Avoid Resume and Profile Cliches

I am a highly motivated, dynamic self-starter, results-oriented, hard-working, dedicated, team-player with excellent multi-tasking and communications skills. I have 20+ years experience in fast-paced environments.

And I never met a cliché I didn’t like.

It doesn’t matter whether you are writing a profile at Linked In, Facebook or a resume. Worn-out phrases and clichés do not effectively communicate your value or your unique qualities. They do effectively prove that you are not original and cannot communicate extremely important concepts in memorable or meaningful ways.
We see two broad types of clichés. There are the worn-out phrases that are supposed to describe skills, and there are the very boring terms that express characteristics. Neither type of cliché helps promote your unique brand in the market – either job or professional. So why do we use clichés? I think they are crutches we use as substitutes for the hard thinking and difficult work involved with developing and communicating our brand.

What is easier? Saying that I have “excellent communication skills”? Or explaining exactly what that means. For instance, do my communications skills persuade? Inform? Motivate? Close deals? Educate? And if my communication skills do one or more of these important things, what type of results have I delivered?

So a more effective statement describing “excellent communication skills” might be:

I use verbal communication skills to persuade and influence colleagues and clients to take affirmative actions towards the resolution of strategic problems such as the development of marketing plans and sales team reorganizations.

This language sounds better and communicates more than, “I have excellent communication skills.”

Every cliché is some sort of shorthand. The trick to writing without relying upon clichés is to dig beyond the shorthand and identify the core of the message or concept. Then explain the core of the concept or idea in terms and language that fits you, your style and promotes your brand. The example I use for communication skills is just one possible way to effectively communicate a core concept about high-end communication skills.

So, as soon as you see yourself falling into cliché ridden writing – stop. Ask yourself, “What is at the core of this idea?” Then offer a more detailed statement around the core competency you are explaining and make sure you add a statement that helps the reader see you delivering value and results.

Here’s a quick list of some of my “favorite” clichés and a quick reference of some helpful questions to facilitate some more in-depth thinking around these “gems” of resume and profile drafting.

“Team Player”
Do you enjoy team oriented relationships?
Do you get a sense of satisfaction from sharing ideas?
Is serving in a well-defined role important to you?

“Self Starter”
Do you take initiative in ambiguous situations?
Are you willing to manage yourself?
Do you thrive in open-ended assignments with little to no direct supervision?

“Hands-On Leader”
Is this a description of your management/leadership style?
Do you lead by example?
Are you able to demonstrate and show team members or direct reports what is expected of them?

“Strategic Thinking”
Are you at your best when working on projects that require pulling together ideas and concepts from multiple sources?
Are you good at seeing and making connections between and among things that appear to others to not be related or connected?
Do enterprise-wide projects hold your interest and attention better than narrowly focused projects and assignments?

“Energetic”
Is this a description of your work style?
Are you most engaged when you have multiple projects to complete?
Do you thrive on lots of interpersonal contact and projects?

“Multi-Tasking Skills”
Do you meet deadlines?
Can you take several projects or assignments from start to completion simultaneously?
Can you lead some projects while contributing to other projects in different roles at the same time?

These are just a start. How many clichés can you add? Can you offer some advice on how to get to the core of the concept or idea contained within the cliché?

So – in closing:
I am an effective and enthusiastic writer using communication skills to drive results, in a hard-working and dependable manner. My 20+ years experience helps me multi-task so I can think out-of-the-box about being a terrific people person.

Or:
I am motivated to encourage my readers and clients to find creative and fun ways to express themselves in resume and profile writing. In general, my clients and readers discover that following some simple, but effective, tips and suggestions increases the readability and effectiveness of their resumes, and they usually see an increase in traffic across their social media profiles.

Post sponsored by, Cliché’ B-Gone! Your resume and profile development experts at BPI group.
Chris Osborn – a recovering “people person”!

Let’s hope the encouraging news about the economy from the past few weeks is a true harbinger of things to come. The job market looks like it might be bouncing back a little bit, but millions of us will remain out of work well into 2010. Over the past year, we (BPI group) have literally worked with thousands of clients, many of whom landed new jobs, and we learned that a job search – whether short or protracted – can teach us all two extremely valuable life and career management lessons.

1. Build Your Network BEFORE You Need Your Network. That’s not a terribly original phrase, but it’s a great one. Networking is the secret to landing new opportunities. Of the thousands of successful searches, only a small handful involved job offers found outside connections, contacts, etc., networking.

The real lesson to be learned, however, isn’t that networking can help you land a job. It’s that a vibrant, active network is a critical career management resource. So, as the New Year unfolds, try to do the following:

• Contact each member your network and reconnect in some way. It can be as simple as a “Happy New Year” status update, but even better would be a personalized note to really key members of your network. Remember – it’s about relationships, so make sure you are in touch with friends and colleagues during this hectic holiday season.
• Make sure you are connecting at Linked In, Facebook and Twitter with everyone you meet at holiday receptions, parties, etc.
• As you make new contacts – keep the lines of communication open!

2. The second great lesson from the job search is the critical important of maintaining current market ready skills. Alan Greenspan was on Meet the Press Sunday December, 12th, and he expressed concern about those who have been out of work for a year or so. He said they are in danger of losing the skills needed to make a successful re-entry into the labor force. He’s right. In fact, we’ve seen quite a number of people who kept their skills at level needed for their past jobs, but not for their next jobs.

In 2010 and beyond, we strongly encourage everyone to stay on top of technology and communications developments. It’s also critical to stay on top of developments in your chosen field. So – if you are a graphic artist how well do you know Flash or Dreamweaver? If the answer is no – your skills are likely behind the times. So – what’s happening in your field? Are you ready for the latest and greatest in your profession?
Hopefully, 2010 will be a great year for you. Make it a truly transformational year for your career by building, expanding and maintaining your network and learning new skills.

We’ve all read the news about the job market, and none of it is very good. Even though the broad economy looks like it’s moving into a recovery, everything out there indicates the job market may lag as much as a year behind. So – we are going to be looking a little longer than maybe we’d planned. That’s the pits, but there is some hope out there. In fact, we are seeing a genuine increase in positive job search activity among clients. People are landing interviews, finding leads and accepting offers at a much better rate than even 3 months ago. So while the job market may not rebound as soon as we’d all like to see, we can take great comfort from stories and advice from people who actually landed jobs in the last few weeks.

The stories and advice can be grouped into a few broad categories, and in order of prominence in the advice and stories, here are tips from successful job seekers in this market.

1. Networking. It really is all about networking. Every single story we’ve heard reinforced this theme. One successful person said, “Talk to anyone and everyone since you don’t know where the discussion and networking might ultimately lead.” Here’s a direct quote from another success story. “Network – Tell everybody. Don’t be embarrassed to admit that you’re unemployed and looking for a new “opportunity.” (Notice, I didn’t say I was looking for a job.) I wasted 2-3 months early on hedging my bets about “who to tell.” Use “Linked in” and alumni resources to network. Have your “elevator speech” down cold. Be specific and don’t hedge about what’s important to you in your next job. Networking opened up doors that were otherwise closed and led me to explore opportunities that I would otherwise not have known about. Networking is NOT overrated!” Other successful job seekers found membership in networking groups helpful and another suggested using job fairs as a networking vehicle. The bottom line is that networking is the single best job search method. Nothing takes its place. But – there are tools to enhance your networking efforts.

2. Networking, Part 2 – Social Media – Linked In is the social media outlet of choice for most of our successful candidates. One person said, “Absolutely use Linked-In. This was one of the most useful tools for me during my job search.” Another told us, “Utilize all internet networking opportunities including Linked-In, Facebook, Plaxo and Twitter amongst others.” We continue to see people getting great value from a variety of social media sites, but for professional networking, nothing seems as good as Linked In. But we are seeing an explosion of effective networking at Facebook and Twitter, so make sure you take a hard look at every available networking tool, and make good use of the ones with which you feel the most comfortable.

3. Maintain a Positive Attitude. I love this quote from a recently landed client of the firm. “Most importantly, maintain a positive attitude. People don’t want to talk to or hire people who wine, vent, blame and dwell in self-pity.” It’s true. While you’re in transition, you need to remember that you are “on an audition” for how you might behave as an employee 100% of the time. Keeping a positive, upbeat attitude sends a powerful message that you will make a positive upbeat contribution to your next employer, too. But – the down days are going to come. One person told us, “There will be down days and periods … it happens so anticipate it will and be ready for it when it does happen.” Make sure you find things to do that help with these dark days. Volunteer, exercise, read, listen to music, or anything else that helps you cope with down days will work. I can’t really say it better than this client. “Stay Positive and Be Flexible – Rejection is hard. Sometimes you just want to give up, especially if you make it to round 2 or 3 and THEN get a “thanks but no thanks” response from a prospective employer. You can quickly fall into a desperate or “woe is me” funk that is definitely not the kind of attitude you want to display (even subtly) with any prospective employer. When I found myself getting down on me, I took a break. I walked. I read a book. I listened to my smooth jazz albums. I watched a DVD movie. I did anything to get my mind off being rejected by a prospective employer. And, I also reminded myself that my sense of self-worth is NOT defined by not currently having a job. I also reminded myself of all my previous successes–so I can’t be all THAT bad. I repeated this mantra: ‘Your day will come, your day will come, your day will come. ‘ That’s how I got through it.” And a final great reason for staying positive – especially about your former employer: “Resist the temptation to feel bitter toward your employer and the people who work there, they may have helpful leads and contacts.”

4. Set Your Priorities and Be Organized. “You do need to prioritize your activities and time so you don’t focus too much on low payback probabilities,” is a nearly perfect piece of advice in any endeavor, but it’s especially true in job search mode. It’s very, very easy to get pulled into activity that might feel good in the moment, but has little long term chances of yielding a good lead, contact or useful information – such as simply surfing the net. One client found that maintaining a structured day helped. “From day one, continue your personal schedule and routine (get up at the same time, shower, get dressed, etc.)” Another aspect of getting your priorities set is that you can take ownership of your search and have a sense of purpose or direction for your efforts. One successful client told us, “Creating a list of the top 10 criteria (prioritized) for a job situation early in the search helps a lot when situations arise and you could get swept away in the moment.” The same client also said, “You’re the one in control of the process — how fast or slow it move depends on you. Many people are more than willing to help but you need to set the pace and take the initiative.” When you stitch these tips together, you get some really helpful advice. It’s your search. You own it, and if you can establish a set of priorities to guide your efforts, you set yourself up for success, not failure. Another client offered a tip that really blended the positive attitude idea and focus into one very interesting statement. “Step back and take stock — what do you really enjoy doing, where have you had the most success, what area created a real sense of energy and excitement. Focus on opportunities that align with those areas.” I could not agree more. There is no reason NOT to take a good look at what you really want, and then seek that out in your next role. Here’s a great quote from a successful client that summarizes the whole point very well: “Narrow the focus of the search to the job/role where you will be the most attractive as a candidate. Build on your strengths.”

5. Stay Focused on Others. This sounds counter-intuitive, but it’s really great advice. Networking is the single best method to finding a new job, but you can dry up a network very quickly if all you are doing is asking for a job. You need to work on the relationship building part of the process, and that means paying close attention to the people you meet. For instance, one client said, “Help others more than you get helped — what goes around, comes around.” Another client said this, “Maintain regular contact with your network, send frequent status emails reminding them of your situation, however, don’t simply ask them to provide you with an opportunity, include humorous and/or informational content, also it’s not all about you, look for ways to help the people in your network as well.”

6. Persevere. Each of the successful clients who helped us with this great information looked for their current jobs for at least 4 months. It’s a long process in today’s market, but you simply cannot afford to give up. You really need to think in terms of a marathon and not a sprint. One client said simply, “Don’t’ give up!” Another way to look at the process is to remember, “It only takes one YES.” And, “Don’t take the no’s personally.” Other very specific tips included staying on top of job boards and company sites, keep close track of everyone you talk to during the search, and to stick to a routine – no matter the day-to-day results.

7. For Older Job Seekers – Make Age and Asset. Admittedly, this tip doesn’t apply to everyone currently looking for a job, but I loved the comment from our client. “Don’t hide the fact that you’ve got some experience. Be upfront. Don’t put everything in minute detail on your resume but don’t try to make yourself out to be 35 if you’re 55–or older. The workplace is changing. Experience is valued–assuming you’ve also got the personality and “fit” that goes with the specific work environment/job that you’re pursuing. Of course, it goes without saying you have to keep your skills current. I joined Yahoo Groups (Human Resources, Organization Development, Training, Job Search, among others) and did everything I could to read, search the Internet and, in general, keep myself up-to-date on what’s happening in my functional specialty. That’s important.” Amen. It’s one of the biggest challenges for older job seekers – proving they are in touch with current “best practices” and market trends. So maintain a willingness to learn new things, stay current and keep plugging away.

In an article from October 2005 at World Volunteer Web, called “Benefits of Volunteering” http://tinyurl.com/nu2stz, the unattributed author makes a compelling case for the benefits of volunteering. And the article isn’t about the benefits to the recipient organization. It’s about the benefits to you.

In this job market, I can think of no better way to boost your chances of success than volunteering. The general headings that follow come directly from the article I mention above, and I encourage you to read the original using the link above. Below, I lay out the same benefits as they relate to your job search.

Learn or develop a new skill

The job market has not been so competitive in generations, and candidates with current, market ready skills remain in demand. So – what’s preventing you from building out your skills? In a word – nothing. Volunteering provides a great chance to develop a new skill or even learn something new you really like and enjoy. Being in career transition is absolutely no reason to stop you from learning something new. And volunteering can provide numerous opportunities to stretch yourself. You can planning and implementing a major fundraising event, you could hep with a web page, you could develop data bases and reports, you can even train or teach others. Do you need supervisory skills to reach that next job? Do you need to learn some specific applications or programs like Flash, or Access? Here’s a chance to lead a program or initiative or learn those new programs and applications. These are just a few examples of new skills you can learn or improve in a volunteer setting.

Be part of your community

We are advocates of networking to your next position. In this market, it really is the best way to find that next great opportunity. But too many people looking for a new job treat networking as a means to an end. That’s really too bad, because your contacts, friends and professional resources (i.e. your network) ought to be something far more important than that. You ought to be thinking about these people as a community to which you now belong. This broader sense of “belonging” and engagement will have long term, positive benefits. As I’ve said before, it may take a village to raise a child, but it takes a community to relaunch a career. Volunteering in your community and giving back helps cement this concept both for you and in the eyes of the people around you. Volunteering moves you from a place where you are in need to a place where you are giving. It’s a much better place from which to launch a job search campaign.

Motivation and sense of achievement

“Fundamentally, volunteering is about giving your time, energy and skills freely. Unlike many things in life there is choice involved in volunteering. As a volunteer you have made a decision to help on your own accord, free from pressure to act from others.” I love this direct quote from the 2005 article. This outward, external focus on the world is a very healthy thing. One of the real issues we confront after losing a job is a loss of purpose. We normally get up, go to work and have a huge part of our day filled with tasks and things to do at work. Now what? Volunteering really helps fill that void by providing a sense of purpose to our daily activity and as we accomplish things, we also enjoy a sense of satisfaction and achievement. These are very healthy feelings.

Boost your career options

Here’s some data from directly from the article:

A survey carried out by TimeBank through Reed Executive showed that among 200 of the UK’s leading businesses

a. 73% of employers would recruit a candidate with volunteering experience over one without,
b. 94% of employers believe that volunteering can add to skills, and
c. 94% of employees who volunteered to learn new skills had benefited either by getting their first job, improving their salary, or being promoted.

Have you thought about exploring a whole new career? If so, volunteering can provide a great way to explore career options. Try volunteering at an organization closely linked to possible career alternatives. Looking at the medical industry? Are there hospitals that could use a helping hand. You may need to get a little creative to find some things, but volunteering can be a great way to try out something new with little real risk.

New experiences

I am a big believer in the value of experience as a teacher and guide. Our careers frequently catch us in a rut of the same experiences and the same routine. Volunteering can be a great way to get out of this “comfort zone” and seek out totally new experiences. Think about this a minute in job search terms. Ultimately, who gets hired? It’s the person who – with the right skills – feels like the best “fit” to the hiring manager. Whether we lie it or not, there is a social element to landing a new job. So we want to present ourselves as open to ideas and able to bring a variety of life experiences to the problems we face at work. Wide ranging experiences also help us with conversations. Face it – people with lots of interesting experiences are simply more fun to talk to, and that’s a part of the successful search end game – being liked and sought after by a hiring manager. So – get out of your shell, find a volunteer activity at a new and different place and see what you might learn!

Meeting a diverse range of people

I can’s paraphrase or re-work the article to improve its message for us in a job search, so here it is:

“Volunteering brings together a diverse range of people from all backgrounds and walks of life. Both the recipients of your volunteer efforts and your co-workers can be a rich source of inspiration and an excellent way to develop your interpersonal skills. Volunteering also offers an incredible networking opportunity. Not only will you develop lasting personal and professional relationships but it is also a great way to learn about people from all walks of life, different environments, and new industries. Networking is an exciting benefit of volunteering and you can never tell who you will meet or what new information you will learn and what impact this could have on your life.”

Well – yes. I believe that’s right!

So – what’s holding YOU back? Volunteer!

Okay – we in the first part of June, and you never thought it (your job search) would take this long. The phone isn’t ringing, no one responds to your on-line applications, and you haven’t sniffed an interview in over three weeks. It is depressing. Right?
Hey – the job market is slow, and a search can be too long and very frustrating. But I’d bet you’ve gotten more done than you think. I have exactly these types of conversations with clients, and I’ve been in several just this week. There’s something about these calendar holidays that heightens the stress of job searching. No doubt about it.

So – let’s take a deep breath and review all of the real progress you’ve made in your search.

You Call This Progress?

1. Resume. Completing a first resume is an important accomplishment. If you’ve done the next (4) things as a part of that process, then you really have gotten a lot of hard and important work finished.

2. Story. Well – maybe stories. If you’ve read Daniel Pink’s wonderful book – A Whole New Mind, you learned that “story” is one of the “senses” we need to master to succeed in a new world. I’m no expert on that. But I will state that gathering and knowing your own unique success stories is extremely important to a successful search. A good way to think about these stories is to ask your self, “What story or event would I most like to talk about during a job interview?” These stories ought to be based upon events that left you with a strong feeling of professional and personal satisfaction (I call these “peak experiences”). After you have developed these experiences into stories you can tell, you should be able to pull together a broader sense of what you do best, and that sense can – and should – help you build a “master” story to offer as a message or “brand” for the market.

3. Message. Refining and honing your message is a huge step. By this, I mean have you determined what your value proposition is for future employers. Can you tell someone what it is you do well, why you do it well and explain how you’ve done those things in the past. You get a good sense of what this can be by working through your stories (see accomplishment #2 above).

4. Discovery that people will help. They will. Really. We all remember the old line, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Well – it takes a community to re-launch a career. You will need to find a community with which you can connect. Your unique community can start with friends, co-workers, family, classmates, etc. It doesn’t matter where or how you start. But you must start. The world is more interconnected than ever before, and these connections are invaluable resources as you identify organizations where you might like to work or with actual job openings. So – it all comes down to the people you know.

5. Make a plan and work it. I am a big believer in developing a search plan based upon a commitment to work the plan for a set number of hours per week. Let’s say you can commit 30 hours to your search. What might that 30 hours look like? Here’s one way you could organize that time. Internet use – 10 hours, networking activity – 10 hours, volunteer activity – 5 hours, and skills enhancement – 5 hours. Using the internet ought to include looking at job boards and researching target organizations. The networking activity should be actions and steps designed to get you face-to-face or telephone meetings with new people. Obviously, the meetings themselves are a part of this block of time, too. This area is one that can and should GROW to be a bigger part of your plan, by the way. Volunteering is a great way to help set a routine, get out of the house and interact with others. Do it. I promise it will help you feel better, and might lead to job leads. (I had a client THIS week land a great lead from her first stint as a volunteer.) Build out your skills. The market is changing. Are your current skills ready and marketable for the jobs you are seeking? If not – enhance them. Go to a class, seek a certification, find ways to learn new ones (volunteer?), etc.

So – do you call this progress? I do. I am very uncomfortable with job search advice that lists progress as a series of “markers” like job interviews, job offers, etc. You cannot control those things no matter how hard you try. But you CAN control your effort and your commitment. Each of the 5 indicators of progress I outlined are yours to own and control. One of the worst parts of being in job search mode is a feeling that your world is beyond your control. By focusing on these items, you can impose a structure and sense of control upon your search, and THAT is real progress.

By Matt Kerr – Guest Poster (Matt works in the Chicago area with SSP BPI Group)

I’ve met many people in transition that search for opportunities on the web by visiting a variety of major job boards and running search queries each time they visit a site. Additional time is spent visiting company sites, checking often to see if positions they are interested in have been posted.

This can be very time consuming and can take time away from more important activities such as networking. There is a technological solution that can help. The web has become more interactive through Web 2.0 applications.

Job seekers can leverage the power of these applications to help reduce much of the “heavy lifting” involved in online job search.

The strategy here is to use vertical job search engines that “scrape” jobs from all the major job boards as well as many company sites. The results show up in the search engine with links that will take you to the actual postings. A few of the top rated vertical job search engines are (in no particular order) Jobster, Indeed,or SimplyHired (my favorite . Also, websites such as Craigslist and Google Base should be utilized.

Upon running a search query at any one of the sites listed above the user is typically afforded the ability to get automated email alerts for specific job search queries on a daily basis. This is helpful but it can quickly overload an email in box. The answer to this problem is to utilize the power of XML or RSS feeds to bring relevant content (specific job leads) directly to a user’s desktop.

Before running a job search query at any of the vertical search engines or other sites mentioned, an RSS Feed Reader or Aggregator should be set up. There are many out there including IGoogle and My Yahoo! – both of which are free.

If you are going to use either of these you will need to register and set them up. Just follow the directions. Once your account is set up, visit the vertical search engines mentioned above. Next, run a search query and then scan the page for a link called RSS FEED, XML or click on the little orange box.

You will be asked if you want to add the feed to a feed aggregator. Various feed aggregators will be listed, including My Yahoo! IGoogle or Favorite Feeds in Internet Explorer (version 7.0 or better). Follow the onscreen instructions to add your search query information to the feed aggregator that you have previously selected and set up. If you are using My Yahoo!, change your internet browser homepage to My Yahoo or IGoogle and let them serve as your launch point. Now all the position postings that meet your search criteria automatically come to you. No more heavy lifting!