One of the lessons I have always tried to teach both of my children, most times with great difficulty, is that “life is not fair…get used to it.” I want to illustrate and expound upon this simple lesson today and point it in a direction we can expressly apply to our approach to writing resumes.

Whether you are writing copy, preparing a resume, composing a cover letter, writing a business plan, or coveting the content and the on-line success of those popular web-sites and blogs you visit everyday.

“Life is not fair…get used to it”

I visit web sites and blogs on a regular basis in an effort to develop a broader sense of illumination on how I can convey my message in a significant, meaningful way. What have I discovered, that true success is not something we duplicate by copying what others do but rather creating our own buzz, our own unique style and unforgettable delivery of our message. You make your own breaks by exploring those areas external to your own comfort zone or what is accepted (as long as it’s legal). You are your best selling asset when you flee from those self-inflicted boundaries we all impose on ourselves.

The same is true with writing your resume…

You can apply all the rules and standards we all see that are “accepted” and still not be successful in the delivery of your message. No matter what it is. Here’ a classic illustration of one of the most successful resumes I have ever developed. No, I am not going to entice you to buy it or show you a template of my own…I am going to give it to you. Only I am going to deliver it via a written idea, and let you explore your own possibilities with it. I spoke of it briefly in my post “The Unique You in your Resume” It’s about how you can deliver not only verbally, but visually and memorably.

We’ve all seen the typical resumes…they are everywhere, right? You can download them for free, you can pay for them, and you can pay someone else to create them for you. Have you ever thought of presenting your unique qualifications and talents in a way that nobody, or at least nobody in my experience, has seen?

Take at look at a newsletter that captures your attention, or the design of a magazine article that grabs you and ask yourself…why couldn’t I present myself to a potential employer in this way? Who says I have to use the standard accepted formats and designs? “They” do…but who are “They?” Industry professionals? Perhaps. Human resource experts…Yes, those too. Someone who wants to sell you his or her service, yes, thousands!

Take this tid-bit and explore your own possibilities and apply your own creativity and style. It may or may not work for you, but I, and others I have given this fresh, unique approach to have had remarkable success with winning an interview and capitalizing on its presentation in their interview.

Again, anything that is terrifically successful starts with an expression and idea extraordinarily unique and unusual. Risky, yes…but what do you have to lose? “Lifes not fair…get used to it” and capitalize on that truth with an outside-the-box idea.

One of the most, if not the most important determinant in opening the door of opportunity into any organization you have aspirations to join, is your Resume. The time you invest in the development of one of your most valuable assets in your quest to find the perfect job will significantly increase your ability to make your entrance into nearly any field of expertise and get noticed.Though the years, I have had many different resumes that I’ve personally used, but none with the success of the particular style I use now. My style, my uniqueness if you will, is easily conveyed not only with the words or content within my resume, but the actual visual presentation of the resume itself. My particular style is certainly not the only way to get noticed and I am speaking from purely my personal experience but it has served me well and has been key in getting called for that personal interview. Face it, that’s the goal, the interview. Once you get to the interview, well that’s an entirely new and substantive topic and will be covered in other posts. For now, I would like to focus purely on presentation.

Background

Years ago, I worked with a very talented young man both artistically and articulately, who is now a popular local news anchor where I live. He is responsible, although completely unaware, that he was the one who turned me onto the idea. He was developing his own resume and shared its content and layout with me. I found his idea very eye catching and the way he presented his qualifications and experience extremely appealing on a number of levels.

Application

First, although he had plenty of education and experience to capitalize on, he managed to arrange it in a way that accommodated a one-page resume.

I prefer one-page resumes. Reason being, I have known many HR professionals and been responsible myself for hiring competent, creative, and innovative employees and understand how inundated you can be with resumes from 100’s of applicants depending on the competition within the particular field your hiring. It is a daunting task to sift though all the various candidates and determine who and who does not make the first-cut. I personally review resumes when I am in a position to hire new employees (I don’t believe that computers can identify those soft-skills that are so important to me as a hiring official). The qualifications all sound the same, the layout, the same…objectives, highlights, experience and the like, all start to run together and feel more like boring advertisements rather than lets face it, the sales pitch they need to be to get my attention.

Secondly, in coming to understand my own unique talents, knowledge, skills, and abilities, I find that if I am going to choose to work for someone, rather than myself, I want to work in a place that exudes a culture that aligns with my values and encourages innovation, creativity, and outside-the-box thinking. So, understanding what kind of person you are, your personality type, what kind of job or career gives you the sense of satisfaction you desire, and your own personal strengths is fundamental in the development of your particular resume. This is no easy task and requires a very honest, personal evaluation. If your not honest with yourself about your own perceived strengths and weaknesses, others will see though you.

So whether you are a number cruncher, in sales, human resources, information technology, management, training…etc. etc. etc., you must have a good fundamental understanding of who your are, and then develop your resume from that understanding. Think of it this way, you are the foundation, you don’t build a building without a blueprint, so spend the time developing the blue print for who you are and then lay the foundation and build from there. This will help you not only in the development of your own resume, it will also help you after you get though the door to the Human Resource or other hiring authority who will be interviewing you. If you aren’t what you convey though your resume, it will be apparent to any experienced hiring authority.