Verizon (telephone company) should answer their phones when you call them. Whole Foods should use good environmental practices. Hairdressers should have great hair. If these things DON’T happen, you lose faith in that individual or company!
The same is true for executives in a job search. Your resume content must match your elevator speech, your online profile, your networking chit-chat, your interview stories, and every other aspect of your career marketing messages to create a congruent, believable, provable image. All of the above should position you as “you” – just the best, brightest, most relevant “you” with regard to your current goals!
Louise: I couldn’t agree more! In August, I had relevant experiences both with a hairdresser and with a job-seeking client.
With the hairdresser, I was seeking to upgrade my “doo,” and I was willing to pay more for it, too. But the staff photo on the website of the upscale salon I was considering, revealed a dozen hairstylists with boring haircuts. Needless to say, I took my business elsewhere.
My client, on the other hand, had a well-branded, clearly targeted resume, which reflected exactly who he was, what he did, and testified to his success. He got a lot of interviews. Interestingly, though, he has yet to get a job.
No, he is not “bad” at interviewing. Rather, he turned the interviews into open, honest discussions about exactly what the companies needed from someone in this position. (They had been ambiguous about their needs in all other documents and contacts.) Together, they realized that they were not good fits for each other. For my client, these were excellent outcomes!
Why? First, because my client already had a job that wasn’t exactly what he wanted. Second, because he developed a great rapport with each interviewer. In one case, they even asked him to submit a proposal for the development of a new position–a position that would benefit the company while allowing my client to fulfill his career goals. In another interview, my client’s good interview rapport led to a number of new, significant networking connections.
Clearly, this interview approach won’t be right for the job-seeker who needs a job quickly, and who, for various reasons, isn’t looking for her dream job right now. But for my client, and for any client who is seeking true fulfillment in their work, truth in representing himself has borne great fruit.
Thanks for the interesting article and encouragement in the right direction.
Best,
Reya Stevens
Owner, StandOut Resumes
reya@standoutresumes.com
“Position Yourself. Reach Your Professional Goals.”
Reya, thanks for sharing. It’s quite a transformation for “job seekers” – who really, really want a job! – to think of themselves as “business consultants,” as you client has done. Yet the outcomes will be so much more positive for all.
I predict your client will find the right-fit opportunity before long, partly because he is crystal-clear about who he is/his value and is “putting it out there” in a consistent and credible way. Kudos to you for a great resume and expert coaching!
Speaking of Whole Foods, did you hear about their store in NYC where they were offering a great in-store discount to employees who had a lower BMI? Pretty controversial, but definitely a “walk the talk” kind of incentive policy. I wonder if it’s had any impact on Whole Foods jobs seekers in that location…
Kynslie, very interesting. My daughter just told me about a trivia game she played where they learned people who smoke can’t work for the World Health Organization! I think it’s OK to be controversial if you are, as you say, walking your talk.