6 Resume Gimmicks You MUST Avoid

6 Resume Gimmicks You MUST Avoid When you’re writing your resume, it’s natural to want to stand out. After all, this one document is the only thing that most employers see of their applicants before beginning the “weeding” process in which interviewees are selected. Why let yourself slip between the cracks with a cookie-cutter resume? Distinguishing yourself in your resume with unique content and formatting might seem like a smart way to get across to a hiring manager. And for some professions, this would be entirely true. Graphic designers, web designers, advertisers, and other creative professionals would be well-to-do to make their resumes appealing, artistic, and unique; this would consistently convey the very properties that the content of the resume should describe. However, there are some resume-building gimmicks that should be avoided at all costs for professionals who want to stand out for the right reasons â€" and not as a “circus sideshow” applicant: 1) Including images and special formatting: Before a single word of your resume is read, there is something that conveys volumes about the type of applicant you are and that’s how your resume is formatted and designed. Slightly bending the rules on formatting with classy, subtle features such as simple borders and bullet points can help give your resume a professional sheen. But how far is too far? And what should we avoid during the formatting process? RELATED:  Creative  Resumes  â€" How Much Is Too Much? 2) Don’t think twice about a mug-shot: Including an image of yourself in your resume can certainly be an eye-catcher â€" to their HR department, anyways. Many employers immediately weed out resumes which feature personal images due to the fact that it can contribute to accusations of hiring discrimination later down the road. In addition, images can interfere with companies who use automated processing software to get your resume in their systems. Anyways, with one page to succinctly describe your feats and qualities, why waste space with an image? 3) Format your resume for the right reasons: With one page for most resumes, it can be tempting to shove as much as you can into it â€" which is a mistake many applicants make. After distilling the content of your resume into a concise, action-oriented narrative of your skills and experiences, it should be structured with a fair amount of space. If sentences are scrunched to the point of being difficult to read, it can be discouraging to hiring managers who have a stack of applicants to weed through. Use indentions, font modifiers, and bullet points to separate your sections while leaving a little empty space between. Avoid gimmicky graphics or charts, which can again confuse automated processing software and make your resume look more eccentric than anything. These formatting tips can greatly improve the chances that someone will actually read your resume. 4) Using peculiar or difficult-to-read fonts: Changing your font type and color can be a one-click solution to making your resume aesthetically unique among a sea of other applicants, but this can also convey some attributes that you wouldn’t want an employer to think of you. Getting passed on based on the content of your resume is far better than being noticed in a negative light because you used Comic Sans and rainbow lettering. RELATED:  What Is the Best Resume Font, Size and Format? 5) Readability first: I won’t get into specific fonts and their connotations, since personal taste and appropriateness can vary depending on each situation, but using fonts that adversely affect your resume’s readability can only be a bad idea for obvious reasons. If you have any doubt about a typeface’s readability (or if you have to squint and tilt your head to make sense of it,) don’t even think twice about sticking with it. Also consider how you use font modifiers, such as bold and italics. While they can be used effectively to highlight key experiences and achievements, excessive use of them can look messy and become hard to read. 6) Is it professional? Using less conventional typefaces can be appropriate in a “themed” resume for creative professions, but using anything but a standard-issue style can be distracting and a major turn-off for employers looking for applicants with a sense of professionalism. The fact is that most non-traditional fonts used in resumes are seen as acts of vanity, or even worse, naivety. For most circumstances, try to stick with traditional fonts, an easily read format which directs the reader to your strengths, and good old black-and-white. (Unless, of course, you’re applying to your local tattoo parlor.) Final thoughts: The job application process can be frustrating, and the desire to be noticed can sometimes defeat logic and reason while we’re crafting our resumes. But instead of relying on gimmicky design choices or artsy fonts, concentrate on how you can make your design inviting more than anything. Conventional structure with formatting features which highlight your strengths is a winning competition for most job applications. It’s important to realize that the only function of resume design is to serve as a welcome mat to enjoy your content. A masterfully formatted resume will only result in rejection if your resume contains typos, weak language, or vagueness. Content should be your first priority, and an inviting format which is easily read and understood is the best way to make sure that this content is read. Author: Katherine Gredley is an elementary school teacher and an author with GlobeUniversity.edu. She has a special interest in small business management and professional development.

How to Bully-Proof Yourself at Work - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

How to Bully-Proof Yourself at Work - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Bullying at work is an epidemic. You might have witnessed a bully intimidating or disturbing another employee. Perhaps you’ve been a target of bullying yourself. Across all sectors of business, industry, the professions and our military forces, bullying reduces productivity, and produces fear, demoralization, and escalating violence. A common result of bullying is the removal of the victim from the workplace. The person who complains, and asks for intervention or protection is often the easiest person for the organization to terminate. It’s not unfair to assume that if a bully has proven that he or she is capable of wreaking havoc in your life, the other people in your organization may not want to risk becoming the bully’s next target. Often, managements cover for removing the victim rather than the bully is a catch phrase like “it’s a personality conflict.” Being bullied causes a level of stress that often reduces the victim’s effectiveness and rational thinking, thus making the victim seem a little crazy. Plus the victim stresses the organization by making continued requests for assistance with the problem. You can see why it’s simply easier for an organization to placate the bully. If the bully and the victim are considered equally culpable, it allows the organization to remove the victim who is being destabilized, and acting out increasing feelings of despair. Losing your job unfortunately, is a frequent side effect of being bullied. A bully may be satisfied for quite awhile when a victim suffers the consequences of job loss. Because the bully enjoys increased status and validation from others, the bullys next target may take some time to emerge. So in the short run, the organization’s decision to terminate the victim seems to be a good one. Theres a quieter workplace, an absence of conflict and a return to greater productivity. Often it takes quite a number of victims and a lot of disruption until the organization acknowledges a pattern of bullying and takes action against the bully. Thus, a good course of action would be to anticipate you’ll have no support from your management if you are the target of a bully at work. Its helpful to have a strategy to bully-proof yourself. Here are some key steps. From the first act of bullying, do not make the issue a polarizing one among your coworkers. Refrain from discussing the event with anyone who cannot be part of a solution. Document what’s happening on the day it happens. Keep the journal of events in a safe place, away from the workplace. Make management aware of your observations, without sharing your feelings or perceptions. You might wait for several observable acts to occur, rather than report each incident. Consider discussing the events with an outside coach or even legal counsel. Act rationally, despite how you may feel. Feeling fear is normal. Acting fearful will only further victimize you. When you are being bullied, address the observable behavior when it occurs. Refrain from assigning an intention to what you see. For example, if the bully upends your file drawer: the behavior is whats at issue, not the reason why it was done. If you are forced into an encounter, talk to the bully calmly, even when you are being threatened. For example, I have a client who said the bully blocked her doorway. In that instance, a good choice is to simply ask, “Are you blocking my doorway?” Often a flat, unemotional question causes a change in the bully’s behavior, because the act failed to produce the desired reaction. Do not try to reason, bargain, beg or otherwise placate the bully. Avoid the bully unless that tactic would otherwise inflame or bring undue attention to the situation. Get your resume together and freshen up your LinkedIn profile. Increase your positive interactions in LinkedIn groups to gain visibility with future coworkers and employers. Remember to ask referral sources to help you identify a position with another organization, only sharing that you think its a good time to pursue a new opportunity. Button up your work and behavior. Don’t give anyone reason to terminate you or give you a bad reference. Bullying generates the most email from my posts on workplace success strategies. If you would like some guidance on your situation, email me at Nance@NanceRosen.com. Subject line: Bully.

The Best Career Quotes of All Time

The Best Career Quotes of All Time Everyone needs inspiration especially when it comes to jobs. Here are the best career quotes of all time. Whats your favorite career quote? Please let us know in the comments below! A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between he does what he wants to do.  Bob Dylan He knows nothing and thinks he knows everything. That points clearly to a political career. George Bernard Shaw By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be a boss and work twelve hours a day.  Robert Frost Dont confuse having a career with having a life.  Hillary Clinton If the career you have chosen has some unexpected inconvenience, console yourself by reflecting that no career is without them. Jane Fonda If you don’t wake up in the morning excited to pick up where you left your work yesterday, you haven’t found your calling yet. -Mike Wallace Think big and dont listen to people who tell you it cant be done. Lifes too short to think small. Tim Ferriss Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life. Confucius You will never feel 100% ready when an opportunity arises. So just do it. Unknown The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Eleanor Roosevelt Ive missed more than 9000 shots in my career. Ive lost almost 300 games. 26 times, Ive been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. Ive failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. Michael Jordan If you dont build your dream. Someone will hire you to help build theirs. Tony Gaskins Forget the risk and take the fall, if its what you want, then its worth the fall. Unknown A good manager is a man who isnt worried about his own career but rather the careers of those who work for him. H. S. M. Burns The difference between a job and a career is the difference between forty and sixty hours a week. Robert Frost You miss 100% of the shots you dont take. Wayne Gretzky

Authors, Publishers - Everyone Needs to Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Authors, Publishers - Everyone Needs to Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Some authors view writing books as their sole livelihood while others view the craft as an added dimension to their core business, plus a vehicle for building credibility with their intended clientele. The self-help books need to reveal great content and the reader’s attention must be drawn in for fiction. Upon achieving this, the author’s brand is built. The brand that books built Publishing houses are having great difficulty remaining in the black given the drop in the economy, bookstores going out of business and the lack of attention to the new technology taking the industry by storm. The turn of events is having a more adverse affect on the medium and smaller sized publishing houses. They are seemingly caught in the middle of what to do and don’t know how to get out of the chaos in which they are caught. What does this have to do with you and everyone else? It proves the point that no matter what you do, you must be committed to continual education in order to remain current and maintain the status of being a leader in your field. Flexibility, reinventing oneself and willingness to learn and implement new ideas are the keys to building your brand and your business. It’s never too late to begin accepting these terms. Those who don’t adapt go by way of Chapter 11 while those who are ready to do the hard work survive and more importantly thrive. This brings to mind the well-known statement, “Survival of the fittest.” Evolve and thrive Challenge yourself to investigate the potential of the next best service or technology you hear of to consider if it’s right for you. Early adapters get noticed and capitalize on their new platform. Social media is now a level playing ground. No one has the advantage except for those who take the time to learn the strategies that work exceedingly well. This is an arena where you are able to attract a worldwide clientele. Learning is only one-half of the equation to building your brand. The second half is to teach what you learn. “We are all students and we are all teachers” is a statement I once heard that rang true. As entrepreneurs we are continually arriving at forks in the road learning by default which path is more direct. Reaching out to help those behind us by offering advice on which path not to take and advising instead which is more direct will bring about multiple benefits. You help another and feel good in return; the person you help provides referrals and testimonials; and good word of mouth spreads. Alternating between student and teacher will enable you to continually build your brand, your business and sales. Consider now what new services or products are you able to easily create to further build your platform and teach others? Which communities will want to hear your message and to whom may you be of service or a mentor? As you build on these principles while strong on delivering good content, you will become well known in your field and enjoying many a Smooth Sale! Author: Elinor Stutz, CEO of Smooth Sale, LLC authored the International Best-Selling book, “Nice Girls DO Get the Sale: Relationship Building That Gets Results” and “HIRED! How to Use Sales Techniques to Sell Yourself On Interviews”. She provides team sales training, private coaching and business retreats (http://www.smoothsale.net/products/biz-retreat/) to grow you business. She is available upon request for consultation.

Writing References For Resume

Writing References For ResumeReferences for resume are sometimes overlooked but really important to have on hand. Remember, your resume is the first thing a potential employer will see, so you want to make sure you present a complete history of your work and education. Writing references for resume should be simple and easy to write. Here are some pointers to help you.One: In all references, you want to include all information related to your employment. For that reason, do not make your references a mix of high school or college diplomas. All references must contain your college degree and your high school diploma. If possible, obtain an official transcript from either school.Two: Use personal names in references, unless you are writing a reference for someone else. In this case, use the name of the person you are writing the reference for. You don't want the references to refer to a person you're not writing references for. That can cause problems later on down the road.Three: Refe rences for resume should be brief and to the point. Don't try to make them longer than they need to be. You want to leave a few things out, especially if you have references that were employed in the same place for a long time.Four: When you are writing references for resume, always state how long you worked for a company. Also include any problems that you had with the company that could affect the references. You do not want to leave anything to chance.Five: When writing references for resume, you may want to get some feedback from other former co-workers. If you are writing a written reference for resume, you can contact previous employers and get their feedback on your references. Sometimes they are more honest than you can imagine.6: References for resume can be another form of writing a letter. If you are having trouble remembering to write a letter, you can send the references to your supervisor or any other personnel that you have in your company.Writing references for resum e is really easy and does not require any special skills. You just need to understand the rules that govern this process. If you follow these simple tips, you will be well on your way to writing a successful resume.

4 Readings Why A Dead End Job Neednt Necessarily Be A Dead End

4 Readings Why A Dead End Job Neednt Necessarily Be A Dead End There are few feelings as soul crushing than laboring away at a job you despise and feels as though it’s going nowhere. Waking up in the morning and staring down the prospect of 8-12 hours doing something that bores, frustrates or irks you for a boss who doesn’t value respect or appreciate you is an agony we’ve all felt at times. It’s not uncommon for us to become annoyed or frustrated by our jobs, and when this happens we keep our eyes fixed elsewhere. We apply for other, more fulfilling jobs but when our endless applications yield no fruit it can be utterly infuriating and may leave us thinking that we’re stuck in a dead end job. While this feeling is indeed utterly mortifying, let’s not forget that our perception often determines our reality. Perceive your job as a dead end job for long enough and it will inevitably become a dead end job. But even the worst jobs are not irredeemable. Your seemingly dead end job needn’t necessarily be a dead end. Here’s why… Your free time is your own (so use it effectively) Even if you work cripplingly long hours or need to put in considerable overtime to make ends meet, it’s essential to use your free time effectively if you’re to hope to escape this job. Fortunately, the digital realm affords us more ways than ever before to escape jobs we hate. The world of online learning allows us to pursue college accredited courses like this online policing program than ever before. If you want a career that makes a difference, online learning can help you achieve it. Or even set up your own business as a side hustle. If you make time, remain disciplined and avoid the allure of the TV and sofa after you clock off, anything is possible. You’re gaining valuable skills Whether you’re aware of it or not, every day you spend in your dead end job you’re gaining valuable skills which will only make you more appealing in the eyes of your next employer. Every time you smile through an unreasonable customer’s angry tirade, every time you swallow your anger and frustration and commit to doing your job as best you can and every time you put your professionalism before your personal feelings you score a victory for yourself. Your perseverance and professionalism will be recognized some day. You’re making friends It’s incredible what a difference the right colleagues can make to even the most insufferable of jobs. Adversity has a way of building close and enduring frienships. While this may be a blessing in disguise, it is a blessing nonetheless. If it affords you nothing else, your job has allowed you to make good friends. And one day you’ll look back on all of this and laugh heartily. Finally… Just think how great it’ll feel when you quit If nothing else can pull you through the feeling that you’re wasting away in a dead end job, just think about how great it’ll be when the next opportunity comes along (and it will if you keep looking for it). The satisfaction you’ll feel when you hand in your written notice can be an extremely powerful motivator.

6 Questions to Ponder About Retirement Transition - Hire Imaging

6 Questions to Ponder About Retirement Transition - Hire Imaging For those contemplating retirement, anticipation and planning can help ease the fear of the unknown and guide the change, whatever that might be! Start with these questions to jumpstart relevant brainstorming. 1. Who am I after I leave my job? Fear of lost identity can loom with loss of a job. Try reframing a different way of looking at the event by changing your language. Instead of, “I used to be,” try “I’m exploring ___.” Replace “I was a ___” with “I’m changing direction and pursuing ___.” Think about moving forward, not backward. Strategic reframing can allow you to disconnect mentally from an old identification and experience freedom to see yourself in an entirely different role! 2. How will I spend my time? Flesh out a visionary daily schedule. It doesn’t have to be set in stone; be flexible. Include an activity that will keep you involved and connected to others. Take time to explore. Pursue your enthusiasms, and don’t be afraid to treat yourself and try out something you always wanted to do. 3. Will my relationships with my significant other change? It might. Prepare and plan how you intend to spend your time. If you relied on work for socialization, explore how you might find it outside the office. Don’t rely on your significant other to fill in the gap and occupy your time. Develop your own friends and interests. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you and your partner can’t enjoy mutual interests or activities! Each person approaches retirement differently depending on life experiences and relationships. Talk with your significant other and work out a plan that will keep you both busy, either together or independently. The key is communication and planning! 4. Will I have enough money to live on? This is a financial planning question, and your financial needs change as you age. Consider likely rising costs in medical care, medicines, and insurance; needed necessities (utilities, rent, food, etc.); wanted necessities (cell phone, car, computer, gadgets, etc.); discretionary expenses (vacations, hobbies, restaurants, entertainment, etc.); rising inflation; relocation costs; capital items (new roof, home repairs, etc.); ongoing care (ill, elderly, emergency); paying off debts; and sudden downsizing. 5. Should I relocate? Explore your options. If you’ve thought of relocating, research. Talk to people who have lived in the area. Do Internet research. Visit and stay a bit. If you are relocating to be close to grown children and grandchildren, find out how they feel about it. What are your expectations of how much time you’ll have together? Is there a disconnect? Research the community. Does it align with your needs and wants? 6. I want to keep working. Who will hire me at my age? This is your perception. If you believe it, then others will too. As Jackie Joyner-Kersee said, “Age is no barrier. It’s a limitation you put on your mind.” Think in terms of retirement career or encore career as you job search at over age 50! I always love to hear from you! Do you have questions or insights on retirement transition? Please comment below.