How Using Your Resume May Actually Hurt Your Job Search
Word count: 1,058; approximate time to read: 4 minutes
By far the most common and costly mistake I see executives making with their resume has nothing to do with the format, the wording or the length. It has to do with WHEN they share it!
The powerful principle is, “Your resume can’t GET you the job…but it can ELIMINATE you.”
The simple but unconventional solution? DO NOT SEND A RESUME!
Note that I did not say, “don’t WRITE a resume.” CREATING your resume is a valuable and important exercise. And most executives should even enlist the help of a good resume writer. Portions of the content you create will serve as strategic “bait” for your successful job search.
But if your entire resume is perfectly polished and you share it at the wrong time…you might as well be rearranging deck chairs on the proverbial Titanic.
That is because multiple aspects of almost everyone’s background can be viewed as strong negatives. And it is virtually impossible to know what the deal-killers will be in any given situation. That makes sharing your resume a very risky move.
There are many reasons why execs typically hand-over their resumes faster than a gambler surrenders poker chips in Vegas. But you MUST resist the temptation!
The good news is that there is a MUCH more effective way.
With a little common sense and research, it IS possible to know what elements of your resume WILL resonate. Those, and ONLY those, are what you should share – the elements that you KNOW will register in a positive way!
Don’t be fooled into thinking that you have to reveal everything in the early stages. Instead, hand-pick the most powerful ammunition from your resume that pertains to each individual job opening and fashion it into a few compelling points. (You can do this in an email, cover letter, voice mail, and/or verbally.)
Instead of sharing a “tell all” autobiography because you are scared to leave anything unsaid, opt to reveal the “tip of the iceberg” that will entice them to look for the treasure beneath. (See a simple example of a bullet point crafted as “bait at the bottom of this post.”)
If you don’t know what aspects of your background will resonate, then you either haven’t done enough research…or even you suspect you’re not a fit. If the former, then go the extra mile and do more research. Differentiate yourself from the plethora of resume blasters. If the latter, spare yourself the inevitable rejection and invest your time looking for a better match.
So never VOLUNTEER to send your resume…but what if you are ASKED to send it? Tactfully delay. And never send it PRIOR to a serious interview.
Coming from someone who asks executives every day to send their resumes, you are not required to comply…and it is not the turn-off you may suspect.
Always have a reason to NOT have a finished resume, and then simply respond with, “…actually I don’t have a completed resume, but I’d be happy to send you some relevant bullet points or brief bio for you to skim.”
Not sharing your full resume accomplishes several important things. It gives you the chance to showcase your positives without prematurely revealing potential negatives.
It also suggests that you have confidence that most job seekers lack. (Your “masterpiece” – complete with contact information for 5 references and emailed within 3 minutes of the request – SCREAMS “I need a paycheck!” And that is the exact opposite brand you need to project.)
Declining to send your resume also shifts some of the power back to YOU…and can provide a small boost of needed confidence.
When executed correctly, this strategy poses little or no risk…while maximizing the chances of advancing your candidacy. WORSE case, you can always send your entire resume later in the process. But I urge you not to give into the methods of the masses!
At first you may feel uncomfortable with what FEELS like a risky move. But your odds increase dramatically when you take decisive action against your natural fears.
Do the perceived or actual negatives in your background need to surface at some point? Usually. But how much more effective to discuss them in context AFTER you’ve had a chance to build some in-person rapport, show the value you bring to the table, and build some momentum for your candidacy?!
At the end of the day, people hire people…not PAPER. So the key is to get PAST the paper…not give them MORE of it!
To drive this important point home even further, think about a dating analogy. Since you can’t get married after the first date, why risk prematurely scaring your date away by talking about how many kids you do or don’t want to have, or how you might want to move cross country to be closer to your family? Both are potential negatives. Much better to orchestrate the dialog to maximize your chances of getting to the NEXT step, which is merely a second date…not a marriage proposal/acceptance.
Then, what might genuinely seem like a non-negotiable on the first date may become quite tolerable…after your date puts your “negatives” in perspective with your many strengths.
The more you focus on the END result that you think you want, the more you will be tempted to take a shortcut that can permanently derail your long-term goal. (Can you hear Will Smith talking to you from the move “Hitch”? If not, watch this clip. Then rent the entire movie TONIGHT and take note of the job search parallels.
Entertaining…but also highly instructive 
! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvsZ-2EJYDU
Simple example of a bullet point crafted as “bait”
- Graduate degree; proven sales success in both entrepreneurial start-ups and Fortune 100 environments
Depending on the situation, phrasing your background like this could be intriguing. In contrast, however, sending the entire resume that telegraphed that your graduate degree was in psychology rather than business, that the start-up was your own consulting firm between jobs and the Fortune experience was with now defamed and defunct Enron…would not be nearly as attractive.
Your resume would likely be destined for the circular file, whether or not you could actually do the job. The key is to position your experience to your advantage, realizing that you are not required to reveal every detail up front (as long as everything that you DO reveal is true).
Do YOU have any thoughts? I’d love to see your comments or questions on this (or your own job search challenges) in the comment section below..
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