Let's imagine you've seen a job vacancy notice that really excites you, and as you read through the words it's as though someone has taken all the things you love doing and put them down into a job description - just for you. Fabulous.
Regrettably this is the point at which things start to go wrong because a lot of people believe that a professional job application means that they simply have to copy and paste the tasks and responsibilities from their current (and previous) job description into their CV or application form - and whilst of course it is essential that you can demonstrate that your work experience, technical expertise and educational background match the job criteria, those things are simply not enough to help you stand out amongst the masses.
So I want to share with you the first step to transforming your CV or application form (it doesn't matter what type of job you're applying to) and my clients all agree that it is definitely worth the effort because it will get you noticed.
Ideally you're going to do this in a word document or even use a pen and paper so that you can easily make changes to your text. Go through everything you have, all the tasks and activities, and for each one ask yourself the question 'so what?'. Why is that item important? How is it relevant to the job that you're applying to?
You then answer the 'so what?' question with 'so that ...'. That 'so that' answer is going to tell you who benefited from your work, what were the outcomes, and what was your specific contribution. If you get absolutely stuck, ask yourself what would have happened if you hadn't completed that specific task or didn't have a particular skill.
Take a look at these short examples to see what I mean:
X Drafted policies and administrative instructions.
✔ Put financial and human resources policies in place ensuring compliance with the law where applicable, guaranteeing internal transparency and accountability.
X Analysed and evaluated projects for international partners.
✔ Provided analysis and evaluation of projects implemented by international partners with the result that organisational programmes achieved synergy and avoided overlap (with international partners) and achieved greater effectiveness in the development of subsequent programmes.
Over to you, and if you'd like to learn more about how to create a CV or application form that is going to stand out, you can get the pdf version of my book 'New Job New You' for just US$ 10 HERE
Until next time, stay safe, and stay fabulous!