Gaps in employment. I want to start with the big picture, then drill down to some specifics.   If it was several years ago, or more recently for only a few months, it probably isn’t the problem you think it is.   You can eliminate or minimize the appearance of an employment gap on your resume and LinkedIn, but you can’t do this on an application.   You CAN cover the employment gap with consulting work or other self-employment – but only if it is legitimate.   Be prepared to answer questions about how you spent that gap and what you learned during that time.   On Your R ..read more

I want to talk with you today about what SHOULD and SHOULDN’T be on your resume in 2024. Like many of the topics I bring to the podcast, this one comes from resumes I’ve seen lately with very old-school information.   What Should Be Included -Branding statement & Summary (which I covered in episode #314 last week).   -Professional Experience section, written in reverse chronological order and going back 15-20 years.   -You can include internships in this section if you are a recent college graduate, but will generally be removed once you have full-time, post-graduate experie ..read more

Over the years, a number of people have reached out to me with concerns about their resume – in some cases, resumes I wrote for them.   They went to a website that offered a free resume critique and got back harsh criticism that worried them.   Here’s what’s going on: Larger, so-called “resume mills” have software they run your resume through. That software is set up for the express purpose of telling you things are terribly wrong with your resume, after which they do a hard sell to get you to buy a resume package from them.   I promise you, I could send my own resume to them an ..read more

Here’s the scenario: You’ve been promoted in your current unit. You are now managing people who used to be your peers – at least one of whom may have also applied for the promotion.   How do you transition from a colleague to a manager? This can happen as you move from an individual contributor to a first-time manager, or from a manager to a director or senior manager. You could also become a VP and start managing your former director colleagues.   In short, this scenario can happen at any level.   As I researched this topic, many of the resources I looked at gave rather generic ..read more

I want to start by being clear: This is a topic I’ve covered before. I’m covering it again because, based on the resumes that come to me for consults, ya’ll haven’t gotten the message yet.   In addition to touching on this topic in several episodes, I specifically covered job duties and achievements in episode #174. I’m going to expand on the content from that episode in this one.   What I see Let’s start with what I see on almost every resume that comes my way: either there isn’t an achievement in sight, or the few achievements that are there are mixed in with bulleted job duties ..read more

As most of you know, the first 90 days in a new job are critical for your long-term success – not only in that role, but for your future with the organization.   Today, I want to give you key steps you can take in those first 90 days to set yourself up for success.     Let’s start with an Individual Contributor role.   A primary focus from week 1 should be getting clear success metrics and priorities from your boss. This typically goes beyond the job description, although that’s a good starting point if you don’t already have one. If your boss doesn’t have success metrics a ..read more

First, a confession: When I started seeing articles and comments about “dry promotions,” I didn’t know what that was.   In case some of you are in that same boat, here’s a definition:   “A promotion without a salary increase.”   As American businesses seek innovative ways to cut costs in a tightening economy, employers may be enticed to promote employees but withhold a salary increase.     There are two primary benefits to an employee who accepts a dry promotion:   1.    An opportunity to gain new skills and take on new challenges.   2.&nb ..read more

Today, we’re talking about how to develop your elevator pitch. This is your 15-to-30 second “commercial” about yourself, which you will need for use in a variety of settings, including:   -Introducing yourself at a networking meeting   -Selling yourself to a potential employer   -Selling yourself, your company, or your product/service to a potential customer   If you’re not familiar with the concept, the idea is that you could say your elevator pitch while going from one floor to the next on an elevator.   Elevator pitches come in a variety of shapes and sizes, depend ..read more

Last week, I focused on Verbal Communication Skills to Enhance Promotability; today I’m covering Written Communication Skills. Once again, I want to start with an assessment – these are great questions to ask yourself. From there, I recommend you pick the area that you felt the least confident about and set a 90-day goal for improvement. 1.    How well can I anticipate and predict possible causes for written confusion and miscommunication, and how good am I at dealing with them upfront?   2.    How often do recipients fully understand my messages ..read more

Today, I want to give you strategies to improve your verbal communication skills – specifically, with an eye to enhancing your promotability.   Next week’s episode will piggyback on this one with ways to improve your written communications skills – also with an eye to enhancing your promotability.   In episode #113, I covered active listening at work; here’s the link to that episode: https://exclusivecareercoaching.com/posts/2020-02-05-113-active-listening-at-work/   In episode #114, I talked about effective communication at work, and I’ve included that link in the show notes. I ..read more