The decision as to whether to hire a professional resumé writer is one that leaves many people confused.  So, I am glad you are reading this blog!  Professional resumé writing services continue to grow in demand globally.  When it comes time to write your resumé, you are bound to receive a lot of conflicting advice.

This could come from your best friend, your ex-colleague who happens to be a HR Manager or even a sibling.  “Just use an online template” or “There is no better person to write your resume than you” or even, “My mother’s cousin’s husband works in recruitment, and he said…”.

Take a deep breath, as I will walk you through this and help you understand the importance of your resumé and what it needs to do.  I want you to be able to land that next interview, and the decision to hire a resumé writer could play a BIG role!

Resumé Templates

First off, I want you to run away from using a resume template.  Why?  Because when you market yourself to prospective employers you cannot afford to look, sound, and feel like all the other applicants.  And that is what will happen when you use a free “online” template.  It might look OK visually however it is usually a cut and dried content that does not sell you.

When I work with clients, I always take time to give feedback on resumés.  Most resumés I have come across all look the same.  A template will not let you stand out from the crowd.  Even worse, if you used a template your resumé will not be configured to survive the software scans it will undergo on its way to the decision maker.  The good news as a professional resumé writer I NEVER use a template! My resumés are tailored to each client, their style, personality, and career story.

DIY Resumés

I totally get the concept that you should be the person who knows yourself best in the world.  Therefore, it seems logical that you could be the best person to write your resumé.  But that’s actually very far from the truth.  Have you noticed that the perceptive people in your life can see your talents and expertise in a way you don’t?  It’s because your greatest skills are part of you, and you take them for granted.

How can you market yourself in a document you are not trained to create? If you want that dream job, can you afford to take the chance that you may not know how to market yourself property on paper?  Remember, most jobs are looking to hire only one applicant, and you want it to be you!

So, think about what we know so far regarding writing your resume:

• You know your skills and accomplishments, but you take them for granted.
• You do your job full-time, and that is NOT professional resumé writing.
• You know a template is going to pigeon-hole you to look and sound like everyone else.
• You know a template isn’t going to help you survive computer scans of your resume.
• You have no idea what ATS compatibility is and if you do, probably won’t know how to achieve it.
• You get that resumé writing is marketing and that even if you do marketing as a career, it would be hard to sell yourself (see #1).

Benefits

When selecting a resumé writer, a job seeker should always look for a certified individual who has experience working with job seekers in their industry.  As a four times certified Advanced Resumé Writer with international accreditations, 70% of my business is writing professional resumés.  Here are the big wins for you:

• It is not as expensive as you think, and you only need to spend about two hours answering specific questions via a worksheet or over the phone.
• Professional resumé writers (like me) love their job and love words, designing and writing.  Plus, many of us use our unique talents to prepare LinkedIn profiles, matching cover letters and applications.
• On average it takes about four days to turn around a resumé from start to finish – when this process could easily take up to two weeks by yourself.  Think of the time and mental anguish you are saving!
• You get a handcrafted original resumé that markets you to your desired role and you get dedicated support through the process. I do not hand off my work to sub-contractors.
• You get a high-quality product (even though resumés are not a “Magic Bullet”) and you work with a person who is unbiased, honest, and able to understand your job search needs.
• You get an inside perspective on the hiring process and professional resumé writers keep track of changing industry trends.  They know what hiring managers want to see. This includes skills, education, work history, resumé formatting, typeface, and keywords.

You have come to the right place and for the past decade I have worked with all types of clients from graduates through to Chief Executive Officers.  I am here to unearth happiness and empower clients who wish to transition careers with confidence.  Furthermore, I have assisted over 500 clients through resumé writing and career coaching, which has helped them to head confidently towards their goals. 

If you need assistance, reach out, because it’s OK to ask for help!

People procrastinate because their drive to delay is irrationally stronger than their drive to act.  This happens when their self-control and motivation are weakened by issues like exhaustion and are opposed by issues like fear. There are many reasons why people procrastinate with some being feeling overwhelmed, unable to reprioritise, low energy, a problematic environment, anxiety or even holding a sense of perfectionism.

Procrastination is a trap many people fall into, and it can become a habit.  It is often confused with laziness, but they are very different.  Procrastination is an active process – you choose to do something else instead of the task that you know you should be doing.  In contrast, laziness suggests apathy, inactivity and an unwillingness to act.

If we procrastinate over a long period of time, we can become demotivated and disillusioned with our work which can lead to depression and even job loss, in extreme cases. As most habits it is possible to overcome procrastination.  There are a multitude of strategies that can shift procrastination behaviours.  A few of my favourites are to:

1: Reconnect to a higher purpose

What is the intention or deeper significance in doing this?  As Simon Sinek reminds us, it’s “the compelling higher purpose that inspires us and acts as the source of all we do.” Also recognise that you are procrastinating and understand the reasons why.  For instance, are you avoiding a particular task because you find it boring or unpleasant?  If so, take steps to get it out of the way quickly, so that you can focus on the aspects of your job that you find more enjoyable.  Then you can reconnect to the fun or more meaningful part of your work.

2: Visualize

Visualization is important because it helps to prepare and teach us how to respond to a situation before it happens.  For example, bringing the future into the present.  Visualize the task, and then visualize yourself working through it to completion.  Visualization helps you achieve your goals by conditioning your brain to see, hear and feel the success in your mind.  A visual board of projects with steps to completion, as well as the important column of “Done” is also a visualizing strategy.

3: Start with easy

Starting is very often the hardest part, so we procrastinate.  In her book The Long Game: How to Be a Long-Term Thinker in a Short-Term World one of the strategies Dorie Clark shares to get started on projects that feel overwhelming, is to “trick ourselves” with an easy behaviour change.  Instead of focusing on the enormous task ahead, Clark says to create “tiny habits” that are “so minuscule and doable that they’re impossible to resist”.  The goal for any activity that feels overwhelming, or where you feel nervous or fearful is to lower the bar.  Break down the task into easy-to-achieve steps and find a small way to begin that does not require a lot of motivation.  Then once a behaviour is started, it becomes easier to keep going.  Getting started is all that’s needed, and motivation and momentum build from there.

4: Change it up

Changing up the environment in which you work can interrupt the procrastination cycle and help you find focus.  And, by the way, this also satisfies the brain’s need for novelty.  What would you add or change in your environment?

5: MITs – Most Important Tasks

Stephen Covey talks about setting your MITs for the day – your Most Important Tasks.  This has been one of the single most effective tools that I teach my clients when they are in ‘’overwhelm mode’’.

• Write down on a piece of paper everything you need to do.  Leave nothing off the list – this is about getting them your head onto paper
• Get them to go through the list and pick out their top 3 priorities.  This is called the JUST 3 Rule.
• Once they have their top 3 priorities, they can start working on the priority, and then the next and only focus on ONE thing at a time. 
• When you have finished those three, stop, take a break and get on with the rest of your day.
• Start tomorrow with the same practice as doing three important things each day can help limit anxiety and procrastination.

Procrastination can restrict your potential and undermine your career.  It can also disrupt teamwork, reduce morale, and even lead to depression and job loss.  So, it’s crucial to take proactive steps to prevent it.

On September 15, 2012, Life Path Career Coaching first opened its doors to customers.  Therefore, it’s time to celebrate my 10-year anniversary of being a coach, small business owner and sole trader.  And for that I am super excited and delighted with my accomplishments.  Although I find it somewhat astonishing that I made it past the two-year mark, then the five-year mark and my coaching business also survived the COVID pandemic.  Taking all of this into account, it’s time to give myself a high-five and huge pat on the back.  I am celebrating this milestone with pride and happiness and in the most public way – via a blog and social media.  Happy 10th Anniversary to me!

Part of this blog is to also ask you, my reader, how do you celebrate your milestones?  When you celebrate your small victories, you will give yourself little hits of energy that will add up over time.  Try it right now for yourself: think of something small you achieved today, or yesterday.  Maybe you went for a walk even though it was cold outside, you are tired, and you didn’t want to.  Tell yourself, “I am proud of myself for braving those terrible weather conditions to keep my body active.” Over time, you will notice that the little celebrations inject you with boosts of energy that will accumulate.   Once you start experiencing more energy, you might notice feeling more motivated to accomplish all those items—large and small—on your “to do” list.  This becomes a positive feedback loop.  You accomplish something, celebrate, increase your energy to accomplish more, and repeat.  In fact, there is evidence to suggest that celebrating the small victories leads you to accomplish even bigger ones.

Do you notice that children get very excited about small things.  This keeps them happy and enthusiastic about life.  (I often embrace my inner child, and in a mature way!)  Then as we age, we become stodgy.  It becomes difficult to get excited about things that do not qualify as big and significant.  Sometimes, we fail to get excited by small things in a bid to impress other adults.  The questions is, why do we limit our happiness to impress other people who simply do not care and are just as grumpy as us?  

I choose to celebrate the small things every day and one a frequent basis I will honour my achievements with rewards.  For example, getting a massage, buying a bunch of flowers, going out for morning tea, taking an extra hour for my lunch and going for a walk, or raising a glass of champagne to something more significant.  It is important for us to acknowledge what we achieve and how it makes us feel. If you get excited about small things, let it show, laugh, have a small party, dance or jump around.  If you feel happy because you were finally able to do that small thing that you have struggled with for a long time, then get excited about it.  Let it be your small win.    Here are some other tips:

• Bask in the victory of having accomplished an important task or goal, because it will increase your level of happiness.
• Communicate your small wins.  Human beings are social beings.  We communicate with each other to share ideas, knowledge or moments.  Therefore, if you experience a small victory, tell someone who cares about you and the outcome.  
• When verbalising and sharing your wins, this motivates you to keep setting goals and reaching those small victories.  Another advantage is that in sharing your successes, it motivates others around you.  It’s a win-win situation!
• Our brains are also wired to respond to rewards.  Celebrating the completion of small accomplishments leads to the completion of larger goals.  

According to research by Teresa Amabile from Harvard Business School, people who tracked their small achievements every day enhanced their motivation.  For example, the simple practice of recording your progress helps you to appreciate your small wins which in turn boosts your sense of confidence.  Why?  Any accomplishment, no matter how small, releases the neurotransmitter dopamine which boosts your mood, motivation and attention.  So, what can you celebrate today?  How will you celebrate?  How does it feel to congratulate yourself? Remember to celebrate every success along the way, even the small steps!