I digress from this blog’s typical fare to offer some frank advice to all you communications people who, as the economy hints at brightening up, might be thinking, “What I need is to get out of this creativity-sapping sinkhole and find myself a fresh new job!” I bet right now, you’re considering dusting off that resume and adding an eloquent, maybe even flourishing (!) paragraph about what you’ve been up to lately in your corporate cubby.
STOP RIGHT THERE. Before you execute a single keystroke, you need to hear something. You’re brilliant at helping organizations put their best foot forward. But your resume writing stinks. That little paragraph you’re about to create will do nothing to help you get out of the career straight jacket you’re in.
Here’s the plain truth about resumes, even in the communications field. Your resume really needs to do nothing more than two very simple things: show potential employers that you (1) saved your employer money and/or (2) made it money. Period. End of story.
I know, I know. Your resume gets a pass on such constricting criteria because you’re senior and accomplished and smart, right? “But making money or saving money is not really what communications people do,” you argue to me over a vanilla vodka and soda. “I’m not in sales. What I do doesn’t boil down that way!”
But I assure you, it must. Because if it doesn’t, your resume is gonna stink like Aveeno moisturizers.
The funny thing is, this is not news to you. What I’m asserting can be found in any good resume-writing book. But you haven’t read any of those books since you graduated from college. Now that you’re really accomplished in the field, you wouldn’t consider it.
For years I’ve spent my spare time helping people who are smarter than me turn their tragic resumes into legitimate sales tools. Often, I find, the better and more accomplished the professional, the more that resume fails to do him or her justice. That findind is amazingly consistent.
But you are one solid communicator! You’re as sharp as they come! You would nail that next great job, if you could get it! So break out that old resume and heed my three tips:
1. Avoid the job description trap. Every sentence in your resume must illustrate what you accomplished, not how you spent your time. The description of how you spent your days probably already exists in a folder somewhere – it’s called your “job description.” No one cares.
2. Find the metrics that prove you rock. What were the results you achieved, and how were they measured? Did you increase awareness from 5% to 12%? Did you grow the business by $165,698 in nine months? Find the metrics that quantify your success and use them liberally.
3. Get out of the weeds. All that gobbledygook in your resume only shows that you can write in gobbledygook. You’re not going to trick anyone into thinking you’re impressive by using all that jargon. You’re a communications person – you know how to put things in plain, compelling terms. Why do you park that skill when you needed it most?
These tips aren’t only for people who are preparing to update their resume today. Resume-writing never stops. We have to think in these terms all the time. For every project we enter, we need to ask ourselves, “How can I turn this into a measurable result that will look great on my resume?” And doesn’t apply only to communications pros. It’s applicable in every field.
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When I help people with resumes, the dialogue often looks like an interrogation. “What, EXACTLY, did you achieve in the midst of this long, rambling bullet?,” I demand, looking down my nose judgmentally. The process is painful for the poor victim, but it often results in transformation from yawn-worthiness to downright compelling. So, when you go to edit your resume bullets…
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Instead of writing this: “Held responsibility for a cross-functional team of high-level communications and public relations professionals charged with implementing all aspects of the organizations marketing communications and public relations strategies.”
Write this: “Led the team that generated 92 news and blog pieces in 180 days that supported an 18% increase in sales over the previous year.”
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Instead of writing this: “Oversaw all aspects of communications in support of the associations industry-leading public affairs and legislative advocacy efforts.”
Write this: “Led a talk-radio and editorial-page outreach campaign that Hill staffers anecdotally say was instrumental in securing needed Congressional committee votes on a top legislative priority.”
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Instead of writing this: “Held responsibility for all internal communications programs, including overseeing newsletters, employees events, and intranet.”
Write this: “Spearheaded an all-new internal-communications strategy that contributed to a 12% drop in employee absenteeism and a 23% decrease in employee attrition during the strategy’s first year of implementation.”
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So give it some thought and give it a whirl. That next great job awaits.
