Death of the Resume: How to really get the Job you want
Degrees are not enough, and you should never send in a CV, or a resume. Never!…Why? well, because it puts you in the slush pile, with everyone else. Think about it. What is your CV, but a soulless document with a list of your accomplishments, schools attended, degrees earned, positions held, etc. While it may make ‘nice’ reading, it really does not do justice to you as a person. Besides, a CV is the easiest way to get excluded. According to Seth Godin’s book ‘’Linchpin’’. Your resume would probably get tossed in the bin because it was missing ‘this’ or ‘missing’ that.
“…if you’re remarkable, amazing, or just plain spectacular, you probably shouldn’t have a résumé at all.” – page 71
Scary? Um…well not really, at least if you want to live a remarkable life, defined by Cal Newport as a life in which: (1) you do something meaningful that you enjoy; (2) you have a flexible schedule that you control; and (3) you earn recognition and good (enough) compensation.
This is life by choice, not life by default. If you want to be remarkable, you need to master a skill that is rare or uncommon and important, or a master a common skill in a fresh or uncommon way. You need leverage, and your personality, your essence, your style and artistry is what will separate you from everyone else.
You want to be recognised, people must have the need to get to know you. What is your drawing card? You need to position yourself somehow, maybe as the girl with the compelling and popular blog, or as the guy who has the initiative and drive to develop and execute ideas. The possibilities are endless but the principle is this, develop yourself in a special way and present that.
It is much better to be approached and offered opportunities because of your contributions, ideas and network than to send in a CV and hope that your chance in a hundred is the lucky charm.
Steve Pavlina has a similar post on differentiating yourself in a highly competitive industry and it is essentially about leveraging your specific skill set, interests and abilities to push yourself to the fore in your industry. With the many technological advancements and tools available, hacking the system has never been easier and more accessible.
So, you want that dream job. Go ahead, develop yourself, master the skills, position yourself, contribute to your field, network and watch the magic happen. But never, ever send in the CV.
