Year: 2018
City versus country gal…heading into the west
Hi there lovely readers…you’ve probably noticed that one of the tabs in my blog is titled ‘Confess’. Interestingly, in a world full of blogs banging on about the meaning of life (’42’ of course), love and the universe, it’s the posts that sit in the confess category that seem to resonate with you the most. As evidenced when, some years ago and despite my ‘manage your personal brand’ mantra, I exposed a tad of vulnerability while ruminating on the demise of a brief relationship. The response from supportive friends was overwhelming; and the need to document my adventurous childhood mentioned in that post – more so. Thus was born the beginning of the story on how I, as a genuine country gal, came to learning how to ‘skin a ‘roo’…
You see, I had dated a big burly country boy who, after a week spent sprinkling passionate adoration upon me, exclaimed ‘I love you Jane, but we are poles apart – you’re a classy city girl, and I’m just a country boy, this is never going to work.’ A subtle grenade dropped as we were clearing the aftermath of a lovely little introductory candlelit dinner party I’d just hosted for six of my closest. ‘I can skin a ‘roo with the best of ‘em mate!’ I retorted as he exited the building as swift as a summer storm. ‘And I’m as tough as the best of them too’ – whispered as the tears started to well.
Bloody well right I can skin a kangaroo sport! But would I want to? No. If I had to? Yes. You see, burly boy, this ‘classy city girl’ was once a country gal herself! Let me tell you my story…
Heading into the west…
The day ‘Nipples’ our ’Ute (so named for her close resemblance to the colour of Mum’s allegedly magnificent areola) juddered across a shallow grid flanked by two tree trunks hewn straight and solid and topped with a timber plinth proudly branded with the property’s name, my life as a townie ended.
Dad let out a low whistle. “Well, would you just look at that ‘ey?” Before us squatted a series of hodgepodge buildings, like Pilgrims wagons, gathered around the edges of a dusty, gibber strewn quadrangle the size of two football fields – fitting, given the hours we’d just spent making our pilgrimage to this dry, dust-bound pseudo-Dallas ranch. The year was 1964. The Vietnamese war was escalating, the Beatles were taking the world by storm, the space race was in full swing, Tokyo was hosting the Olympics, and Cassius Clay was busy changing his name to Muhammad Ali.
Dad gave us the low down: “Owned by Clarke and Whiting, the station runs over 220,000 sheep across 2,430 square kilometers, employs 30 plus staff year-round and hosts up to 150 more during the shearing season”. Bloody hell, the man had done his homework.”Our vegetables will be supplied by a Chinese gardener whose patch sprawls across a chunk of the river down by a weir, and he grows enough for the Manager’s Chef, the Jackaroo, Ringer and Shearers’ cook and us lot. We’ll also be supplied with milk, mutton, and beef as there’s a cowboy” … Mum interjected – “A Cowboy? That’s his title? – imagine that on a business card – ‘Cowboy’ – Jack’s the name, wrangling’s the game!” “Yeah well, he also breaks in the horses” Dad responded. “Along with any stray woman who might wander into his posse” Mum retorted. (Mum had a ‘thing’ for Cowboys)
There was also a magnificent semicircular 52 stand shearing shed where up to 30,000 sheep were freed of their cumbersome, finely rippled merino wool jackets per season. The shed’s overwhelming presence, together with extensive sorting yards, dominated the perimeter of the property. Majestic. Iconic. And of course, the homestead, the diesel-powered shed, and the wool press required machinery to keep things moving. And a full-time mechanic to ensure it did. And that was my dad.
Casey, our Alsatian, emerged from beneath the chattels piled high in the back of our ute and made straight for one of three telegraph poles dotted across the quadrangle, nose lifted to the heady wafts of lanolin and sheep dung hanging in the still afternoon air. Shearing season. Business done, she returned and, with one hand on the dog’s head, the other on Mum’s shoulder as she, in turn, gathered me tightly under her arm, Dad whispered – “Well here we are darling!’”
To be continued…
Krug Champers to Resume self sufficiency
Hello lovely readers. You know what? Having now helped over 10,000 transitioning candidates develop effective personal branding strategies and campaigns to drive career success, it’s a given that I’ve seen a few resumes along the way. As a result, friends often ask if I might review their resumes as well. Now to be honest, after a day coaching folk on how to take their resumes from bog standard to kick ass, attention-grabbing, strength marketing, scan-bot loving documents, it’s kind of the last thing I want to be doing in my leisure time! Unless your reward for my efforts involves a crate of Krug Private Cuvée Champers, an extended holiday in Bora Bora and a bevvy of gorgeous…oh sorry, where was I?
Let me offer you a five-step editing plan that will help you take your resume from okay to pretty damn impressive without that expense…you’re welcome!
Editing is more than just giving your resume a once-over to eliminate egregious typos and grammar mistakes. It’s about looking at it with a critical eye, then making changes to ensure it’s the best it can be. And that’s what you want for your resume, right? Sooo..first up:
1: Consider the Resume’s Aim
On that first read, ignore typos and formatting and think about the overall message your resume is sending. From the top down, ask yourself the following:
Contact details:
• Is my email address professional? (‘sexybeast@hotmail.com’ just won’t do ok?)
• Have I added my LinkedIn URL below my email address and mobile number?
Insider tip – Hotmail addresses have a propensity for landing in the junk mail folder – consider an alternative such as Gmail, outlook etc., just for your marketing purposes
Executive Summary:
• Does my summary start with my ‘functional title’ e.g. ‘Sales Executive’ with expertise in….’
• Does my title follow with skills as they relate to the expectations of the job for which I’m applying?
• Does it summarise the actual strengths and experience I’ve articulated in the body of the resume?
• Does my summary sell me well enough to entice the reader to read more?
Insider tip: Summary should ‘summarise’ strengths depicted in the body of the resume and vice versa.
Career History:
• What makes my experience stand out amongst similarly experienced candidates?
• Are there gaps between the experience on the pages and experience required for the job?
• If so, what can I add to supplement those gaps?
• Are my responsibilities nicely summarised in a tidy three line job scope sentence?
• Do my achievements demonstrate what I did with my responsibilities that made a difference in my past jobs?
• Do my accomplishments answer the critical questions – ‘Why? (Challenge) How? (Actions) and So What? (Results)
• Have I quantified results as proof of outcomes?
• Have I started each achievement with an action verb?
• Have I edited my accomplishments back to sharp three line sentences?
• No more than 10-12 years history included?
Education/Professional Development:
• Have I included the name of the institutes from which I gained my formal qualifications?
• And listed the most relevant professional development courses I’ve attended?
And…
• Is there anything in the document that doesn’t need to be, such as photos, fancy graphics, hobbies, date of birth, marital status?
• Does the overall text sell me as the perfect candidate for the role?
Insider tip: Quantify the results in achievements where possible. The critical difference between an average resume and a brilliant one.
2: Scrutinize
Now to editing. Walk through your resume again and look at every section, every sentence, and every word and determine if there’s a better way to get your point across:
• Is this the most robust possible language I can use?
• Can anything be said more clearly? Or in fewer words?
• Have I used technical language that someone outside my company or industry might not understand?
• Have my acronyms been spelt out? (Don’t assume the reader will understand them)
• Are there any words I’ve used repeatedly? Can they be replaced with more creative language?
Insider tip: Send your resume to your selected referees, ask them for feedback and adjust accordingly, after all, they’ll be the ones substantiating your claims when called for a reference.
3: Double Check Facts and Stats
Now review your resume again, this time asking yourself:
• Are the companies I’ve worked for named the same thing today?
• Are my position titles accurate?
• Are my employment dates correct?
• Are the stats I’ve used to describe increases, budgets, savings and achievements (reasonably) accurate?
Insider tip: Another reason to seek referee feedback. The facts need to weigh up with their recall.
4: Double Proofread
You can review your document for hours and still fail to notice that you’ve used ‘lead’ instead of ‘led’, ‘there’ instead of ‘their’, ‘manger’ instead of ‘manager’. Don’t rely on Spellcheck alone. Proofreading one last time is a step you can’t neglect. More questions to ask:
• Are there any typos? Wrong word usage?
• Do each of my bullet points end with a period (or not)? Either is fine, be consistent.
• Are my commas in the right place?
• Is my sentence structure grammatically consistent?
• Is everything written in past tense?
• Have I removed all personal pronouns, e.g. ‘I’, ‘we’, ‘our’?
• Are the pages numbered in the footer?
• Is my name on each page in the header?
Insider tip: When proofreading, it’s helpful to read your resume from the bottom up. Again, have someone you trust review for grammar and consistency.
5: Aesthetic Appeal
Now it’s time to give it a final once-over with a designer’s eye, considering:
• Does each page look visually appealing?
• Are the pages overly cluttered?• The font too small? Difficult to read?
• Bullet points used for easy readability?
• Do the headings stand out?
• Is the font size and formatting for each section consistent?
• Does the layout make sense?
• No more than three pages max?
Insider Tip: Avoid templates with fancy symbols, fonts and layouts – they are the bain of recruiter’s lives for they’re challenging to extrapolate info from and the scanbots can’t always parse the necessary info that will get you to the ‘read’ pile.
Editing your resume to ensure it’s sharp and focused, sells you effectively and is error free can be exciting, challenging and rewarding all in one. Why? It reminds you of just how much you’ve accomplished in your career. And that boosts your confidence. Which in turn better prepares you for typical behavioural interviews. And the opportunity to negotiate salary because you now know your worth. And ultimately it can land you that job!
Oh! And if you need someone to share your celebratory Champers with, you know where to find me!
