Category: Job Search & CVs

Being Valued Over 50 – How Identifying WHO You Serve Helps – an example.

👉 Okay, so IF you’re around 50, you may have a problem: wanting to leave the corporate mothership (or even being subtly elbowed out). But where to? To do what? For who?

Those questions can stall you.

Last week I wrote a piece detailing Step #1 of what you need to do to make the road ahead clearer (even exciting!)

➤ Step #1 is “Take Inventory”. Yep, what do you have that could help others – skills, knowledge, wisdom? These are the building blocks of becoming and remaining ‘in demand’ out there ‘in the wild.’

But there’s more to it. It’s not just WHAT you do. It’s WHO you do it for – who you could help, who has problems you could solve.

Example:

You’re a Data Engineer – business intelligence, data analytics, data warehouses, ETL, data bases, ‘big data’ – this is your world. You lead large teams of super intelligent people in a massive telecom. Your job title is Chief Data Officer.

You’re in charge of collecting, organising, providing access to, understanding, analysing, creating reports to reveal trends, to help understand the business, all to promote better business decisions.

Okay, that’s the “WHAT” you do. Now the “WHO” you do it for.

At present it’s a Telecom. BUT what you do really applies to so all kinds of enterprises. And that realisation could change your thinking around what you do and who you do it for Big time.

So, you could leave your company and:

➤ Contract back to them on a consulting or contract basis.
➤ Provide advisory services to the ‘big data’ sofware vendors
➤ Offer specialist project based services to consulting firms
➤ Create your own set of ‘mini’ analytics services for SMMEs
➤ You start a YouTube channel / podcast discussing Big Data
➤ You start a website, analysing trends, new methods, products
➤ You develop a talk around cool analytics topics and speak at conferences – where you release your inner comedian too

And you…

➤ Consult to Golf Clubs (worldwide) – consulting to them about “mining” their member data for marketing purposes (cause you love golf and this sounds like a bit of fun)

So… do you see how it’s important to get creative about WHO you can provide value to? It opens the mind.

Hope this helps you! I’m here to speak if you’d like to chat more about what you’re facing.

#over50 #professionalcvwritergerard #the50service

[Need my help with this? Let’s get on a call for 15 minutes to see if we’re good to work on this together. I’m on gerard@gerardleroux.me]


Age on Your CV when You’re 45 or 50+??

👉 Should you share your age on your CV / resume, if you’re on the wrong side of 45 or 50?

In fear of “ageism” you could try to hide your age. Should you?

Dunno… trying to hide it doesn’t sit well with me. If the employer / recruiter is ageist, they’ll figure it out one way or another! And then you look like you’re trying to deceive. It brings into question your integrity. At least in their warped and twisted mind! Right?

Having said that, ageism is out there. So there’s also no need to shout it from the rooftops or bring it up on the first line, okay? But it will eventually be revealed, and here’s the thing:

⚡ they will either care, or they will not…

They will either see age as an obstacle. Or they will focus on your value. What problems you can solve. What solutions you bring. That’s the kind of employer you’re looking for. And that’s where to place your focus on your CV/resume.

3 Points to finish off:

➤ 1) be modern, up to date, concise, bold and clear – this counters the stereotype, look like you’re dynamic, ‘with it.’

➤ 2) adapt your content to showcase how you solve the problems they have. Be relevant. And …

➤ 3) be flexible in terms of how you are hireable (ie not just on a permanent, long term contract).

Comments?

(What does the picture below tell you? Certainly “older”. But also confident, experienced, formidible. Why hide it?)

Older. But also… confident, experienced, formidible.

Around 50 & Want to Be Valued for Your Experience? Step #1

👉 LATE IN YOUR CAREER? Here’s 1 good idea of a series of good ideas for you if: 1) you’re around 50, 2) are facing a change at work and 3) want to keep yourself sought after for your immense experience, skills, knowledge.

😎 Here’s the thing – you go on in your career, year after year, and everything is fine. You have many wins. Promotions. Awards. You slay your enemies in the corporate battlefield!

You change jobs here and there. You’re ‘headhunted’. No job ad applications for you. Your reputation precedes you.

🤔 But then… as you get older… your priorities start changing. You may start daydreaming – yes, really – of a less intense environment. Less politics. More flexibility. But making a change is risky. (Because, if you leave your existing job when you’re over 50, you only have a 10% chance you will ever again be compensated at the level of the job you left – Urban Institute & Prorepublica report).

So, how do you create options for yourself – options to continue being valuable, sought after – but more on your own terms? Here’s step #1.

➤ Step 1 is: TAKE INVENTORY
Taking inventory means defining how you’re valuable. And to whom you’re valuable. Imagine you’re a small business for a minute. It’s just you. In the wild. What do you have that could help others – skills, knowledge, wisdom? These are the building blocks of what’s to come – becoming ‘in demand’.

(Seems simple, right? Not so fast. These actually may be tough questions to answer if youve been embedded for so long in your corporate career. So, I’ll be expanding on it later this week.) 

[Need my help with this? Let's get on a call for 15 minutes to see if we're good to work on this together. I'm on gerard@gerardleroux.me]

2 Points About ATS CVs / Resumes

👉 I get lot’s of questions about having an “ATS” CV / resume. Which means a CV that works well with Applicant Tracking Systems – software / bots that scan your CV to figure out if you match a job ad.

I have two things to say about this:

➤ 1) have two CVs/resumes. One for people – more visually appealing, with more interesting elements that grab attention (eg a quote from your MD saying “Joe walks on water!” and perhaps a pic that makes you look friendly, warm, competant – a good pic can do that.) This is the document you send direct to a contact.

A second CV for ATS’s – easy for search engines to scan, really plain to look at, a simple document focussed on keywords, easy to edit to match the job ad (this has to be done if your ATS resume is going to work at all), easy to upload online.

➤ 2) Don’t let it get to the point where you need any kind of ATS CV. Fact is, you’re unlikely to rank high in the search results unless you practically match every word on the job ad, even then… There are so many factors playing in. It’s a needle in a haystack situation. You’re better off connecting with real live people.

I write ATS CVs but I warn my clients not to expect too much from it.

#professionalcvwritergerard #atsresume

How to Make People Trust You – Building Credibility

Here’s a fact. Whatever you put in front of people – your CV or resume, a business profile, a presentation – if you want it to make an impact it must do two things. Minimum.

  1. It must communicate clearly and concisely. Which means state clearly what you’re offering and to whom. It must immediately provide a “what’s in it for me” moment to the reader.

But it’s #2 I want to focus on in this post.

  1. It must make the reader trust you. Your grand claims of having the “quick fix” for the reader has to be believable. Very few will ‘jump in’ with you otherwise.

Here’s how to do that.

Build credibility.

Here’s what can happen if you don’t:

  • Someone lands on your business LinkedIn page – but there’s no custom banner, no logo. No content. It looks derelict, forgotten, abandoned.
    Their conclusion: “this business isn’t serious”
  • Someone gets your resume – but it looks like a million others. Formatting is poor. It’s all just a barrage of bullet points.
    The conclusion: “I’m bored. This guy looks left behind.”

Here are some ‘credibility builders’ (thanks for the term, Bob Bly, copywriter).

  1. Use associations – with a university, a well known brand – feature the logo, perhaps, to make it stand out?
  2. Use a client association – feature the fact that you do business with a major, high profile corporation.
  3. Include an extract from a strong testimonial – from a client, from an employer (the CEO, perhaps).
  4. Make a confident, bold statement of intent: “I slash logistics costs and ignite customer service ratings.”
  5. Share regular, helpful content on LinkedIn. Look like an expert. Contribute to conversations. Just a few a week.

These credibility builders encourage people to trust you. And people buy from people they trust.

1-Step to a More Future Focussed CV

👉 MAKE YOUR CV FUTURE FOCUSSED – you want to appeal to the NEXT employer, not just dumping your past on them. You want to give them what THEY’RE looking for. Here’s 1 easier way to do this (easier than spending hours overhauling your entire CV for every job you apply for):

Start your CV with a “Summary” and tailor it to match the job advert. Here’s a job advert, followed by the kind of summary I’m recommending.

➤ Sample job ad: “Management Accountant. Opportunity for a CIMA qualified management accountant with 5 years experience in the manufacturing sector. The position is focussed strongly on materials costing, cost reductions, and reporting financial and production data to the Production Manager and Managing Director and Senior Management Team. BTech or BCom degree, Syspro skills an advantage. Boksburg area.”

➤ Here’s my recommendation (see the image below) – see how it checks the boxes in the advert? It also adds real results and statistics. All the best stuff. Right up front. It’s useful there. It’s hard to miss. It’s helpful to the reader. This is the kind of CV I try to write for my clients every day (usually a bit more modern in style, every CV is different). Hope this helps you today.

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Start Your Next Talk – or Job Interview – with a Shock

👉 A SHOCKING STORY. No, I don’t have one for you, but I do recommend it. For what? As a way to start your next talk.

I have a short talk tonight on the topic of controlling one’s temper. I’m starting with a story. Actually, I’m starting with the most shocking part of the story. Here it is: “I ran home, took an axe, and began to smash the windows of my house”. (not my story, someone elses!)

Instead of saying, “can everyone hear me?” or “my name is”, or “um, uh, well, thank you for listening to me”. Rather, I’ll start with the drama, intrigue and desire to hear more of that line.

How could you do the same in your next talk?

➤ Is it a business presentation? Can you use a shocking story of a competitor who’s gone out of business? Or a story of a failed initiative? Or of a shockingly successful project? Or a shocking statistic. Can you use these as warnings or wake up calls?

➤ In a job interview? When asked, “So, tell us about yourself?” can you start by saying something unexpected? Like this perhaps: “In my last job, I took an axe to supply chain costs. During my first 3 months we negotiated better terms, and saved 11% annually.”

Getting off to an attention getting start is always a great idea. In trying to help my clients give better talks, this is one easy way.

Job Hunters – Narrow Your Search, Map the Landscape

Job hunting and CV writing idea:

👉map the landscape.👈

What does it mean? Ask yourself and research these questions:

  • what businesses hire people with my skills in my area?
  • what could I do for them?
  • what are their needs?
  • who knows people in those businesses
    – who could introduce me?

When you narrow your search down 🔬, when you’re specific 🎯, when you focus on their needs (and build that into your CV), when you’re introduced to them by someone they already know and trust 🤝… you get better, »» quicker results.