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#JobSearch : 5 Unusual Mistakes You’re Making In Your Resume. Unusual Resume Blunders that Could be Costing you the Interview. Great CheckList.

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If you’ve put a lot of time and effort into crafting your resume, not hearing back from countless applications can become disheartening. By now, we know all of the common mistakes that are likely to see your resume overlooked. For example, spelling and grammatical errors, poor formatting, or overused clichés will see your application rejected quicker than you can say ‘hardworking and dynamic professional’.

But did you know that there are also some more unusual resume blunders that could be costing you the interview as well?

By getting to grips with the following mistakes, you can eliminate these lesser-known errors from your next application and increase your chances of being invited in for an interview.

Using an unprofessional email address

Your email address occupies just a small space at the top of your resume, and yet the effect it has on how you are perceived by employers is huge. This is even more true when you’re applying for senior roles, where perception and reputation are vital.

If you have a quirky email address that you’ve had since you were a teenager, it’s best not to give this pride of place on the top of your resume, as it will look unprofessional and can show a lack of attention to detail.

So, if your email reads something like ‘TopGolfer99@gmail.com’, it’s best to create an entirely new email address for your job hunt.

In most cases, it’s best to simply claim an address using your name, or a close variation of your name if it has already been taken. For example “SteveJones1968@gmail.com”

It’s also important that you don’t use an email address connected to your existing job, especially if you are trying to keep your job search discrete.

 

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Best Daily Choice: Follow the Best of FSC Career Articles/Blogs @

https://twitter.com/search?q=bestoffscblog&src=typeahead_click

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & Type(#Jobsearch, #Resume, or #Networking) in Blog Search:  https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, Llc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, the UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of our corporate partners for the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment!

Article continued …

A bad file name

You’ve spent hours crafting your resume, and the final stage is to hit save and submit your application. But too many professionals fall at this final hurdle. It’s important to remember that the filename will be visible to recruiters when you attach your resume to an email or application, so it must look professional.

It must also be clearly labeled, so the hiring manager knows whose resume they are handling, and they can quickly find your resume when searching their database.

Saving your resume with a name like ‘My resume – draft 3 – FS job’ does not give the best impression. Firstly, it looks clumsy. Secondly, it might also give away that you’re applying to multiple roles at once. Although you are perfectly within your right to do this, it can show you’re less dedicated to their specific company and position.

Although it might not always be a dealbreaker, a bad file name can look unprofessional and could see your resume rejected before it’s even been opened.

Making unproven claims

It’s vital that your resume includes impressive facts and figures that showcase your achievements. However, you need to make sure that any claims you make are substantiated and that you can always offer proof.

This doesn’t just mean being able to back up your facts and figures. It also means that if you refer to an organization as an ‘industry leader’ or to yourself as ‘the number one marketer’, that you can back it up.

Of course, recruiters might not examine every tiny detail on your resume, but if they do look into it and find out you’re making false claims, it could potentially cost you the job. So instead, stick to hard facts that you know you can prove.

Including salary expectations

You want to get the most from your job offer. Of course, you do. But including your salary expectations or history on your resume can be a major red flag to hiring managers.

If you set the bar too low, you’ll short-change yourself, and if you set the bar too high, your resume might end up on the rejection pile. Not to mention you can harm your negotiation power further down the line.

Plus, talking about money too prematurely can imply that you’re only interested in the job for the money and not because you’re genuinely passionate about the company or position.

So, unless a job advert specifically asks you to include your salary expectations, it’s best to leave this off.

Stuffing your content with keywords

Including relevant keywords on your resume is important, so don’t neglect this. However, over-stuffing your application with keywords can quickly backfire. It means that your resume won’t read naturally and can look clumsy and confusing.

It’s always important to write your resume with the recruiter at the forefront of your mind. It needs to be persuasive, read well, and be written for real people, not just for ATS scanners, so you need to get the balance just right.

Although they may seem smaller, these unusual mistakes can be just as detrimental to your resume as the larger, more common errors. Therefore, it is important to keep these in mind when writing your application and check your resume thoroughly before you hit send.

 

Forbes.com | November 11, 2022 | Andrew Fennell 

#BestofFSCBlog :Over 5K Reads! 5 Tips To Beat The Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Increase your Chances of Beating the Bots & Get That Interview. GReat REad!

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You know the job you want, and you know you’ve got the right skills and experience to be successful, but you’re yet to be invited for an interview. In fact, you’ve rarely received so much as a follow-up email. Surely that many recruiters can’t have passed over your RESUME/CV?

Before you start to doubt your credentials, there might be one important step you haven’t considered. As with so many areas of our lives, many hiring professionals now rely on technology to help them screen applications.

So the problem is that an actual person might not see your RESUME/CV for a long time after you submit it. Instead, it will pass through an applicant tracking system (ATS); an HR tool that determines whether your RESUME/CV is a match or not based on keywords.

 

This means you need to become an expert in beating the bots. The good news is there are some simple steps you can take to get your RESUME/CV past an ATS.

 

Include the right keywords

The most important thing you need to do is ensure that your RESUME/CV contains the right keywords. Recruiters will search for RESUME/CVs based on set keywords and criteria relevant to the role, so if you haven’t included these in your application, it will likely go unnoticed.

These keywords could be specific skills, qualifications, and job titles that showcase your experience. The best way to ensure you’re ticking the right boxes is to look through the job description and pick out the specific requirements set out by the employer. You can then pepper these keywords throughout your RESUME/CV.

For example, if the recruiter is looking for a ‘web developer’, be sure to get the job title in there. Not only this but be sure to highlight important skills such as ‘project management and ‘testing’. You could also include specific tools if the recruiter has listed them, such as ‘CSS’ or ‘JavaScript’.

In doing so, you make it much easier for the ATS to scan through and find all their relevant keywords, flagging that you’re a good match for the recruiter’s search criteria.

 

Like this Article?  Share It!    You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award-Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwide in our various Social Media formats below:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-g-laughter-b46389198/

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Best Daily Choice: Follow the Best of FSC Career Articles/Blogs @

https://twitter.com/search?q=bestoffscblog&src=typeahead_click

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & Type(#Jobsearch, #Resume, or #Networking) in Blog Search:  https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

 

Article continued …

 

Cut the fluff

When it comes to writing a strong RESUME/CV, it’s always important to ensure you only include the most relevant information. However, when trying to beat an ATS, this is even more important.

Though it might usually be beneficial to give details of your passion for the industry, how you’ve risen through the ranks, and your willingness to keep learning, these are rarely termed a recruiter will search for using an ATS.

Therefore, it’s best to cut the fluff and keep your RESUME/CV clear, concise, and absolutely to the point. Stick to actionable skills, qualifications, and job titles that you think recruiters might be searching for.

 

Use traditional headings

Your RESUME/RESUME/CV should be broken up into sections to make the information easier to digest. However, you need to ensure you’re using standardized headings and making them clearly different from the body text. Otherwise, you might confuse the ATS, prompting the tool to organize your information incorrectly. This will make it harder for recruiters to run searches and find your RESUME/CV.

With this in mind, it’s best to stick to traditional headers like a personal profile, key skills, work experience, and education to help organize your information, and ensure all headings are big and bold.

The same applies to job titles. Be sure to use clear and traditional job titles, specifically those listed on the job description. Avoid any quirky titles you might have had in the past, such as developer evangelist or cloud chief architect, as these will only be confusing and could cost you an interview.

 

Format your RESUME/RESUME/CV correctly

An ATS might be very technically advanced, but it still has limitations. At the end of the day, it is a machine and not a person, which means poor formatting can make it impossible for the machine to scan and understand your RESUME/CV.

To give yourself the best chance of beating the bots, you need to make sure your document is left aligned, with margins of at least half an inch. Also, be sure to use standardized fonts such as Arial or Verdana and no smaller than font size 10.

Ensure all information is contained within the body of the document and nothing has spilt into the header or footer. This will boost your chances of application success.

Choose the right file format

You’ve spent hours carefully crafting your RESUME/RESUME/CV, so you don’t want to fall at the final hurdle. You need to make sure you save your file in the most reader-friendly format. Some job descriptions will specify the type of file you should submit; however, if this is not the case, it’s best to stick to a Word document or PDF, because they are easily readable by machines. Never submit your RESUME/CV as an image file because most ATS will not be sophisticated enough to pull words from a non-text-based document.

Keep these five tips in mind as you continue your job search, especially if you suspect your RESUME/CV will be going straight to an ATS and not to a person. This will increase your chances of beating the bots and securing an interview.

Forbes.com | September 27, 2022 | Andrew Fennell

#JobSearch : 6 Things To Do When You Don’t Know What To Say In A Job Interview. Share it: What Difficult Question Did YOU Have to Answer?

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Research the company. Iron your clothes. Come up with questions.  If you’ve ever Googled “How to prepare for a job interview,” then you already know that acing one means — at the very least – checking these boxes.

But I’ll admit, despite all the hours of interview prep in the world, sometimes you get thrown a question that makes you sweat.

“What’s the biggest piece of criticism you’ve received from previous employers?”

“What’s a mistake you made in your last job and how could you have handled it better?”

“What does a meaningful career look like to you?”

As the hiring manager looks at you with raised eyebrows, your mind goes blank. You have one thought and one thought only: “I don’t remember putting on antiperspirant this morning…”

Maybe this sounds like an all-too-familiar situation, or maybe it doesn’t. But go to enough job interviews and I promise you one thing: eventually you’ll be sitting across from a hiring manager who throws you a curveball that you can’t hit back.

Of course, it’s much easier to overlook the possibility of this altogether (sounds tempting, doesn’t it?). But just like ironing your clothes, figuring out what to say when you don’t know what to say at all is a necessary step if you want to end the interview process with a job offer in your hands.

Here are six steps you can take to form an answer to any question thrown your way during a job interview.

Step 1: Stop worrying.

A successful job interview is more about your energy than your words. Even with the perfect response, bad energy kills the mood. Reducing your anxiety during a job interview is easier said than done – especially since job interviews aren’t the ideal time to take long deep breaths and meditate.

Still, take a moment to challenge your negative thinking. Consider books for this like Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth and Byron Katie’s Loving What Is. Remind yourself that one weak answer in an interview won’t necessarily eliminate you from the running. You’re human, so give yourself permission to be one.

Employers ask job candidates difficult questions on purpose. Filling a new position costs companies an average of $4,129, so employers want to make sure they’re hiring the right candidate. But this also benefits you — difficult job interviews are statistically linked to higher employee satisfaction once the job is accepted. Make it through employers’ tough questions, and you’ll be rewarded for it later.

Still feel anxious? While I’m not a big believer in the concept “fake it until you make it,” there is something to be said about mustering confidence for important situations.

Research shows that almost 40% of employers reject candidates for the quality of their voice and overall lack of confidence. If you don’t have a question ready-to-go in your back pocket, the best thing you can do is minimize your fear and move forward with confidence. You need to answer the question either way, so you may as well do It without looking scared.

 

Like this Article?  Share It!    You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award-Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwide in our various Social Media formats below:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-g-laughter-b46389198/

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Best Daily Choice: Follow the Best of FSC Career Articles/Blogs @

https://twitter.com/search?q=bestoffscblog&src=typeahead_click

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & Type(#Jobsearch, #Resume, or #Networking) in Blog Search:  https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

 

Article continued …

Step 2: Take a moment to pause.

A strong response doesn’t need to be quick. Don’t word-vomit your way to an answer. It should be expected that a good interviewer will ask you one or two questions you don’t see coming, and it’s completely reasonable to take a few moments to think about your response when they do. In fact, taking a moment to ponder your answer shows the employer that you’re introspective.

If a quick pause doesn’t suffice, signal to the hiring manager that you’re still considering the question by saying something along the lines of, “That’s a great question. Do you mind giving me a moment to think more deeply about this one?”

 

Odds are the recruiter will be more than willing to give you the time you need to pull your thoughts together. Have a notepad handy, start writing, and don’t be afraid to ask the recruiter to repeat the question. In some cases, they may even suggest moving to the next question so you’ll have time to develop your answer by the end of the interview.

 

Step 3: Think out loud & proceed with caution

It usually only takes a few seconds before a response starts to form your head. Deliberate on it for a few extra moments to make sure it’s appropriate and relevant to the question being asked. Then, extract the key points or lessons you want to highlight and weave them into an answer.

Some people might find it easier to think out loud. If done correctly, verbalizing how you arrive at your answer can showcase your creativity and problem solving skills to a hiring manager.

With that being said, be sure to proceed with caution if you have difficulty predicting where a thought is headed. You don’t want to go off on tangents and you also don’t want to reveal an unflattering image of yourself. Speaking slowly and deliberately will buy you more time to think and hone your response.

Step 4: Respond with honesty and authenticity.

Formulas used to answer interview questions don’t usually help when you’re thrown a curve ball that leaves you stumped. It’s hard enough to figure out how to come up with an answer when you’re flustered, let alone organize it neatly using the S.T.A.R. method.

In a more positive light, leaving room for your authentic and messy thinking can actually serve you well. A survey of 200 talent acquisition professionals reported that, in addition to their confidence, hiring managers value candidates with authenticity and honesty the most. Don’t aim to impress the hiring manager with a perfect response (these don’t exist, anyway). Instead, show your ability to be vulnerable by grappling with a difficult question on the spot.

Pulling an authentic and impromptu response together relies on more than basic interview prep. When given a daunting and abstract question like “What do you hope to accomplish throughout your lifetime?” you need to rely on more than what you learned from reading the about page on a company’s website.

Instead, think about how you can work the self-awareness and insight you already have into your answer. Deciding what career path to pursue has already required you to think about your goals and motivations. Weaving this background information into your answers where appropriate not only shows your authenticity, but shows the employer that you see your work as more meaningful than a paycheck.

 

Step 5: Elaborate on your growth mindset

In the same survey with 200 talent acquisition professionals, 72% said they consider a candidate’s arrogance as the biggest personality turn off.

If you don’t know how to answer a field-specific question, it’s okay to admit that you don’t know. But don’t end things there — convey your growth mindset to employers by explaining your willingness to learn and improve new skills. While you might not have all of the hard skills a company is looking for fully developed yet, describing your interest in the field and openness to feedback tells employers you have the drive to grow at the company.

 

Step 6: Emphasize your desire to grow at the company

Conveying a growth mindset is good, but also need to emphasize that you are especially interested in honing your skills at the specific company for which you’re interviewing. This is the time for you to sprinkle in the information you gathered from researching the company during your interview prep. Be open to discussing your personal connection to the company. How do their core values resonate with you? Have they done any recent projects that interest you? If the hiring manager hasn’t already asked you, address your motivation for applying for the job.

Above all else, hiring managers want to know that their employers are committed to the company and invested in their work. Most specific job-related tasks can be taught or picked-up during the onboarding process.

… But as far as the motivation to excel goes, only the employee can bring that.

 

Forbes.com | August 12, 2022 |  Ashley Stahl

 

 

#JobSearch : Will Your Resume Impress Employers? Take This Quiz To Find Out. Fact: Over 75% of Resumes Never Get Seen by Human Eyes. A MUst REad!

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Linda is a baby boomer who has spent her entire career working in the HR field. This Human Resources Manager currently works at a Fortune 500 company, and she asked for help writing her resume. Kathy said, “I look at resumes all the time. Thousands have passed through my hands, but when it comes to writing my own, I have difficulty doing it. I’m horrible at self-marketing. A resume is just a slick piece of advertising, but it is crucial to your success in getting hired.”

Human eyes never see many resumes. When you make it through the screening process, employers report that most resumes only get a 15-to-20-second glance. If you do not capture their attention quickly, they pass you by and call someone else in for an interview.

Writing a persuasive resume is challenging for most people. Yet, a top-quality resume that effectively sells your skills and accomplishments to an employer is essential to your success. Is yours impressive enough to grab a recruiter’s attention? Will your resume get through the employer’s Applicant Tracking System? There are mistakes you need to avoid in writing your resume. I have created this quiz based on dozens of hiring surveys, hundreds of employer interviews, and 30 years of resume writing experience. It does not matter what generation you are from. I’ve worked with people from every age group to create eye-catching resumes that land the new job.

Let’s put your resume under a “hiring magnifying glass.” First, look at your current resume and take the following quiz to see if your resume stands out.

Are you getting interviews?

This is a yes or no question. Maybe you haven’t tested the waters yet. But if you have, and no recruiters have sought you out, or you are not getting appropriate interviews, you may need professional intervention to learn why your resume is not working. Typically, it is not getting through the ATS or may be too generic without specific accomplishments. Then again, you may be applying for jobs for which you aren’t qualified. No interviews mean you must overhaul and edit it to stress your crucial work tasks, accomplishments, and related experience.

 

Like this Article?  Share It!    You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award-Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwide in our various Social Media formats below:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-g-laughter-b46389198/

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Best Daily Choice: Follow the Best of FSC Career Articles/Blogs @

https://twitter.com/search?q=bestoffscblog&src=typeahead_click

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & Type(#Jobsearch, #Resume, or #Networking) in Blog Search:  https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

Article continued …

Is your resume loaded with results?

These are the top criteria employers want to see. Accomplishments and results are what recruiters and hiring managers want to know about. They want proof that you will excel in the job based on the results you have achieved in previous positions you’ve worked at in the past. Outline what you have increased or decreased, how you saved money or time, made the organization money, created something new, solved a big problem, or how you improved employee productivity.

Does your resume use detailed job descriptions?

Vague, general resumes with wordy job descriptions often are ineffective. It is specifics that sell and capture attention. So, first, target the resume to the job you seek. Then, incorporate only the information pertinent to doing that specific job in the resume. This will alleviate the tendency to crowd your resumé with too much nonrelated information or too much detail on older positions that may not be relevant now.

Did you use keywords?

CNBC reported that over 75% of resumes never get seen by human eyes. An uploaded resume goes through scanning software called the applicant tracking system or ATS. To be found when the human recruiter or hiring manager searches, you need to add appropriate keywords. This does not mean copying every word from the job opening and putting them into your resume. Most employers seek your hard and pertinent soft skills determined by the work tasks you have done in the past. Try reviewing several job openings. You will see a pattern: employers want specific skills, knowledge, and experience. Then incorporate those work tasks and job functions in your resume.

Does your resume include a Summary of Qualifications section?

This four-to-six-sentence section includes your experience and top-selling points to do the job. This section is quite influential with employers, but most candidates neglect to include it. This part of the resume has an incredible impact since employers reported that this is the very first area they read. And it concisely demonstrates your solid ability to perform the advertised job.

Do you list competencies up near the top of the resume?

These are typically created in a table, and most employers’ Applicant Tracking Systems cannot read tables. So this section comes across as blank when the employer sees your submitted resume. Instead of a list, employers prefer to see the skills in a statement that shows how you have used that particular skill on the job. So, for example, instead of listing something like project management as a competency, write a bulleted statement under a position you have held to illustrate how you used that in a job.

Is your resume visually appealing?

The appearance of the resume cannot be overemphasized! Don’t get creative with your resume. Fancy fonts, tables, columns, text boxes, colored ink, graphics, charts, headers, and footers are often unable to be read by most of the Applicant Tracking Systems employers use. Instead, you get blanks or garbled, unreadable text. Use a standard format. Use italicizing, CAPITALS, underlining, bolding, indentations, and bullets to emphasize your essential points. Keep your font readable. Size 12 is best and only use standard fonts like Arial or Times Roman.

How do you start each sentence under professional experience?

Begin sentences with descriptive action verbs, such as established, analyzed, implemented, designed, or spearheaded. They add power to your sentences by demonstrating actions. For example, never use the word “I” in your resume. Instead, action verbs help you create powerful statements by listing the step you took and the results the action created.

Have you used acronyms and abbreviations?

Spell out names of schools, cities, work acronyms, and abbreviations completely. It is better to give complete information, as employers may not recognize abbreviations or acronyms. In addition, they often glance over the resume, and you do not want them to get tripped up or annoyed when you do not state the entire phrase.

How long is your resume?

Two pages are the current maximum employers want to see or are willing to read. Whether you are a 60-year-old executive or a professional with years of experience, being brief and concise works best. Be a skillful editor, deleting the portions which are not relevant or are least helpful to supporting the job title you currently seek. Employers look for experience at the current levels so emphasize your work done in the last seven-to-ten years.

Did you proofread it?

Employers notice and hate typos and mistakes. Be sure you proofread the resume a couple of times. Then ask another person to review it carefully too, so you eliminate any errors. Ensure your resume is perfect before you submit it.

 

Forbes.com Author:  Robin Ryan :   Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website or some of my other work here.

 

Forbes.com | August 9, 2022

#ResumeWriting : What is an ATS? What is SEO? What are Keywords in Resumes? Think your Resume Got Read? Think Again!

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Job seekers and resume owners are often confused about the terms and definitions of ATS, SEO, and keywords.  Some clients think there is a certain set of standardized words you insert into the resume to get seen after they upload the resume into an online system.

Here is an easy breakdown of the terms and how these resume elements are used by recruiters in the job placement industry.

ATS is the acronym for Automatic Tracking System. The ATS is the software application (often cloud-based) that recruiters use to receive, house, sort, document applicants who apply to specific job requisitions.  Recruiters also perform a procedure called a Boolean search in the SQL database to find applicants with keywords or key phrases in their resumes.  The Boolean search is an automated, and faster method to reduce the number of actual resumes recruiters have to read by identifying the ‘more qualified candidates’ in the system by keyword inclusion.

SEO is the acronym for Search Engine Optimization. Using an Internet browser (e.g., Google, Bing, Opera) to find information means implementing Boolean search using key words to find Search Engine Optimized pages or documents.  The search engine will look for websites with the keywords or phrases and the sites with the ‘most number’ of those keywords or phrases will show up in a result queue, with the most optimized websites at the top of the list.

Recruiters use the same Boolean search process in an ATS (resume database) as an Internet search.  Once the recruiter conducts the search either in the entire database or only within applicants to the specific job requisition, then resumes with the ‘most mentions’ of a key word or phrase will rise to the top of the result queue. Recruiters don’t have time to read 100, 200, 300 resumes, so rely on SEO keywords to find the ‘most qualified’ candidate based on the higher number of mentions of those keywords in the resume.  They will glance through the top 5-10 resumes in the results queue, and if these candidates fulfill the minimum qualifications, they will proceed to interview or push the resumes to hiring managers for decisions.  It is likely the remaining 90, 190, or 290 resumes will never be read and ‘marked’ en masse as ‘other candidates more qualified.’

 

Like this Article?  Share It!    You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award-Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwide in our various Social Media formats below:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-g-laughter-b46389198/

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Best Daily Choice: Follow the Best of FSC Career Articles/Blogs @

https://twitter.com/search?q=bestoffscblog&src=typeahead_click

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & Type(#Jobsearch, #Resume, or #Networking) in Blog Search:  https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

Article continued …

Keywords are single words or phrases directly relevant to a job-seeker’s career, skills, experience, and/or education.  For instance, a computer programmer should mention all the programming languages s/he uses as keywords.  Logistics careerists should use the words supply chain, logistics, supply, warehousing, and inventory as keywords, with metrics, to describe their job tasks and achievements.  Salespersons should include keywords related to revenue, sales, marketing, advertising, and income streams.  Property managers should include metrics for units rented, the values of rental properties, descriptions of how they manage or provide maintenance of facilities and vendors contracting for repairs as keywords and phrases.

Executives (C-suite) should not mistake words like ‘leadership,’ ‘guiding,’ and ‘support’ as keywords – these are vague and subjective.  Corporate executives and/or financial directors should have action verbs as keywords and phrases, including development, research, accounting, finance, investments, mergers and acquisitions, supervision, management, director (of something), and/or project or program management.

The action verbs at the beginning of a bullet should be followed with a documentable, objectively written action with a result.  One example, loaded with metrics, would be, “Managed >$20M in contracts for services, current, and future deployment projects including aircraft support equipment, office supplies, and electronics; managed and monitored contracts valued at

~$2.14M for parts and required services, $3.02M in Aircraft Ground Support Equipment requirements, and >$10M in electronics and future deployment components.”

Knowing what these terms mean, and how to use the processes to your advantage, will assist in writing a more objectively-worded, keyword-loaded, and action-based descriptors of your career and experience.  The more keywords, phrases, objective language, documentable metrics, and easy to read bullets in the resume, the faster recruiters will be able to find you, consider your strengths, and pick up the phone to interview.

SEO Key Words for web post:  achievements, action verbs, applicants, ATS, Automatic Tracking System , Boolean search, career , cloud-based, definitions, descriptors, experience, hiring managers, Internet browser, Internet search, interview, job description, job placement, job requisitions, key phrases, keyword inclusion, keywords, metrics, objective language, online system, optimized websites, phrase, qualifications, recruiters, result queue, resume database, Resumes, Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Optimized, SEO, skills, software application, SQL database, subjective, system, terms, websites. Examples below:

Key Word Hash-Tags (#):  #achievements, #actionverbs, #applicants, #ATS, #AutomaticTrackingSystem, #Booleansearch, #career, #cloud-based, #definitions, #descriptors, #experience, #hiringmanagers, #Internetbrowser, #Internetsearch, #interview, #jobdescription, #jobplacement, #jobrequisitions, #keyphrases, #keywordinclusion, #keywords, #metrics, #objectivelanguage, #onlinesystem, #optimizedwebsites, #phrase, #qualifications, #recruiters, #resultqueue, #resumedatabase, #Resumes, #SearchEngineOptimization, #SearchEngineOptimized, #SEO, #skills, #softwareapplication, #SQLdatabase, #subjective, #system, #terms, #websites

 

FSC Career Blog Author:  Ms. Dawn D. Boyer, Ph.D., an Associate with First Sun, has a successful business and consulting firm in Norfolk, Richmond, Colonial Beach (Dahlgren), and Gloucester, VA.  Her background is 24+ years in the Human Resources field, of which 12+ years are within the Federal & Defense Contracting industry.  She is the author of 940+ books on business, human resources research, career search practice, women’s studies, genealogy lineages, and has illustrated ~118 adult coloring books.  Her books are listed on Amazon.com under her author’s page for Dawn D. Boyer, Ph.D.

Dawn Boyer, Ph.D., owner of D. Boyer Consulting, and an associate with First Sun Consulting, provides resume writing, editing, publishing, and print-on-demand consulting.  Reach her at: Dawn.Boyer@me.com or visit her website at www.dboyerconsulting.com.

 

                                                                                                                                          FSC Career Blog – July 31, 2022

 

 

 

#JobSearch : Wondering Why You’re Not Getting Job Interviews? Here’s Why. Great REad!

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Of course, you’re feeling confused and frustrated. With the Great Resignation still underway and job openings at a record high, you might have started your job search thinking it would be a piece of cake.

Now, you’re stuck wondering why you’re not getting more job interviews, even though you’re pretty qualified for the roles you’re applying for these days. But, before you assume you’re doomed or out of luck, here are three resume mistakes that might be the culprit:

Your resume focuses on the wrong results.

It’s not your fault. Most resume advice tells you to make your bullets results-oriented. But, results-oriented bullets are pointless if they focus on the wrong results. Your resume could have tons of numbers and accomplishments that make you proud. But, if those bullets aren’t necessary for the job, hiring managers and recruiters might read your resume and think you’re awesome, but they won’t know why they should interview you for the job opening they’re looking to fill.

Want better advice? Make sure your bullets are relevant and results-oriented. If you’re not sure if you have the wrong results on your resume, take a moment to read a job description for one of your desired roles. Then, read your resume to see if it speaks to the specific relevant needs of that type of role. If it doesn’t, then you’ll know where to start to land more job interviews.

 

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What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

 

Article continued …

You’re not telling the full story.

A few signs you might be making this mistake: you leave things off your resume because it was a team effort and you don’t want to appear as though you’re taking credit for it, you don’t include relevant skills because it wasn’t a part of your official job title, or you don’t mention certain accomplishments because it only happened a couple of times.

While you might mean well by leaving these things off your resume, underselling yourself and not telling the full story makes recruiters and hiring managers assume you don’t have the experience needed for the roles you want. The good news is that, as a career coach, I know first-hand that a few changes can make a huge difference.

To start, sift through your resume and, for each bullet, ask yourself: “What’s the story behind this?” If the story behind the bullet is more compelling than the actual bullet, update the bullet to illustrate the true story by adding relevant details to showcase your expertise.

Your resume is full of distractions.

No, this isn’t about the format of your resume. Sure, the wrong format can be distracting, but there’s another element that’s not talked about enough that can distract from your expertise. Most job seekers don’t notice it because when you’re constantly working on your resume, it can be hard to see this mistake. But, the distraction is jargon.

Jargon, in terms of your resume, is any word, accomplishment, or result that would be difficult for others outside of your company or industry to understand. Jargon is a distraction because, even if your resume sounds great, it’ll leave recruiters and hiring managers thinking you’re better off staying where you are – even when you know you have the necessary experience to do the job.

To catch and remove jargon, pull up a few job descriptions of your ideal role and study the language they use to describe the responsibilities and qualifications for the position. Next, read your resume to see if you describe your experience the same way. Then, remove any terms that don’t align with the role you’re pursuing next.

If you’re guilty of any of these resume mistakes, then that’s good news! That means there’s still things you can do to improve your job search. If you’re willing to tackle these three resume mistakes, you’ll be in a much better shape to land more interviews for jobs you’ll love.

Forbes.com Author: Adunola Adeshola coaches high-achievers on how to take their careers to the next level. She is the author of the guide How to Go From Zero Interviews to Dream Job Offers.

Forbes.com | June 20, 2022

#BestofFSCBlog : Over 9K Reads! The Secret to Getting a Better Job After 50. Even in a Hot Hiring Market, it is Tough for Workers Over 50 to stay Competitive in Workplaces that often Value Youth over Experience.

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Even in a hot hiring market, it is tough for workers over 50 to stay competitive in workplaces that often value youth over experience.

The pandemic has been especially hard on older employees seeking to reclaim jobs lost in the early days of lockdowns. Many say they fear that the workplace upheaval brought on by Covid-19 has reinforced some bosses’ belief that professionals in their 50s and beyond are less inclined to return to offices or adapt to new ways of working.

Workers over 50 haven’t joined the jobs recovery to the same degree as younger peers, not counting the millions who retired early during the past two years. In January, nearly one-third of job seekers age 55 and older were part of the long-term unemployed, according to federal data, compared with 21.8% of those between 16 and 54.

It is perhaps little surprise that in the AARP’s most recent survey, 78% of workers between 40 and 65 said they had seen age discrimination in 2020, the highest share since the advocacy group began tracking the question in 2003.

Professionals who have kept careers progressing well into their fourth and fifth working decades say they have developed a few strategies.

Tackle age discrimination head on

Rule No. 1, they say: Confront the reality of age discrimination head on instead of avoiding it. Some say they are doing so by appearing youthful—both in person, for hiring managers and colleagues, and in writing, to the bots that screen résumés. Others are pitching themselves as indispensable mentors to younger colleagues.

“You have to never give up,” said Jennifer Kay Rouse, who at 61 started a new job this month as a customer-success manager after losing her sales-account-manager position in a corporate acquisition last year.

Ageism persists as one of the most insidious forms of on-the-job discrimination, according to academic research and employment experts. In a 2021 study, researchers at New York and Stanford universities found people who opposed racism and sexism at work were still likely to harbor prejudices against older employees and to believe such workers should step aside for younger colleagues.

Meanwhile, many job postings appear to target younger job seekers with terms such as “digital native” or “recent grad,” and employers focus recruiting efforts on rising talent rather than on proven veterans.

This month, unsealed court documents in an age-discrimination case cited emails in which an executive at International Business Machines Corp. referred to older workers as “dinobabies” and a plan to make them an “extinct species.” An IBM spokesman said “some language in emails between former IBM executives that has been reported is not consistent with the respect IBM has for its employees and as the facts clearly show, it does not reflect company practices or policies.”

 

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Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

 

Article continued …

Punch up your résumé

Ms. Rouse of Waukesha, Wis., says that asking a job interviewer for constructive advice and punching up her résumé with language such as “solid reputation” and “high performer” helped her land her new job at an industrial automation company.

Ms. Rouse maintains a youthful look by staying fit and wearing what she described as an “edgy” haircut with hair on the back and side shaved underneath the top layer. After landing several interviews but not the jobs, she asked an interviewer to level with her “to satisfy my curiosity as to whether it is about age,” she said.

The interviewer didn’t address her age directly but suggested her lengthy experience might make some interviewers assume she had come in with a know-it-all attitude. So she tweaked her approach, emphasizing in interviews that she was a team player. And she acknowledged being older to make the point that she could mentor younger colleagues and was open to being mentored by them, too.

A résumé writer she found on LinkedIn for $125 also helped refresh hers with a more modern format and buzzy phrases, such as “exceptional customer relationships,” which she said yielded more bites from employers. Ms. Rouse now earns more in her new job than she did in her previous role.

“I love business, and I love strategizing to give customers the best outcomes,” she said. “I wasn’t ready to give all of that up.”

Evade the job applicant-screening bots

Employers can’t legally reject applicants based on their age, but ageism can arise subtly in job postings and the algorithms that screen them. Applicant-screening software can potentially filter out older workers whose résumés show lengthy employment gaps. Other details can also date candidates, such as WordPerfect proficiency or an AOL email account, career coaches and recruiters say.

Laid off in 2018 from a middle-management role in delivery and logistics at the company where he had worked for 17 years, 56-year-old Dale Johnston said he was prepared for the algorithms that would likely screen his résumé. Instead of “17 years,” for instance, he wrote “over 10 years.”

“I had to be very conscious about what I put in and time frames to get past the bots and AI,” said Mr. Johnston, who lives in Bellingham, Wash. “I wasn’t lying. I just wasn’t disclosing the full age.”

He also kept his hair closely cropped while interviewing, because it looks more gray when it’s longer, he said. After landing a job as an analyst with a municipality in 2019, then losing it to cost-cutting a year later, he used the same tactics to apply for a job as an operations manager for a logistics-transportation company, where he works today.

Ginny Cheng, a San Francisco career coach and recruiter, advises clients that it is better to delete early years of work experience from your résumé if they mostly date you.

“If your total work experience is over 25 years but your last 15 is most relevant to the new opportunities you are seeking, you can focus on the newer timeline,” she said.

The key, employment experts say, is putting the focus on your talents, not your age. “Employers value wisdom, so it’s important to emphasize what you’ve learned and what you’re good at, not the amount of time you spent in the labor force,” said Richard W. Johnson, director of the program on retirement policy at the Urban Institute.

Harry Moseley retired at 62 from his job as chief information officer at KPMG US in early 2018 but jumped back into the workforce a couple months later by repositioning himself as a mentor.

During what would be a brief retirement, he had let his network know he remained open to new ventures and helping coach at another company. A friend soon approached him with an opportunity as global chief information officer at Zoom Video Communications Inc. Mr. Moseley hadn’t thought he wanted to return to a full-time role, but the position excited him.

“It could be a lot of fun, and I felt like I could help,” he said.

At Zoom since March 2018 and working mostly from the New York area, where he lives, the now 66-year-old Mr. Moseley said he makes a point of not appearing resistant to change. “You kind of have to say, ‘OK, well, that’s how I used to do things,’ and you have to have an open mind and look at things in a different way,” he said.

At the same time, he uses his experience to guide colleagues. “I am who I am. Take me for who I am,” he said.

 

WSJ.com | February 22, 2022 | WSJ.com Author:  Ray A. Smith

#JobSearch : How To Help Your New Grad Land A Job. Got Kids? MUst REad!

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Exasperated Baby Boomer Patricia called about her college student graduating in a month. She said, “My daughter Emily has refused my help or the assistance of my friend who is in HR. When I ask her why, she tells me she doesn’t want to use anybody, and wants to do this all on her own. She says, ‘I can do this.’ But 55 applications later, she hasn’t had one interview. What can I do to help get her career launched?”

Patricia knows that networking is vital for a successful job hunt. But Emily does not yet have that perspective, which is illustrated by her not wanting help from family or even a friend in the HR field. She believes she needs no help to land her first job. Unfortunately, many college students think this way. Most students and recent graduates hate to network, so it should be impressed upon them that this is a step in the job hunting process that should not be passed over.

Here are some important points about networking to stress to your student. Many jobs are found through networking: talking to people, friends, family, and other college students—especially if you have friends who have already graduated and are working. Networking is not using people; it’s just talking to others to get information about the company and available job opportunities. It also gives you a leg up if a friend passes your resume on to their employer. Today, many companies give a financial reward to employees if their referrals are hired.

 

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What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

Article continued …

Offer Resume Help

Many college students have a very poor resume. They don’t know how to write it, as they likely haven’t created one before. They will sometimes ask friends for copies of theirs, as Emily did, or will get a sample from a college professor. These samples are typically not designed for marketing that student in the best possible light. A parent can offer resume help, and often the student will accept it.

First, read about resumes for new graduates. Try to find a few in the same major as your student. Don’t offer to write it for them but ask if you can make some recommendations on how to improve it. Offer some specific ideas. For example, look closely at their work experience and their job descriptions. They often need boosting. Usually, the student missed some critical skill or accomplishment you can suggest they add. If they had an internship, be sure they capture all aspects relevant to the job they seek.

Under education, the student will list their degree and dean’s list or GPA. Yet, they can aid their success by listing relevant coursework based on the job they seek. These contain many great keywords that will help their resume get noticed by an employer’s applicant tracking system and demonstrate to an employer that they have a solid foundation to bring to the new job. For example, my career counseling client, Eric, wanted a job as a financial analyst. He had been unable to get an internship, so adding his college coursework was essential. Under the education section, Eric noted the relevant classes, which were the key to landing his first job.

Here’s what his entire education section looked like.

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Arts, Economics, Minor-Finance, University of Texas, Major GPA: 3.5, Graduation: May 2021

Coursework: Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Statistics, Econometrics, Business Finance, Economic Consulting, Money/Credit Banking, International Trade – Finance, Accounting, Business Law, Calculus

Reviewing your son or daughter’s transcript will give you all the necessary information to add the relevant coursework to the resume. Advise them to just list the classes that support the career area the student wants to land a job in.

Advice About Developing A LinkedIn Profile

Employers are searching LinkedIn every day to find talent. Every new graduate, or someone about to graduate, should have a LinkedIn profile. It should be as complete as possible: the headline noting he or she is a recent graduate and in what major, and the job titles the student is interested in. Colleges and universities don’t always teach students how to prepare a LinkedIn profile. Tell your student that recruiters are on LinkedIn every single day, but they must be able to find them. Recruiters actively reach out about job opportunities they want to interest them in. Offer clear directions on how to create and improve their profile.

Cover how their photo should appear. A professional picture is not necessary. They can use their phone to take the photo. It’s not a snapshot, where they cut themselves out of a family picture or social event. It is not the picture they use on Instagram. Point out that an appropriate photo is a headshot where they are smiling and look warm and engaging. They want a plain background and good lighting. Outside pictures or one taken with natural light inside are best. For more photo tips and what to wear, read the Forbes article “LinkedIn Photo Tips To Look Your Best.”

 

Forbes.com| April 19, 2022

#JobSearch : 5 Resume/CV Trends To Forget In 2022. In this article, I’m going to Go Over 5 of the Most Common Trends that you Should Abandon. GReat REad!

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If you want a CV that consistently lands interviews, it’s best to keep things simple, professional, and easy to read.

Whether it’s overusing cliché buzzwords, wasting space or not highlighting your professional achievements, there are several dated CV fads that might currently be impacting the success of your job applications. If you’re regularly not getting invited to interview, your CV might be impeding your professional goals.

In this article, I’m going to go over 5 of the most common trends that you should abandon when writing your CV, and how to write a bold, engaging CV that secures an interview.

Wacky designs

When it comes to your CV, a simple design will always be more professional and effective than something unconventional. You might hear suggestions about designing a ‘creative’ CV to catch the attention of the recruiter, but an “eye-catching” design won’t do anything to help your candidacy. Your potential employer only cares about one thing: your ability to do the job well.

Ultimately, It’s your work experience and professional achievements that will determine whether you land an interview or not, so making this information simple to find and easy to read is key. A complicated CV design can actually work against you by making your accomplishments difficult to locate on the page.

Keep your CV design simple, with a clean font, a conventional lay-out with clearly defined sections, and key information listed in easy-to-read bullet points. If you’re going to use design, use it to highlight your skills and achievements.

While you might want to demonstrate a long history of stable employment, you don’t need to include every job you’ve ever done when writing your CV. Recruiters mostly care about your last 3 years of employment, so focusing on these roles is key, especially your achievements within them.

If you have a career history going back many years, you can still include older roles, but just in short summary format. Make sure that they do not take up more space than your recent employment, and only include information that is relevant to your target jobs.

As a general rule of thumb, any jobs from over 10 years ago should be left off your CV.

 

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What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

Article continued …

Clichés and buzz words

When it comes to writing your CV, the rule is simple: show, don’t tell. Writing that you’re a “team player” or “always give 110%” isn’t going to give a recruiter any concrete evidence about your skills. In Buzzwords are just fluff – they take up space while adding nothing of value.

Besides being ineffective, some recruiters will even roll their eyes when they come across a CV full of overused clichés and buzzwords. So, rather than claiming that you’re a “passionate, hard-working and creative employee”, demonstrate these qualities by giving examples of your professional achievements.

If you want to demonstrate that you’re a “team player” or “results driven” you should do so by listing achievements that highlight these qualities.

Only listing responsibilities

Your CV isn’t just about listing your former roles and responsibilities; it’s also about proving your worth to a potential employer. While a strong job history does prove a certain level of competence in your field, it’s your achievements that will help you stand out from competing candidates.

When writing out your responsibilities for your former or current job, you should add some examples of the personal successes you enjoyed while in the role. Whether it was landing a key client or optimising your former company’s workflow, this information will prove to the employer that you are capable of bringing real value to their organisation.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that achievements can make or break the competitiveness of your CV. Between two equally qualified candidates with a similar job history and education, it’s the achievements that are going to be the difference between who gets the interview and who gets the polite rejection.

Hobbies and interests section

Space on your CV is limited, so it’s essential that you use it wisely to communicate your suitability for the specific role. Having a “hobbies and interests” section is a waste of space on your CV, unless your hobbies are somehow linked to your professional life.

Instead of adding a hobbies and interests section to tell employers that you “watch TV and socialise with friends”, use the extra space to beef up the parts of your CV that are the most interesting to a potential employer.

When you’re adding any information or work experience to your CV, it’s always helpful to ask yourself the following question: “What does the recruiter learn about me from this?” If you believe that the information you’re sharing will enhance your suitability for the role (in the eyes of the recruiter) you can include it. If not, leave it out.

If you want to make a great impression on your CV, forget “trends” and stick to classic CV formatting.

Winning CVs are ones that demonstrate achievements and the value of the candidate as an employee, so don’t be afraid to brag about your professional success. Keep your design simple, keep your work experience recent, and when it comes to your skills, remember to show, not tell.

Forbes.com – April 14, 2021 = Andrew Fennell

#JobSearch : Explaining Résumé Gaps to Employers. Any Unexplained Discontinuity in Work History can Slow or Kill the Hiring Process.

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Jenson Crawford quit his steady job as lead programmer for Southern California Edison to pursue a dream of becoming a sound engineer. But he later realized that late-night concert schedules weren’t compatible with starting a family. So he decided to go back to his old career.

The problem: He had a six-year hole in his résumé.

“The companies I interviewed with did not know anything about the [sound engineering] work I did. So I had to bridge the gap for them,” says Mr. Crawford, who translated his experience during those six years into something that software companies could use.

 

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What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

Article continued …

He talked up his project-management experience, which involved hiring and working with a crew of 50. He also took classes to brush up on his programming skills. The effort paid off. He got a job at Fetch Technology, a software-intelligence company in El Segundo, Calif.

Whether due to career changes, layoffs or taking time off to raise kids or travel, résumé gaps can signal to employers that you lack commitment, focus or are trying to hide a bad work experience. That’s why it’s important to have your story ready and, if possible, turn your experiences during that gap into a plus for a prospective employer.

Any unexplained discontinuity in work history can slow or kill the hiring process, says Ann Spoor, founder of Executive Lattice, a Denver-based executive talent agency.

When talking about personal reasons, remain professional, stay on topic and be brief, unless you can connect your time away to something that has a direct benefit to the company. Taking a year off to care for a sick parent, for example, may have given you applicable insight into the senior-care marketplace, hospitals or the insurance industry.

If you did consulting or volunteer work, took classes or even worked an entry-level job to pay the bills, talk those up. Working at the local coffee bar, for instance, may have given you insight into customer needs.

If you were fired or quit on bad terms, highlight what you learned from the experience. Accepting responsibility shows character and a willingness to learn from mistakes. Don’t place blame, lie or falsely alter dates of employment. If the truth surfaces down the line, it can result in your termination.

When it comes to your résumé, you can leave out the actual months of a gap if it was short — say, a few months. Then, address the time lapses during an interview. If the company has an online application process that requires filling in exact dates, explain your reasons for having any gaps in your cover letter.

With gaps that span years, consider creating a skills-based résumé, instead of a chronological one. It puts bullet points on top that highlight skills and experience and de-emphasize dates. The downside is that a skills-based résumé doesn’t highlight your career growth on the first page and some recruiters don’t care for the format.

WSJ Article:  Dennis Nishi at cjeditor@dowjones.com

WSJ.com | October 17, 2010