Dear SafetyXChange Members:

The people who read your résumé - both recruiters and prospective employers - read between the lines and form judgments about your character, intelligence and ability to communicate based on how you present the information. You need to be thinking about this when you sit down and write your résumé. Your mission: to craft the kind of résumé that delivers the unspoken message that will make your case.

What messages should a résumé send? For starters, Joyce Lain Kennedy, a career columnist and author, suggests these five.

1. I Can Focus

To perform the multiple functions for which they're responsible, safety professionals must be able to focus and prioritize. Looking at your résumé is the best way for prospective employers to judge your capability to do this.

Advice: Keep your résumé focused. Concentrate on highlighting your two most recent or relevant jobs. Do not attempt to give equal attention to each of your past jobs especially when your experience has been diverse.

2. I'm Youthful and Energetic

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying you have to be young. What I am talking about is displaying the qualities of energy and enthusiasm that are associated with youth. Lots of people over 40 possess these qualities; lots of people under 40 don't. So, no matter what your age, you should strive to give your résumé the aura of youth.

Advice: Write in crisp and concise words. And choose words and phrases that sound youthful:

• Pass?: People person, self-starter, go-getter;
• Youthful Sounding: Enjoy interacting with people, self-motivating and motivated to succeed.

Consider asking a smart "20-something" to review your résumé and give you his impressions. Does he understand the terminology and non-technical terms? ?

3. I'm a Tower of Strength

Companies want safety professionals with a proven ability to handle adversity and recover from setbacks. Your résumé should make it clear that you have.

Advice: List examples of how you solved problems, recovered expenses and learned to compensate for weaknesses in your organization. Emphasize how quickly and effectively you made adjustments.

4. I Know My Stuff

Unless we're talking about an entry level position, employers seek applicants who have experience and complete knowledge of the occupational health and safety field and the industry. Just saying you do isn't enough; you have to prove it.

Advice: Sprinkle buzzwords, keywords and industry terminology into your résumé. But don't overdo it. You don't want your résumé to sound like a Material Safety Data Sheet or technical document.

5. I'm Politically Correct

The term "politically correct" is a loaded one that summons up strong emotion and opinion. Just understand that when seeking jobs in corporate America, your personal feelings about political correctness don't matter. Whether you like it or not, employers have to display politically correct behavior and to ensure that their senior managers do as well.

Advice: Use politically correct terms wherever appropriate in your résumé. Examples:

• Multiculturalism;
• Diversity;
• Global community;
• Cross-cultural;
• Mainstream multiethnic;
• Socioeconomic; and
• People with disabilities (never use the word "handicapped" unless you're an oddsmaker at a race track).

Conclusion

The main point I'm trying to make is that a résumé is more than just a list of professional accomplishments. It's a form of subliminal communication in which key elements of your personal and professional being are conveyed. Be aware of this and use it to your advantage.

Wishing you career success,

Lauryn Franzoni
ExecuNet, www.execunet.com

RÉSUMÉ BLOOPERS

When the going gets tough, the tough get haircuts

Job Applicants Say the Darndest Things

By Glenn Demby

It's a good idea to proofread your résumé before you send it out. And don't limit your check to punctuation and grammar. Think about what you're saying and consider whether this is really information you want to convey to prospective employers. The job applicants who authored these actual bloopers would have been well advised to take this advice. This list comes from veteran personnel expert and author Robert Half:

REASONS FOR LEAVING LAST JOB

• Responsibility makes me nervous.
• They insisted that all employees get to work by 8:45 every morning. Couldn't work under those conditions.
• Was met with a string of broken promises and lies, as well as cockroaches.
• I was working for my mom until she decided to move.
• The company made me a scapegoat - just like my three previous employers.
• Being in trouble with the law, I moved quite frequently.
• In my last position, got nowhere as part of a 60-person herd. Consequently, I did not give the company my full effort and received no chance of advancement in return.

EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS

• Finished eighth in my high school graduating class of ten.
• Suspected to graduate early next year.
• No education or experience.
• I have eight arms and eight legs with excellent interpersonal skills.
• I have unsuccessfully raised a dog.
• At the age of twelve, I began hustling newspapers like many other great Americans had done. The only difference was that they became great.

SPECIAL REQUESTS

• I'll need $30K to start, full medical, three weeks of vacation, stock options and ideally a European sedan.
• I need just enough money to have pizza every night.
• I prefer informality like wearing sports shirts and sandals for footwear in the summer. I prefer setting my own pace. When things get slack I like the right to walk out and get a haircut during working hours.
• Please call me after 5:30 because I am self-employed and my employer does not know I am looking for another job.
• My goal is to be a meteorologist. But since I have no training in meteorology, I suppose I should try stock brokerage.
• I am loyal to my employer at all costs. . . . Please feel free to respond to my résumé on my office voice mail.

SKILLS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Proven ability to track down and correct erors.
• I was proud to win the Gregg Typting Award.
• I procrastinate - especially when the task is unpleasant.
• Excellent memory; strong math aptitude; excellent memory.
• I have never had a single blemish held against me and my IQ is off the charts.
• I am quick at typing, about 25 word per minute, 35 with caffeinated coffee.

Source: Accountemps, 1995 press release

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