Essay Guideline

Sometimes you can face a real dilemma regarding what to put on or leave off a resume. Essentially, a resume is simply a marketing tool that features the highlights of your qualifications; not every job must be listed as that is what the job application is for.

Still, there is so much misunderstanding regarding resumes. I have seen people list every job held, classes taken, achievements, etc. Some of these experiences are far from their intended career aspirations, but I generally don’t have a problem with most of them as it can show that you are a well rounded person.

However, listing a job you held for a month or two can raise a red flag. If you list a short term job, be prepared to honestly explain your short stint, but if you leave it out you may be asked why you have a gap on your resume. Personally, I would leave most jobs held for six months off of the resume but include this information on the job application if one is utilized.

What you decide to do is your call and if you visit the various career sites on the internet you’ll find a variety of opinions on the subject, some of which offer conflicting advice.

Copyright 2006 - For additional information regarding Matt Keegan, The Article Writer, please visit his blog for wit, quips, and freelance writing tips.

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Have you ever wanted to fire your boss? I’ve never known anybody who didn’t want to at least once a year. I’ve worked with lots of people who wanted to once a day!

I believe you SHOULD fire your boss. That doesn’t mean quitting your job.

You have a choice in your work life. You can work for you, or you can work only to make somebody else rich. I recommend the first one.

No matter who signs your paycheck, you can work for you. All that means is using your work effort to produce a better lifestyle for your family. In my opinion, that means financial wealth (at least relative to where you are now) and abundant time to spend with those you love.

Sounds good, doesn’t it? The bad news is that remarkably few employees do it. The good news is that anybody can, and it’s not hard. You simply have to shift the way you think.

Don’t think like an employee, who shows up, collects a paycheck and depends on his employer’s benevolence to keep getting paid. That makes you a prisoner of your boss and your job.

Instead, think like an owner. Go to work everyday and do your best to find ways to increase company profits. Look for ways to reduce costs or increase revenue. Those profit improvement possibilities are literally everywhere, but few employees bother to look.

If you find great ways to increase profit, that will help your boss tremendously. Your boss and his bosses might be too frazzled with the day-to-day grind to see all of the possibilities themselves. Help them out! Believe it or not, that will help you.

Those profit improvement ideas, if you present them well to the right people at the right time, might just get you a raise, or promoted. Those ideas also can help you build a killer resume.

A steady track record of improving profits sells like hotcakes. A few bullet points like that on your resume will make your job prospects a lot brighter, and open doors you didn’t even know were there.

So, when you go into work tomorrow, start thinking and acting like an owner. Look for ways to improve profit. Make that your mission. That’s how you work for you, without quitting your job.

Copyright (c) 2005 by Roy Miller

Roy Miller created http://www.Job-Search-Guidepost.com.

He recently released a new FREE report on how you can (and should) fire your boss. Claim your copy today! And if you liked this article, sign up for Roy’s free weekly newsletter.

Would you like never to need a resume again? Visit Roy’s new site http://www.resale-money-machine.com to find out how.

This article may be reprinted for use in newsletters and on websites provided that this information box is kept intact. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required: Roy@Job-Search-Guidepost.com.

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1) Set aside some time, even if it’s just an hour every day looking for jobs. If you do it in the morning, it’ll make you feel better later in the day, as you’ll feel you are taking steps towards your job-hunting process. If you have a partner, they will appreciate it too, knowing you are making good use of your time.

2) Customize your resume for each job that you’re applying for, writing in greater depth about the skills required for the job. This will bring greater prominence and attention to the employer.

3) Make sure that you have all the buzzwords on your resume, as agencies mainly identify candidates through searches.

4) Follow-up by calling a dozen agencies each day, just to remind them that you are still available. Although your resume will come up when the agency does a search, so will hundreds of others, and you want to make sure that the agencies consider you first for jobs that have come in that day.

5) Monitor as many of the job boards as you can, and resend your resume each time a new job comes up that matches your skills, even if the particular agency already has your resume.

6) Keep your resume to 2 pages in length, as no one wants read a 10-page resume when they have hundreds of others to read. Make sure you have a summary of your skills on the front page. Remember that this is a sales document. If you want to impress further, make your resume a Brochure, as this will stick out from the crowd plus show that you work in a professional manner.

7) Show your resume to as many friends as possible for their comments, and ask agencies for their comments as well.

Send out a fresh online batch of resumes to extra agencies each week. More and more companies operate with Preferred Supplier lists, and if you are not on the books of the Preferred Supplier agency, you will not be considered. Therefore, it’s suggested that you be on the books of as many agencies as possible.

9) Don’t rely strictly on agencies, but use your own contacts. Call up or email your old companies, bosses or fellow workers to see if there are any opportunities they might provide.

10) Get in touch with all the old colleagues that you are still in touch with to find out if they are aware of any work that may be going on at their companies. If you’ve lost touch with many of the people that you worked with, use reunion sites like NamesFacesPlaces to see if any old colleagues who might be registered could help you find work.

11) Find something else to do with your spare time, which may become useful in the future. Learn a new skill or build your own website. Once you’re back in work, you’ll wish that you had made better use of your time.

12) Attend networking events such as those organized by the PCG or the BCS. Perhaps you could organize a reunion or other event. Schedule a time to get together for drinks with colleagues who worked at a particular site with you. The people you invite will invite others and as they may have similar skills to you and may know of some work going at the companies they work for.

13) Look in on IT discussion web sites where you will find people with the same problems. Here you can learn and share advice. You may also get encouragement after talking to some people who were out of work but have managed to get jobs. Ask them how they did it.

14) When you finally get an interview, remember to prepare well for it. Make sure that you reacquaint your self with the subject matter. Ask one of your friends with similar skills to interview you first so you can better prepare yourself. There’s nothing worse than failing an interview that you feel you should have landed, due to lack of preparation.

15) And lastly, don’t give up. It’s difficult to keep repeating and doing the same things on a daily basis without immediate results, but your perseverance will pay off in the end.

Gerry McLaughlin has fulfilled every role in Software Development from Trainee Programmer through Systems and Business Analysis, Project Leader and Manager, Systems Manager and Chief Information Officer with a department of 80 people. Tens of thousands of IT Contractors visit http://www.ITContractor.com each month to keep themselves in touch with the market.

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