words from the page and effectively promoting themselves during an interview. In other words, they really know themselves from their accomplishments to where they are headed next.

If you aren’t getting the interviews you want, you should assess your resume to determine if it truly markets you and your good work in the strongest possible way. So take out your resume and get to work! Here are some guidelines to help you:

• Does my resume reflect results instead of just listing job responsibilities?


• Does my resume have a powerful summary that introduces a reader to who I am and what I offer so that they continue to read the rest of my resume?


• Does my resume reflect a progression in my career and do I demonstrate how I have developed and how my skills have impacted organizations?


• Do I have volunteer activities, leadership roles, community work, and professional memberships on my resume to further demonstrate my skills and abilities?

If you would like help with creating a high impact resume, contact us today at info@traversesolutions.com.

The Wave of the Future: The Self-Reliant Worker

Do you know someone who has held 9 or more jobs or changed careers 3 times? Maybe this describes YOU? It sure describes me.

Over my career I have had at least 9 different jobs (more if I counted temp positions) and have changed careers 3 times. In fact, career changers, job hoppers, free agents (whatever you want to call them) are the wave of the future. The generation entering the workforce now is expected to change jobs 9-13 times and change careers 3-7 times! And we're talking radical career changes: lawyer turned life stylist, marketing executive turned RN, and accountant turned professional dog walker.

People are increasingly seeking greater fulfillment from their professional and personal lives in a quest that goes beyond work/life balance. From globalization to outsourcing, merging to downsizing, reorganizing to rightsizing, it makes perfect sense that people either learn how to navigate the change that is sure to be constant or get lost when it comes to achieving career satisfaction.

So ask yourself...what does having a satisfying career mean to you?

What Direction is Your Career Headed?

• People seek my career coaching services for one thing: greater professional and personal satisfaction. For most people (although not all) a satisfying career results in a happier personal life and vice versa.
  
  
  When people complain about career dissatisfaction, more often than not they simply don't know where their careers are headed...or how they ended up with the one they have. A law degree might have been the best answer at the time to the all encompassing question: "What do I want to do with my life?" while others decided to nix a secondary degree only to float through their careers with no clear purpose.
  
  
  Taking the time to discover who you are, your value system and what you are passionate about plays an important role in achieving greater career satisfaction. The great news is, it's truly not as daunting as you think and you have all the answers! Here are a few helpful questions to get you started:

1. What do you love to do when you have spare time?


2. What do you naturally do well?


3. What would you do if you KNEW you could not fail?
   
   
   Reflecting on these questions will shed important insight on your life’s purpose and the career that will give you the greatest professional and personal fulfillment!