I have some real talk about resumes and how they are really, really a bad way to get yourself into the job you love. They are a part of it, but relying to heavily on your resume is a rookie mistake. As we used to say where I grew up, “Let me learn you some about it.”
Pull up a chair.
I wrote a tweetstorm about why resumes suck so bad at helping people get jobs and how you can step out of the hamster wheel and actually get attention from employers for who you are.
Just a note: Recruiting and Hiring is intensely biased by nature. It’s very hard to do well. Many great recruiters and people leaders spend all their waking hours trying to solve this problem and curb the risks of institutional bias in what they do. That being said, it’s out there. Everywhere. Being aware of what you’re up against doesn’t make it fair, but at least you know a little more about your enemy, which is understanding the reasons people hire versus the process companies tell you to follow when applying for jobs, which, spoiler alert, are completely opposite each other.
If you hear nothing else from this, remember this one lesson: “Standing in Line is for Suckers”.
(While you’re waiting to get a call back from that intern screening resumes, someone is connecting with the department VP right now, and they will get hired in the next 3 days)
Stop following “the rules” when going for your dream job. Do w.h.a.t.e.v.e.r. it takes to get noticed. That gets you hired, and promoted, and respected.
On to the tweetstorm…
Bottom-Line Up Front:
☝? Hiring is based on feelings not facts.
✌? Getting referred gives everyone that buzzy feeling about you.
?? You get to show up and be your authentic self. They already like you.
?? Spend 80% of your energy getting REFERRED for jobs
Come along for the ride, below:
Looking for resume feedback?
Here the real talk: jobseeking is marketing.
And resumes suuuck at marketing you. Your vibrance. Your passion. Your drive. Your dreams.
The REAL you.
Proof resumes are the worst marketing tool:
- Ever bought a smartphone because of the resume they put in a commercial? No.
- Ever went to that trendy restaurant because of the resumes they sent you? No!
You did those things because of something you FELT about them.
Because no matter how much someone will tell you otherwise, hiring is an EMOTIONAL decision.
Not fair? Yes. True? Also, Yes.
In fact, the most emotional decision any manager will make is who they hire.
? Use this to your benefit and encourage them to feel interested in talking to you.
The reason recruiters/hiring managers respond to the person who submits a resume or not is based on how the resume makes them FEEL. (Usually a more logical feeling, yet i argue still a feeling)
Lots of us are trying to make this less biased but it’s still how it is today.
Why You Didn’t Get Called Back
And the reason you didn’t get called back after that interview, even when they said you have all the skills, is either you didn’t make them FEEL whatever they felt about you at first or someone ELSE they interviewed gave them that feeling they were looking for.
Stop Gambling With Your Career — with a PDF!
Waiting on a boring text attachment in an email or submitted online to give an accurate portrayal of the fullness of YOU—your fiery passions and talents, lifelong dreams and skills, even fears and struggles—is a terrible, terrible gamble.
Get on the referral gravy train! ?
Meanwhile, research shows “88% of employers said referrals are… the best source for above-average applicants.”
So companies drain precious money and resources into employee referral programs and tracking their success.
The combination here is perfect for you:
An employee you actually know (not a recruiter) referring you to a company is the BEST and easiest way for you to show off your WHOLE self.
AND companies trip over themselves to incentivize & reward employees for referring candidates.
This is what Steven R. Covey was picturing when he said “win / win”
