Update Your Résumé and Take Our Reader Survey

Brand Career Management Newsletter – September 2019

Hello Everyone,

It’s September, a time when we all experience a change of season and many people go back to school. This month also marks the third anniversary of this newsletter and it’s Update Your Résumé Month. To honor this “holiday” we will devote the LinkedIn Tip of the Month to Résumé Assistant and the posts shared will address some ongoing debates regarding résumé development.

To help us celebrate our anniversary, can you complete the 2019 Brand Career Management (BCM) Newsletter Reader Survey? We want to gather feedback so we can continue to share relevant content with you. Two years ago, we ran a reader survey. Now it’s time to ask for your input again. It will really only take a few minutes (less than 10 questions). Your feedback is truly appreciated (we will only know your name if you share it). Please complete it by Friday the 13th. Here’s the link.

Enjoy your branding journey,
Paula

P.S. Please forward this to a friend, if you like what I have to share. Anyone can sign up for the Brand Career Management Newsletter by going to the bottom of the home page on BrandCareerManagement.com.

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LINKED IN – TIP OF THE MONTH

Since Microsoft bought LinkedIn, they have been integrating features and one is called Résumé Assistant. You may not know it, but unless you changed your LinkedIn security setting once the feature was added, you have given permission to share the job description content from your profile with Microsoft Word users. It doesn’t show individually identifying information, but it still seems a little creepy to me. If it does to you too, read on to adjust the setting.

To remove your permission for this feature, follow these steps when logged into LinkedIn. Click on the drop-down arrow next to Me (along the top, black menu bar). Then, scroll down and click on Settings & Privacy. That will land you onto the default Privacy page. Scroll under the first section (titled How Others See Your Profile and Network Information) down to the last option (titled Microsoft Word). Click on Change and set it to No (the toggle will display gray if your setting is No and green if it’s Yes).
The screenshot shared has the setting set to No.

I do see a positive side and usefulness of this feature. It could provide data to help you draft your résumé in Word. Though I don’t recommend using anyone’s content word for word, it can help rattle your brain to get some of your own ideas to start flowing.

If you want to access this feature in Word, go to Review and then click on Résumé Assistant. A pop-up box appears. The first time, you must click on Get Started. Then you add a role (required) and/or industry (optional) to help it pull appropriate examples. The next time you access, it remembers the last role selected.

The screenshot shares two search results for career counselor.

Take a moment soon to check and change your LinkedIn setting and next time you’re in Word, play around with seeing the feature from the user end.

USEFUL ARTICLES WITH LINKS

Below are a few posts touching on debateable trends in the world of résumés.

In Forbes, Liz Ryan wrote a post sharing how to write a Human-Voiced Résumé. This is a new trend for writing an accomplishment focused résumé (as all resumes should be) using I, me or my (usually taboo).

Though there seems to be some momentum, I don’t think this new trend is going to fly. I recently worked with a client who tried this style and it worked for him (he was applying for a communications role in a creative field), but I don’t think it will work for most, especially in more traditional roles. First, it’s very hard to pull off without sounding too “me” focused and second, I’m not convinced that readers prefer a narrative style when most barely have enough time to skim the bullet points.

Another ongoing debate involves the continued relevance of a résumé. I know not everyone agrees, but I think there will always be a need for some version of your résumé. Case in point, when you ask for job search help the first question someone will likely ask will be, “Do you have a résumé you can send me?” Also, most employers and Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) still require you to submit one. In CNN Business, Kathryn Vasel suggests that fewer companies are using resumes and accordingly shares three helpful ways to market yourself beyond the résumé.

To wrap it up, in themuse.com recruiter and aquatic wife (https://www.wifeaquatic.com/),
Jacklyn Westlake addresses the touchy issue of whether or not to include volunteer experience on your résumé. Her advice is very sound and wise. I wholeheartedly agree with everything in her post.

UPCOMING EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Here is a link to the recording of The Essentials of Branding Your LinkedIn Profile, from my guest appearance on the Mindful Leadership Webinar Series for the Women’s Center in Vienna, VA. Please note that you must share your e-mail with The Women’s Center to access the recording.

Below is a picture from June 2019 when I presented Leveraging LinkedIn: Managing Your LinkedIn Profile for Career Growth and Visibility in Washington, DC for the Women in International Trade (WIIT DC). Picture taken by Kelley Sanabria

Paula Brand – Global Career Coach & Consultant | LinkedIn Expert | Speaker, Trainer, Facilitator | Founder of Brand Career Management
Brand Career Management (BCM) helps professionals strategically manage their careers, apply effective job search techniques and leverage social media tools to secure their best career options with ease. We provide an array of career services designed to meet your current needs. Write to: paula@brandcareermanagement.com or call me at 443-254-8173.

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