Sometimes you don’t get what you pay for!

Is your resume ‘up to stuff?’ Is it reflective of you? Is it an accurate overview of your qualifications, your expertise, your professional work history, your education and everything that makes you YOU? Does it speak to your competitive advantage and make you ‘stand out from the crowd?’

In other words, is it the best it can be and DO YOU LIKE IT? Why do I ask that question? Well, one of my new clients came to see me the other day and we were discussing how I could best help him. There’s a suite of services I can offer and I like to customize each and every program.

He wanted to talk about his resume first and was hesitant to show it to me because he didn’t really like it. ‘Not to worry’ I said. ‘That’s what I’m here for’. I’d be happy to have a look and, once I know him better (his background, expertise, experience, accomplishments and what he wants to do next), I’d be happy to review it and help him revise it. After some hemming and hawing he admitted that he had it done professionally a few years ago but never liked it. Liked it? I couldn’t believe he had paid for it and felt sorry for the money he paid. He should have gotten a refund!

Where do I begin? Rather than streamline the resume and ensure all the key points were covered, this resume was chocked full of information – all crammed into two pages (by having the margins go right to edge of the paper – left, right, top and bottom). There was a “career profile” on top (really, who does that anymore especially when it really didn’t add any value?). The list of qualifications went on and on and on. It was as if the consultant just wanted to use ‘consultant jargon’ or perhaps was paid by the word. Champion negotiator? Management with vision? Troubleshooting Deliverables? Entrepreneurial Spirit? Really? No wonder he didn’t like it. What does it say?

Then there was a whole section of Achievements, broken down by area and it looked a bit like STAR or SOAR stories pasted into a resume. Rather than describing the achievements, they were actually broken down into “challenge”, “action” and “impact”. Really? Where did he have these achievements and why aren’t they listed under the relevant roles he held?

I could go on and on. The good news is twofold. My client was a good sport about it and is now in the right hands – with someone who will work closely with him to provide him with a strong resume that he’s happy with and that reflects him!

Moral of the story: Make sure that when you hire a consultant or other career professional, you get what you want. Better yet, ask around before you hire a consultant. Get a referral or, if you can’t, ask him or her for references. Don’t be afraid to say you don’t like the end result or it is not a reflection of you. And, if you’re not happy, find someone who can work with you and with whom you feel comfortable. At the end of the day I tell my clients that I offer my expertise, my experience and my recommendations but they need to speak up and ensure that our goals and objectives are aligned and they get what they are comfortable with – both the marketing materials and the coaching.