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3 Ways Your Resume Makes You Look Old

3 Ways Your Resume Makes You Look Old
  • March 13th, 2024
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3 Ways Your Resume Makes You Look Old

For a variety of reasons, baby boomers are staying in the workforce a lot longer. However, this demographic faces a number of challenges, including experience discrimination, an issue where baby boomers struggle to get employment opportunities because millennials have enough relevant experience to be just as valuable, but at less of a cost.

Because the pool of baby boomer employees has grown so significantly, employers are starting to change their views on the 65 and up demographic, and are at least giving them a closer look. Just because you are of a certain age doesn’t mean your resume should reflect that age!

One of the keys to staying attractive to potential employers is to not look or act out of date—in person or on paper. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use a photo on your LinkedIn profile. Profiles without pictures only make recruiters and potential employers wonder what you may be hiding. And the truth is they are going to meet you during the interview process. So there’s no reason to hide.

Still, there are many ways you can date yourself without realizing it. Here are three ways your resume can make you look old.

Having An Objective Statement

Older man on laptop updates his resume so it doesn't make him look old

Over the years, styles change. You wouldn’t wear the same suit you wore 20 years ago. Unless you’re a collector, the car you’re driving looks a lot different too. The same is true for resumes. Having an objective statement on top of the resume used to be all the rage! They were used to let employers know that a candidate had some career direction.

Today, having an objective statement on your resume makes it seem obsolete. Maybe even worse than being outdated, an objective statement implies that your focus is on you.

Big mistake.

Like most of us, employers are listening to station WIIFM (what’s in it for me?). They want to know how you can solve their problems. Removing your objective statement and creating a succinct experience summary (a list of skills at the top of your resume) updates your resume and puts the focus on what you can do for the employer.

Having An Old-Fashioned Email Address

via GIPHY

Back in the 90s, having an AOL email address indicated that you were ahead of the curve, an early adopter of new technology. That was last century. Today having an AOL email address, even a Yahoo email address, makes you look decidedly outdated.

The trendy email address to have today is Gmail. The good news is that Gmail is free and easy to join. No need to eliminate that old AOL email address—use it to keep up with friends and family.

When you do create a new email address, opt for one that sounds professional. For example, your name or a variation of your name that will look appropriate on your resume. Cutesy email addresses like talketome@ or carguy@ are best kept for personal use.

Too Many Clichés

One thing that’s sure not to impress potential employers is a resume filled with clichés. Every day recruiters get resumes from out-of-the-box thinkers and team players. Tired phrases like detail-oriented or excellent communication skills are not likely to impress anyone either. Neither are bullets that begin with responsible for or duties included.

You’re much more likely to get a recruiter’s attention by including examples that actually show what you can do. That means a resume that highlights your skills and achievements. A resume that illustrates how you saved time, saved money, generated income, etc. for a previous employer.

Will making these changes make you look 20 years younger? Not likely. Nor should you want them to, particularly if you are looking for a more senior position. But they will keep your resume looking fresh and up to date.

Remember: Your resume may be the first time a potential employer meets you. Shouldn’t it reflect someone who’s on top of their game, who’s still relevant and in demand in their industry?

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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5 Tips For A Career Change Resume

5 Tips For A Career Change Resume
  • January 16th, 2024
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Writing a career change resume can be tricky. How can you effectively market yourself to employers in a different industry when you don’t have nearly enough experience as the average candidate applying for the same job as you?

If you’re looking to make a career change, optimizing your resume becomes even more important than it normally is. It’s also critical to write a disruptive cover letter and make strategic networking and intentional branding the priority.

Follow these five tips for an effective career change resume so you can land your dream job in a new industry.

1. Create An Interview Bucket List

An interview bucket list is a list of 10-20 companies you’d love to work for. Before beginning your job search as a career changer, having an interview bucket list is a must.

How can you identify the right companies to add to your interview bucket list? Well, it’s simpler than it sounds. Think about the companies you admire—for their mission, the product or service they provide, or both. Then, determine whether you could find an opportunity at these companies that aligns with your career change goals.

When creating your interview bucket list, you’re ultimately looking for companies you connect with. Why are you passionate about working for them? Tell that connection story in your disruptive cover letter. Then, you’ll be able to tailor your resume for specific job openings at these companies, customizing it for each position that you apply for. This leads to our next tip for a career change resume…

2. Highlight Your Transferable Skills

Man on laptop writes a career change resume

Transferable skills are hard skills that are in demand across many different roles and industries. As a career changer, highlighting your transferable skills on your resume is the key to looking as qualified as possible for the position you’re applying for.

Never include soft skills on your resume. It doesn’t matter whether you’re changing careers or not. Soft skills cannot be quantified. Therefore, they do not belong on your resume.

For example, “detail-oriented” is a soft skill, and “project management” is a transferable skill. You may not have experience managing the types of projects in the industry you’re looking to get a job in, but if you have the skill, you’ll likely be able to transition into a role that requires project management smoothly.

3. Focus On Your Accomplishments

Woman on laptop writes a career change resume

In the “Work History” section of your resume, you’ll want to focus on what you accomplished in previous roles, keeping your transferable skills in mind. For each role you list, you should have at least three bullet points detailing your quantifiable accomplishments.

Employers want to see what you accomplished in your previous roles and how those accomplishments could translate to success in their industry. They don’t care what your tasks or responsibilities were. That won’t tell them the value you provide as a business-of-one.

What accomplishments are you most proud of in your career? Write those down. Hiring managers will probably be impressed by them too.

4. Avoid Irrelevant Information

Man on laptop writes a resume for his career change

Any irrelevant information you include on your career change resume will hurt your chances of getting an interview. Hiring managers spend only seconds reviewing each resume that comes across their desk. If they can’t easily identify relevant information, they’ll assume you aren’t qualified for the position and toss your resume.

Only including relevant information on your resume will be difficult if you’re changing careers. But if you follow the tips above, you should be on the right track.

5. Use The “Additional Experience” Section To Your Advantage

Woman on laptop writes a resume for her career change

The “Additional Experience” section of your resume is the perfect place to showcase more relevant work or volunteer experience for the industry you’re looking to switch to.

Did you volunteer at an organization within the same industry? Have you worked on special projects that involved the industry in some way? This section is where you should include any remaining relevant information you believe makes you qualified for the job you’re applying for.

These five tips will help you write an effective career change resume. Just remember the importance of strategic networking and intentional branding in your job search as well.

To get your resume in front of hiring managers, you’ll likely need to go around the ATS and focus on networking your way into companies by connecting with current employees of these companies on LinkedIn. Customizing your resume, writing a disruptive cover letter, and having a solid networking strategy will help you successfully change careers.

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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5 Things To Do TODAY To Get Noticed On LinkedIn
  • September 7th, 2023
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These days, you’re a simple Google search away from blowing recruiters away or making them rethink your candidacy for a job. So, it’s important to stay on top of your online presence!

Plus, if you want to get noticed by employers or recruiters, you need to be proactive. Here are five things you can do TODAY to help you get noticed on LinkedIn:

1. Update Your Old Photo

How old is that photo on your LinkedIn profile? If it’s old, it’s time for an update. Upload a clean, professional photo of yourself. You don’t need to hire someone to take a professional photo of you. Just make sure the lighting is good, your appearance is professional, and you don’t have a distracting background.

2. Share Interesting Articles On Your LinkedIn Feed

Man on phone shares an article on LinkedIn to get noticed

Share articles that are relevant to your industry, that your connections might find valuable, or that you just think are interesting reads. By doing this, you’re adding value to your connections and increasing your visibility within your network.

3. Check In With A Connection

Woman on laptop checks in with a connection on LinkedIn

Send a message to check in and/or share an article you think they might find valuable. Nurture your network now and they will be more likely to help you out later when you need them.

4. Recommend Or Endorse Someone

Man endorses a connection on LinkedIn to get noticed

In order to get recommendations or endorsements, you need to give them out. Write a thoughtful recommendation for a connection you know and trust. Give out a few endorsements to people who have showcased their skills to you. The more you give to others, the higher the chance they’ll repay the favor.

5. Update Your Accomplishments

Woman on phone updates her LinkedIn profile to get noticed

Take a few minutes to go over your work history and make sure your numbers, keywords, and accomplishments are accurate. Do this now and you won’t have to do a complete overhaul later. It’s good to keep up with it!

If you want to get noticed on LinkedIn by recruiters, employers, or anyone else, it’s critical to keep your profile and presence up to snuff. It’s better to do it little by little rather than completely redo it when you need it most. Try using these tips today!

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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5 Tips For A Career Change Resume

3 Ways To Quantify Your Experience With Numbers
  • June 29th, 2023
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If you’ve been doing your homework on how to write an effective resume, you’ve seen a recurring theme: you have to quantify your work experience. Although most people understand the general idea of this, we find that job seekers often struggle with applying this idea to writing their resumes.

Here are three easy ways to quantify your work experience with numbers so your resume stands out!

1. Show How Many

Sometimes our responsibilities don’t sound that impressive until we start detailing how much work we’ve been doing. For instance, if one of your job responsibilities is tracking your company’s compliance with filing a set of forms every year, you could write that two different ways:

Ensured compliance with filing of annual forms.

—or—

Ensured compliance with the filing of 75 annual forms by 7 different company departments.

Doesn’t the second example sound much more impressive?

2. Show How Much

Woman on phone and laptop quantifies her experience on her resume

If you have a job in sales, marketing, or any other business where profitability is the ultimate goal of your position, citing exactly how much money you’ve either made or saved your company is the way to go.

For example, if you’re an internal auditor, your resume could say:

Saved company money by finding ways to cut costs.

—or—

Implemented new payroll and tax accounting systems that saved firm $1M in personnel costs over the next 10 years.

Estimates are fine when citing these types of numbers, as long as you can justify your claim if someone asks you in an interview.

3. Show How Often

Man on laptop writes down quantifiable accomplishments on his resume

We frequently talk with job seekers who have previously been successful in very high-volume environments. If you’ve worked in this type of setting, please give yourself credit!

Even an administrative assistant’s job sounds completely different when quantified and given some context:

Answered phones at the front desk.

—or—

Managed switchboard with 10 incoming lines, effectively receiving and routing an average of 500 calls per day.

My goodness, who wouldn’t hire the second candidate?

As you write your resume, ask yourself these three important questions:

  1. How many?
  2. How much?
  3. How often?

The key to landing an interview is to answer those questions as you describe your previous professional accomplishments. Once you learn how to quantify your results and work experience, nothing will hold you back!

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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How To End Your Week On A Positive Note
  • May 5th, 2023
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As the workweek comes to a close (for most of us), I want to share a set of habits that have become an end-of-the-week routine for me. This routine has been key to ending my week on a positive note and “teeing up” a great start to the following week.

So, how do you end your week on a positive note? As we say at Work It Daily, it’s all about creating good habits.

Consider doing these three things before you leave work each Friday:

Habit #1: Write A Thank-You Note

Happy woman ends her week on a positive note

Reach out with a quick email or (better yet) a short thank-you note expressing gratitude for those who went out of their way to help you this week.

This is literally a 10-minute exercise that has powerful results. You’ll feel great in expressing thanks and the recipient will receive a nice message to end the week on. Who went out of their way to help you this week?

Habit #2: Reflect On Your Accomplishments

Man works on a project before leaving work

Make note of what you believe were your three greatest accomplishments over the past week. Embrace the sense of satisfaction and positive emotion associated with getting these important things done.

Connect this habit with the one above. Was there anyone who contributed significantly to your three greatest achievements? Follow up or reach out to those people with a word of thanks.

Habit #3: Set Goals For Next Week

Co-workers set goals for the next week during a work meeting

What are your three most important goals for next week? Write them down before you log off or leave the office, and visualize yourself reaching those goals. Think about what it will take for you to be successful the following week.

Do you have sufficient time set aside to accomplish those goals? Who do you need to solicit for help? (Go ahead and reach out and confirm their participation before you end this week.) What is the very next action associated with each of those goals, and do you have that task clearly identified on your calendar or task list with a due date?

Give these habits a try on Friday afternoons. If you see a positive effect, add other ones that are relevant to your situation. The message here is to begin a weekly routine that will help you end the week in a positive way and help you get clarity on the most important things for next week.

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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Want To Land A Job In 2023? Your Resume MUST Include This!
  • November 8th, 2022
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The primary goal of your resume is to help you stand out to employers so they give you a call and invite you in for an interview. It’s the first impression a hiring manager has of you, and the first step to landing a job. So, how do you optimize your resume so it beats out the competition?

Many job seekers feel lost when writing their resumes. What should you include on it? How much information is enough? What do hiring managers really want to see?

If any of these questions have crossed your mind, don’t worry. Here’s the one thing you need to include on your resume if you want to stand out to employers and land a job.

The Secret To Landing A Job In 2023? Quantifiable Accomplishments On Your Resume!

Man writes his resume on his laptop

The most important thing to include on your resume is quantifiable accomplishments. Quantify your work experience and put those numbers and figures under the “Work History” section on your resume.

Not sure how to quantify your work history?

Follow these 3 tips to effectively quantify your work history on your resume:

1. Add numbers to your bullet points

You should have at least one number for each bullet point you include on your resume. If you want to show your depth of experience in certain areas, you need to show those numbers. By doing this, an employer can see how much experience you have and how often you use a certain skill. So it’s really important to add as many numbers as you can to these bullet points.

Go through an average day at work, list all of your responsibilities and tasks, and ask yourself, “Okay, so if this is what I was doing every day, how often was I doing it? How much did I do? How many people did I work with?” By asking yourself these types of questions, you’ll be able to pull out those numbers and add that depth of experience to your bullet points.

2. Include 3-7 bullet points per role

For each role you list on your resume, you should write three to seven of these quantified bullet points to showcase the skill sets that you have that are related to the position you’re applying for. Any more than that and you’ll likely overwhelm the reader. The hiring manager may think you’re overqualified, that your experience is all over the place, or that you wouldn’t be happy in the job.

So, be careful how much you put on your resume because too little text sends a message, but so does too much text. You need just the right amount of information, and three to seven bullet points is the sweet spot.

3. Choose accomplishments that support your relevant hard skills

You need to be intentional with what you’re choosing to put on your resume to make sure you’re supporting your specialty, that service you provide to employers as a business-of-one. The key is to only choose the accomplishments that relate to the skill sets you’re showcasing in the top fold of your resume, the skill sets that directly support your specialty.

Make sure you’re intentionally pulling these things and including them on your resume as opposed to listing every accomplishment you’ve ever had in your career. This is going to be very important in terms of showcasing that depth of experience because you don’t want hiring managers to get distracted. You don’t want them focusing on an accomplishment that doesn’t support a relevant skill set. Make it clear what your specialty is and how you’ve provided value to employers with those skill sets in the past.

Why Quantifying Your Work History Is Essential

Woman holds her resume while talking to a hiring manager on the phone

Quantifying your work history is usually the hardest part of writing a resume for job seekers. It’s simply not something we learn in school. Recruiters and hiring managers don’t want to know how you did your job or what your tasks were. All they care about are the results.

What did you make happen as a result of your work? How did you add value? When you quantify your work history, a recruiter can look at the hiring manager and say, “This person has done this, this, and this. And here are the numbers to prove it.” That’s why your resume needs to be quantified. It’s proof that you’re a qualified job candidate and a valuable potential employee.

What Does “Quantifying Your Work History” Look Like?

Man reviews his resume

There is always a way to quantify your work experience. You may think that you have nothing to quantify on your resume, but you do.

If this is your first time trying to quantify your work history and you can’t think of anything that counts as a quantifiable accomplishment, write out what you did at a specific job, circle every noun, and ask yourself: “Can I quantify that?”

For example, a receptionist may not think they have any quantifiable accomplishments or any type of work history that can be quantified. But when they asked themselves the right questions, they realized they accomplished a lot more than they thought, and they could assign numbers to these accomplishments. They asked…

  • “How many people work at my company?”
  • “How many calls did I take a day?”
  • “How many phone lines were on the system?”

The result? A few bullet points listing their quantifiable work experience:

  • Receptionist for a 500-person firm
  • Handled over 100 phone calls a day
  • Managed a 12-line phone system

You can absolutely quantify your work experience. You will find a way. Circle every noun and quantify them. Look for percentages. If you can’t come up with exact numbers, you can use your best guess, erring on the conservative side. What was the percentage of growth? What was the percentage of savings? What were the revenues? There are always numbers. You just have to look for them.

In order to land a job in 2023, your resume must have quantifiable accomplishments. It may be difficult at first, but once you get the hang of quantifying your work history, you’ll never go back. Quantify your work history on your resume and start seeing results in your job search today!

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3 Interview Hacks That Will Help You Land The Job
  • October 12th, 2022
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Interviewing is one of the most stressful aspects of the job search process. Waiting for a response for an interview from employers can take weeks. Not knowing how many others are interviewing for the same position as you can create even more stress.

Whether you are planning your job search now or preparing for your first interview ever, these hacks will increase your chances of landing that dream job.

1. Always Research The Company Before The Interview

Man researches a company on his laptop before his job interview

As they say, “Knowing is half the battle.” The same applies to a job interview. Knowing the company’s mission and core values, knowing how market trends are affecting the company, and knowing who exactly are the company’s competitors are all important hacks that will impress the employer during your interview.

Another key trick is to find out who is interviewing you and research that person on LinkedIn to know his/her career path and story.

In the job interview, don’t be afraid to ask how your interviewer got to where they are today. Show interest. Be curious. Walk into the job interview with as much information under your belt as possible, and you’ll be surprised by how much easier it is to answer questions—and ask them, too.

2. Dress For The Job You Want (Not The Job You Have)

Woman dresses nice for a job interview

It’s true when they say that first impressions are everything. It’s highly recommended that you arrive 15-20 minutes early for the interview, bring copies of your resume in a portfolio, and dress conservatively in clothing one level above what the current employees at the company are wearing. You want to look professional, but not like you don’t fit in with the workplace culture.

Most importantly, be engaging and enthusiastic during the interview. Remember that multiple people are interviewing for that same position and you want to convey that enthusiasm in your appearance, attitude, and energy. By being enthusiastic, you’ll be memorable—in a good way.

Don’t forget to ask questions and send a thank-you note to everyone you met at your job interview following the interview to reaffirm your enthusiasm.

3. Know Your Key Skills & Accomplishments

Woman answers a questions during a job interview

It’s one thing to list your key skills and accomplishments on your resume, but it’s another to be able to sell or market them in an interview. Make sure you list your top skills and accomplishments on a piece of paper before you go into the interview, and be sure to convey how those skills are valuable to the company’s goals/objectives, productivity, and profitability.

Most employers nowadays ask behavioral interview questions. A great way to answer these questions while highlighting your skills and accomplishments is by using the “Experience + Learn = Grow” model and/or the STAR technique (situation, task, action, result).

What was the situation/problem? How did you solve this problem/overcome this setback? What did you learn from this experience? How did you apply what you learned to your career? Whether you accomplished something great or developed a new skill, your interviewer will be impressed by your story and remember it long after you walk out the door.

Mastering these three hacks will help you ace your next job interview and increase your chances of scoring a spot with the company of your dreams. At the end of the day, preparation is key!

Need more help with your job search?

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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10 Most Overused Words On LinkedIn Profiles
  • June 15th, 2022
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Recently, the top 10 most overused words on LinkedIn profiles were announced. And I’m not shocked to see that all 10 words break the basic rule of personal branding: stay objective.

Opinions Of Your Skills Don’t Belong On LinkedIn

The 10 most overused words on LinkedIn are subjective. Meaning that if you use them, you are stating an opinion of yourself. Take a look:

  1. Specialize
  2. Experienced
  3. Skilled
  4. Leadership
  5. Passionate
  6. Expert
  7. Motivated
  8. Creative
  9. Strategic
  10. Focused

The problem with using these words is that, while you think it’s okay to talk about yourself in this way, the reader of your profile (aka a recruiter or hiring manager) gets the mistaken impression that you think you are “all that and a bag of chips.”

Simple Test To Fix Your Profile

Man updates his LinkedIn profile

The solution is to test your profile and then take out any words that aren’t fact. Here’s how you test it: simply read each sentence on your profile and then ask yourself, “Says who?” If you can’t validate it within the sentence you are using it in, then it needs to go. I used all 10 of the words on LinkedIn’s list below to show you examples of how they get misused.

  • I am a strategic, motivated professional.
  • I am creative and experienced.
  • I have great leadership skills.
  • I am a skilled expert in my field.
  • I know how to specialize to meet the needs of my job.
  • I am a focused leader who’s passionate about my industry.

For all of the above, you can’t help but think when you read them, “Geez. Don’t you think a lot of yourself!” Or, as I mentioned above, the immediate reaction becomes, “Really? Says who?”

Solution: List Accomplishments

Woman logs on to LinkedIn

Once you edit your profile, go back through and insert accomplishments that prove what you were trying to say about yourself. These would be examples of better fits:

  • I have a 10-year track record of exceeding my employer’s performance review standards.
  • I have created 20+ projects in X, resulting in $1M in new revenues.
  • I have completed more than 100 business analysis projects that have saved my employers $250K+ in the last 2 years.
  • I have managed teams of 2-50 through 15+ complete project lifecycles.
  • I have worked with over 400 customers to solve implementation issues that reduced client service calls by 50%.

Final Tip: Quantify To Qualify

Woman on laptop thinks about what she's going to write

Notice all of the above bullet points use numbers, percentages, and statistics to prove the skill. This is called quantifying your accomplishments, and it is the most compelling way to validate your experience. When it comes to LinkedIn, facts are always better than fiction!

We know how difficult it can be to optimize your LinkedIn profile so it effectively communicates your personal brand. If you’re still struggling to update your LinkedIn profile, we can help.

We’d love it if you joined our FREE community. It’s a private, online platform where workers, just like you, are coming together to learn and grow into powerful Workplace Renegades. More importantly, we have tons of resources inside our community that can help you update your LinkedIn profile—the right way.

It’s time to find work that makes you feel happy, satisfied, and fulfilled. Join our FREE community today to finally become an empowered business-of-one!

This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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