Cool Resume

This is a guest post I am publishing by Carter Gibson on Google+

https://plus.google.com/u/0/115121555137256496805/posts




For those of you that don't know, I've spent most of my college career working in American University's Kogod Center for Career Development and have seen a lot of resumes. I know a lot of you are using Google to network, so let's talk about what makes one successful and explore the place different types of resumes have in various industries (two of my many are included for fun!).

Customize Resumes
Alright. Here's the deal. Just like one outfit won't work at every company, one resume won't either. Get a feel for a company's culture and job requirements and then modify an existing template. For instance, a nontraditional company would appreciate a creative resume while a financial firm absolutely would not. Beyond design choice, what you chose to highlight in your resume should significantly change as well. Choosing which projects to highlight will be vital to your success.

You have to get the right people to look at it
Are you frustrated that you keep applying for jobs, submitting that perfect resume over and over again, but getting no response? Well, that's because your resume isn't the most important part about your resume. Your resume means little to nothing if no one reads it. Networking is vital and even just getting that first foot into the door to ask someone to circulate your resume will pay off much better than constant submissions.

Get feedback
I get it. Your resume is like your baby and criticisms to it can be taken personally as an attack on your accomplishments. Try not to think of it that way. Shop it around to some of your friends in the industry and get feedback. It's so much better to have your friend catch a typo than your dream company.

What resume tips would you all give to someone? What do you think of the alternative resume? 

Another Morning

Have you had one of those days when you wake up, and think 'ugh, another xday' where x is any day of the week.  It's troublesome when you've had time off, hit a brick wall, can't find another person to throw a resume at, have your resume formatted 17 different ways, and still found that at this point in your life, you might be thinking, 'Would you like fries with that?' wasn't such a bad gig after all.  Don't despair!  A lot of people are taking this 'off time' opportunity to go back to school -- which is fantastic.

I would highly encourage you, as a job seeker to upgrade your skills, what  ever they may be. Perhaps you always wanted to be a nurse but you are stuck tech mode, or maybe you are a nurse who always dreamed of teaching. Maybe you are an engineer or architect who has always wanted to start a company that led expeditions in the wilderness of wherever.  It can and should be done.

If  I had my own life to do all over again, I'd probably choose a life long skill set that is transferable in any job market, but is technical in nature.  But that's just me!  Although  I do like to get my hands dirty....maybe my life long obsession with growing mango trees indoors could -oh, wait (we interrupt this blog to bring you an important announcement).

Do you, like me, love the tangy, peppery smell of a ripe mango?  Did you know  that you can now have your very own mango tree, right INSIDE your house? It's true! If you call right now, operators are standing by to rush you your very own six pack of Mango seeds, a germination handbook, special recipe kit (straight from your kitchen cabinet) on how to fertilize your own Mango tree?  A specialized book, "The care and feeding of Mango's"  the follow on book "Mature Mango's" all in full color, with questions on every single detail!  Live in Dubuque Iowa, yes you too can have a Mango Tree!  Nebraska? You bet?  Alaska?

Call now, as operators are standing by!  Think of the lifetime of Mango's that you can have in you own home! You'll never have to pay outrageous store prices again!!!  Sweet, tangy, Mango starter kit with all mentioned above has a retail value of $75.99 but today, it's been marked for FREE! For the first 500 callers only, pay only $8.99 shipping and handling!

Now back to our regular scheduled programming.  On a serious note; if you are in IT, expand your skill set; there is a plethora of information online for free to expand your market. In fact if you are interested in expanding just about any part of your knowledge, I encourage you to take free classes online, lectures can be had at a myriad of places for free, including MIT, Harvard, and Yale.  Study up, expand your knowledge, stay sharp, and you will likely find your new found experiences will lend themselves to you expanding your mind, your circle of friends, and associates.

And remember, if you are still fishing for a job, throw in your line at www.govtcontractorjobs.com and find out who is hiring in your area!