Effective self-promotion

An Article, Effective Self-promotion, Brisbane Courier Mail
Sunday Mail, on Sat 22 July,2000

By Claire Dargan

FOR some candidates, trying to secure a position can be a soul destroying process, what with sending out resume after resume and receiving rejection after rejection.

Mike Greenfield, of Resume Now, said the answer might be that the resumes being sent out did not reflect their competitive edge.

"If your resume is not working, it is because you need to sell yourself from the very first line," Mr Greenfield said.

"Candidates today are facing harsh competition for positions and need to promote themselves effectively.

"It is important to get credibility into a resume.

"Recruitment consultants and employers are tired of opening resumes only to find a series of general statements.

"Neither has time to trawl through and analyse a resume. No one is going to read 16 pages. Resumes ideally should be 2-3 pages in length - four at the most.

"An employer should be able to pick up a resume and find out in 30 seconds what you can offer that will be of benefit to them," Mr Greenfield said.

A common mistake in resumes is including lists of responsibilities.

Mr Greenfield said that, rather than stating, for example, that profitability was a key area of responsibility, "explain what strategies you created to increase profit and how much you improved the company's bottom line".

Achievements should be highlighted, not responsibilities.

Mr Greenfield said that, people often had the requisite skills for the position for which they had applied but the employer did not ascertain that from the resume.

"When responding to an advertisement with selection criteria, identify what the employer is looking for and address it," Mr Greenfield said.

"It is important to target

the jobs you apply for correctly.

"Rather than applying for everything that appeals, candidates should apply only for those positions where they can offer benefits to the employer, otherwise they are setting themselves up for a high rejection rate that will impact on their confidence.

These common mistakes can easily be corrected.

Mr Greenfield said fancy graphics "don't work" and the use of generic terms should be avoided.

"Everybody says they work hard," he said.

"Hobbies are not usually needed in a resume unless they are relevant to the position you are applying for.

"Show the scope of your skills (including team skills, communication skills and relationship skills) and show yourself as proactive," he said.

If done correctly, a resume could be a tool to help control an interview as it would refresh the memory and create an interest on the part of the interviewer in the applicant.

An Article, Effective Self-promotion, Brisbane Courier Mail
Sunday Mail, on Sat 22 July,2000
By Claire Dargan based on an interview with Mike Greenfield

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