Branding yourself is critical when looking for a job –whether you are just out of college, in mid-career, or transitioning later in life. I find in my consulting practice that most people spend way too time on their resumes and almost no time at all thinking about how they want to be perceived. How you are perceived is everything in this game; it’s the “what can you do for me” question that all potential employers are asking.

It’s your job to tell them!

Another way to ask this question is: what problem am I the answer to?

It is a pro-active, rather than a passive, approach. It does the hard work of synthesizing all of your experience for the person sitting on the  other side of the desk. In doing this, you appear confident and independent, two important qualities in any new hire.

So, how do you begin to formulate your personal brand? Start by asking yourself: (1) what makes me different from everyone else competing for this job? (2) How do you want potential employers to perceive you?

Armed with those answers, review your resume and make sure that it supports your brand. Now is not the time for modesty.

Technorati Tags: job search, personal branding, resumes

None other than the Harvard Business School has designed a tool to help you with The Art of the Pitchcraft.

I even like the word PITCHCRAFT — could we take a vote and ban the phrase elevator speech entirely? Please?

Not known to give anything away for free, or heaven forbid, to anyone who didn’t go to the “B” school as it is known around here, this, wonder of wonders, is free! No password, no shopping cart. Free!

Whether you are trying to raise capital, promote your business, or promote yourself, this mini-site tells us, YOU HAVE ONE MINUTE TO SAY IT ALL.

And that’s what it does–in a series of screens, drawing out key words and concepts, putting them together, and then saying, OK, that was 15 minutes / Go back…..or, that was 3 seconds/try again. You get the idea.

Check it out, if for no other reason than it is the only freebie you’ll likely ever get from Harvard.

Technorati Tags: branding, elevator pitch, elevator speech, harvard business school, harvard business school career services

That’s not a word I use very often, but in this case it is the only way to describe what I’ve seen of late. I sent out an offer to my email newsletter subscribers to take a look at their resumes for free–to give them a quick diagnostic on what’s working and what’s not.

Suffice it to say that very little was working. Here is a list of the most egregious (and simple to fix) errors:

1. Too much information

Why do we feel we have to throw-in everything but the kitchen sink? It doesn’t matter what you did in high school or the fact that you enjoy reading and bungee jumping. Stick to the brand you are trying to convey. Remember that all great brands convey a single message. What’s yours? Then build your resume around it.

2. Not enough “white space”

I mean, how many places can your eyes goes at any one time? Give me a clean, well laid out, organized precis that leads me to a single conclusion: you’re the person I MUST hire.

3. Lack of a compelling theme or brand

How should I think about you? How do you want to be perceived? Once you’ve answered this question, choose words that support your message.

4. Too many/ not enough use of bullets

Show me that you can write in full sentences, but give me bullets under the major headings. Packing in too much dense narrative studded with buzz words only gives me a headache.

5. Lack of confidence

You are your own best evangelist. Remember this. No one else is going to promote your unique skills and talents better than you co. Don’t be afraid to use words like “experienced” and “leading.” Take credit for your accomplishments.

Want a quick take on your resume? Just send it along……..

Technorati Tags: careers, job hunting, resume

I’m not sure that if you’re looking for a job you need more options. I know that when I start parsing websites, going so deep that I soon forget what it was that I started out looking for, I am procrastinating.  I am putting off doing the real work by trying to find the one job site that will magically produce the greatest number of jobs that are perfect for me.

Job sites are only as useful as you allow them to be. What, you say? I upload my resume and bingo! Off it goes around the universe, like the astronaut’s toolbox that is now circling the globe, into the waiting inboxes of  eager employers.

It’s simple: if you don’t know who you are and what your value is to potential employers before you hit “send”  you might as well be raking leaves. It would be more productive, and probably more satisfying, too.

Yes, choices abound about how to get your credentials into circulation.  That’s the easy part. What’s more difficult is deciding who you are and why an employer should talk to you. It’s not up to them to put the pieces together–it’s up to you.

You can keep on surfing, keep on hitting  the “submit” button and feeling pleased with yourself. But if you haven’t packaged the product first, I suspect you will have few buyers.

Technorati Tags: employers, job search, online job sites, potential employers

That’s exactly what you’re doing by sitting back and thinking that monster.com, careerbuilder.com and all the other internet job boards the abound these days can do all the hard work of marketing for you.

According to recent statistics compiled by Richard Bolles in his most recent edition of What Color is Your Parachute?, only 4%-10% find a job this way. Slim odds, by any standards.

I’m not saying don’t use all the tools available. By all means, comb through what’s out there. But do it with a plan. Craft a strategy as if you were the marketing manager of your own product launch–with yourself as the product.

What shelf do you belong on? Are you Coke or Pepsi? What attributes ( read: skills, experience, expertise) do you have that others don’t? And just exactly how will you make those attributes known? And to whom?

Most people that I advise in this process come to me with the firm conviction that “if I am good they will find me.” On some level, we all believe that. But if you are going to find a job or change careers these days, I’m here to disabuse you of that notion.

Sketch it out:

1. What industry do you want to work in and why?

2. What kind of companies within that industry are you targetting?

3. What specific job title are you seeking?

4. How are you going make sure that you are visible to the influencers and opinion-makers within those companies and/or sectors?

5. What problem do they have that you are the answer to?

These are not all the questions you need to ask to launch a successful personal marketing campaign, but they’re a very good beginning. If nothing else, it will rule out all kinds of jobs that look interesting but for which you really aren’t qualified –saving time, effort and most importantly, angst.

Because, as I tell clients every day, eliminating what you don’t want, what you won’t pursue, and what you aren’t going to spend time on can often be 90% of the battle.

Technorati Tags: career transition, job search, marketing campaign, resume