Why writing a resume is tough...
Category: Work
Published: 08/10/2008 02:11 p.m.
A single sheet of paper is eventually what defines us. Well, those of us that interview for jobs and get degrees and don't have mad networking skills. Years of classes, work, other stuff, and some basic info make up this all-important document that will hopefully get you in the door. It should be fairly simple to accurately portray successes and skills, especially since we lived them and have them. But it isn't simple. It is hard.
The reason it is hard is two-fold. First of all, we as humans are not so good at being objective about our own situations. I have talked to friends before who give great advice but cannot take it themselves. I think I am better than most at this, but of course, I may not be so good at being objective about my life. So for me to try to be objective about my strengths and experiences doesn't always pan out. Since the space is limited on a resume, the content selection is key, which leads to the second point.
A resume is about communicating a single property owned by all of us: our reputation. Reputation is a tricky thing, because it exists because of us and our actions, but it is not created by us. Our reputation is created by those around us. Our friends, co-workers, and sadly, our enemies. The job of the resume is to communicate our reputation, which is something that we don't really know about. I think in a (more) perfect world we would gather all of our friends to write our resume for us. Because what really matters isn't what we think we have done, but what it looks like we have done. A resume is a first glance at us, a first impression. It will not really define our core, just what we look like (in a sense).
If we are to be the ones describing what we look like to others, I want a better mirror. Because of all the people I know, I am the one with the worst perspective on what I look like to others.
(my hope is that this is my first quality post in a while. If it's not, I hope the content sheds some light on why.)