That’s right, doing a little happy dance. I just got a call back from somewhere I applied to that I was really hoping and praying to hear from. When that sort of thing happens, you have to do a little happy dance right? But what good would this post be if I didn’t try to share some knowledge as to how I was able to stick out above the regularly employed candidates with me being a consultant for the last couple of years.

Presentation

First impressions being so important, I knew that if I saw the right job that I would have to really hustle for it. Sure, I have a standard resume on hand that I update from time to time just in case I lose all of my contract work in the blink of an eye or somehow SEO becomes the next sub-prime mortgage market. Point is, you never know whats gonna happen when you’re running the show.

But in the case of seeing a job that screams my name and is something I would love to do, I knew that I would have to rewrite my resume to custom fit the requirements they need. NoBS’ing, just pointing out my abilities that are relevant. Cover letter is a must, and you can basically make a template one that would speak best to whatever industries you’re suited to work in. In this case, it was from scratch and touched on all the important things they’re looking for and any related skills I could bring to the table.

Slapping a picture on your resume is great, just don’t use one that would embarrass your mother and her start encouraging you to change your last name.  I was lucky enough to have a professional headshot that was done a few years back, and it’s the only picture in existence with me looking happy about being in a suit. Check out my about page, that’s the picture.

Stop laughing.

Paper Tigers

Employers are familiar with this term. It basically means that it’s someone who talks a great game on their resume but can’t do the job for squat. Keep that in mind when you’re writing your resume, it’s a good way to stay within realistic boundaries of what you’re capable of. And for the love of Tony Danza, don’t get it in your head that they want you to know how to do everything on the face of the planet except for rotating the universe on command. They’re looking for a talented person with the ability to add to the team and learn new skills; not an office deity.

Learn The Company

This is the same kind of thing you do when you get a new client, but this time around it’s not for the sake of building up brand and company awareness. I’ve made the mistake of going to a job interview and not knowing a damn thing about them and what they do. And it cost me the job everytime.

Start hitting Google, look for press releases and make note of the topic, date and who it benefited. If you like, follow up in the interview about it in a casual way, and see how they respond to the fact that you did do your homework. This is a win-win.

There was one job that I applied for where I had found out that they had done campaign contributions to the Democratic party back in 2003. When they asked me what I knew about their company, I covered their press releases, company history via their website, and finally the campaign contributions. They started laughing, but they were impressed. It does work on a positive level.

Conclusion

My interview is this Monday at 9AM in downtown Honolulu. I will keep you posted on the outcome. Wish me luck!