Resume Rewrite Helps Navy Pilot Lock onto New Target as Program Manager

Resume Rewrite Helps Navy Pilot Lock onto New Target as Program ManagerResume Rewrite Helps Navy Pilot Lock onto New Target as Program ManagerSix years out of the Navy, Bonnie Adams, an engineer and project manager for a defense contractor, needed a resume that highlighted zu sich civilian skills.Bonnie Adams (not job seekers real name) advanced through the ranks for eight years as a Navy officer and helicopter pilot. She still flies helicopters in the Navy Reserve. But for the past six years she has worked full time as a project and program manager for defense contractors. She enjoyed the work but recently began feeling underutilized and wanted to exercise full spectrum of her leadership, engineering and operational expertise.Problem welches, the resume (PDF) that helped her land her current job was not going to get her the next one she desired. It described her eight years of military experience in detail great experience, lots of promotion, lots of solid accomplishments all good material, but not directly applicable for her current objective, namely, a better job in program management. If she wanted a job in project and program management that would rely on her engineering and operational skills, her new resume better make that experience clear. Her priority was to rebalance the content by shortening her older experience (military) and adding details and accomplishments from her role as a civilian program manager.Telegraph who you are and what you wantBonnies new resume (PDF) takes control of the readers first impression and quickly provides direction and context by deleting the word Summary and replacing it with a headline and positioning statement Program Manager, Defense and Aerospace Expertise.Bonnies old opening profile paragraph jammed six lines of hard-to-read, low-impact information into a solid block of text. The reader would probably skip this paragraph because its too much trouble to read. We broke that section into a three-line paragraph and three bullets that do a much better job of supporting her current objective.Develop stronger content by focusing on accomplishment bulletsThe old resume was too heavy with job description instead of accomplishments. It can be difficult to develop strong, quantifiable accomplishment bullets for process-intensive job such as program management. For Bonnie, we started each bullet with an active verb and focused on contributions she made for her employer or client, for example Created Achieved and Successfully managedSimplify the format. Use two pages, if possibleThe original format comprised three pages, which was totally unnecessary in Bonnies case (and rarely appropriate for any job seeker).We deleted an unnecessary monogram (the letter B). Using an image on a resume is a bad idea for two reasons It usually wastes space and can sow confusion for the applicant tracking system software that collects and stores resumes for human resources managers and recruiters. We also consolidated he r contact information at the top of the resume because thats where readers are looking for it.Heres a final tip that helped this resume We used the So What? test to strengthen Bonnies content. Imagine an interviewer reading one of her accomplishment statements, looking up and asking, So what? This simple exercise shook loose a stronger result. We applied it to every accomplishment bullet and created a stronger resume.

Not getting along with your spouse, or a coworker Heres why

Not getting along with your spouse, or a coworker Heres whyNot getting along with your spouse, or a coworker Heres whyMichele Gelfandis a Distinguished University Professor of Psychology at the University of Maryland, College Park. Her pioneering research into cultural norms has been cited thousands of times in the press, including inThe New York Times,The Washington Post,Harvard geschftliches miteinander Review, and on NPR.Micheles latest book,Rule Makers, Rule Breakers How Tight and Loose Cultures Wire Our World, welches recently selected as a Finalist for the Next Big Idea Club. So we asked her to dive into the biggest ideas behind the book, what surprised her during her research process, and why conflict arisesbetween individuals, communities, and entire nations.1. In two sentences or less, can you sum up the big idea of your book?We often think about our differences in terms of Red vs. Blue, Rich vs. Poor, Rural vs. Urban, or East vs. West, but after studying hundreds of culture s - from Ancient Athens to Alabama, Sparta to Singapore, and the Military to Silicon Valley - Ive found that there is a deeper cultural code driving our behavior which reflects the strength of our social norms, or what I calltight versus loosecultures. By understanding the hidden logic for why groups evolve to be tight or loose, and what trade-offs they involve, we can better understand and manage our differences- from parenting to politics.2. What surprised you the fruchtwein in your research?In my research I discovered what I call theGoldilocks Principleof Tight-Loose, namely that groups that get too extreme in either direction are dysfunctional. Nations that are too tight or too loose have higher suicide rates and lower happiness. Likewise, organizations that get too extreme in tight or loose (think United versus Tesla) or parents who are either over- controlling or too laid back (think Helicopter or Laissez-Faire) are maladaptive. Amazingly, this principle even applies to our brains and the behavior of birds and bees InRule Makers, Rule Breakers, I also describe how a lot of conflict and political shifts happening around the world stem in part from the Goldilocks principle, and how we can use it to anticipate and prevent them from happening.3. Did an event from your personal life inspire or affect the book?When I was a junior in college, I ventured off to London for a semester, my first experience abroad. A sheltered kid from Long Island, I was the classic New Yorker who didnt know life existed outside the Big Apple, as depicted in the famousNew Yorkercartoon. Overwhelmed by the strange accents, the cars driving on the left side of the road, and the British jokes I didnt quite understand, I experienced a quintessential case of culture shock. I remember phoning my father and telling him how strange it was that other members of my study-abroad group would just pick up and go to places like Paris, Amsterdam, and Scotland for the weekend. In his thick Brookl yn accent, my father responded, Well, imagine that its like going from NewYawkto Pennsylvania That metaphor gave me so much comfort, that the very next day, I booked a low-budget tour to Egypt. It was just like going from New York to California, I reasoned (much to my fathers dismay). That fortuitous phone call with my dad sparked a lifelong passion for exploring cultures around the globe, and caused me to pivot from a career in medicine to one in cross-cultural psychology.4. What would you like readers to take away from your book?I hope that the tight versus loose distinction will ultimately change the way readers look at the world and themselves. It illuminates differences we landsee across nations, states, social classes, and households all through the same lens it helps unlock clashes that we experience with our spouses, kids, friends, and co-workers on a daily basis and it enables us to understand puzzling dynamics that we see happening around the world, from the rise of populi sm to the assent of ISIS. Most importantly, by understanding this hidden dimension of our lives, we can use it to better our relationships, organizations, and the world at large. Culture isnt destiny. By tightening norms whenthey are too loose, and loosening norms when they are too tight, we can build a better planet.5. Do you have a favorite quote or motto that guides your life?Take the Road Less Traveled - explore as much unknown territory as possible.6. What is one book that you wish everyone in the world would read?I love Buddhist philosophy and rely a lot on writings of Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, especiallyJoyful WisdomandThe Joy of Living. These books give us very simple principles to become more content, grateful, and compassionate.7. What was your most humbling moment?After completing my Ph.D. and learning the tricks of the research trade, I took a tenure track position and realized that the most important job I had - namely mentoring brilliant Ph.D. students - was somethin g I was completely unprepared for. I felt daunted by the responsibility to help these students thrive and succeed at the highest level, and I discovered that it was this task that was one of the most challenging but most rewarding part of my job. I love mentoring students and helping them to envision their future selves. When I get emails from my former students saying mentorship needed even after decades of them being on their own, I have a deep sense of gratitude.8. What trivial trick, talent, or feat can you do to impress people?Im known to have endless energy and passion for working with people who are coming from very different perspectives - whether it is neuroscientists, evolutionary game theorists, anthropologists, managers or policy makers- I can easily get to the gist that connects us and find ways to work together to discover new frontiers.9. Whats something that is really easy for most people that you find really challenging?Im a generalist and love to learn about abso lutely everything. So I find it challenging to specialize on any one topic.Ready for more big ideas like this? Join the Next Big Idea Club todayThis article first appeared on Heleo.

Personal Branding Your Way Through a Career Pivot

Personal Branding Your Way Through a Career PivotPersonal Branding Your Way Through a Career Pivot4 steps to help you hone your authentic story.Do you know the most important part of making a career pivot?Its not learning about your new path or building a new network. Its not developing a strong plan or honing new skills.Its your story.Dont believe me? A director of people operations at Google stated I want to hear the plan they had in mind I liked what I welches doing, but I didnt have the depth in design that I needed, so I consciously took this next job with a small design firm.It is about you, you, youYour story is the way you sell yourself. It is your motivation and the logic behind your choices. Your story plays a part in how you build your network, how you learn skills and why you make the plans.Your personal brand is the purposeful molding of your choices into a captivating story that explains why you are the perfect fit for your audience.And stories have never been more impo rtant than in careers defined by change and punctuated with randomnessThe key is to purposefully mold your own story, even if you dont think you made such conscious choices at a particular time. You can still connect the dots looking backwards4 steps to a career pivot storyStep 1 Identify Your AudienceAs always, start by identifying your audience. After all, if you dont know who they are and what they want, youll rarely be successful in crafting a story that will captivate them.Step 2 Look Back at Your ExperiencesIts time to take stock of your experiences. Make a list of your major professional and personal milestones. Brainstorm a list with 2-4 ways each experience has brought you closer to reaching the goal your audience is also after.Step 3 Identify Learning and TrendsThe highlights of your story will focus on decisions that enabled you to learn new skills or industries as well as trends that have followed you for a long time. Write down your 2-4 biggest learning curves and two t rends that have followed you throughout your career. Feel free to be creative Learning can be a trend, change can be a trend, growth can be a trend - as can any specific industry, type of babo or type of work.Step 4 Captivate with WordsYou have all the components of your story written down, now its time to make the magic. You can either start by writing the story of each of your career moves (as the Google director explained above), or you can start off with your overall career and how your experiences and choices make you the perfect candidate for your audience.Either way, youll come out armed with a host of stories that will sell your ability effectively and authentically, enabling you to pivot your career with ease.Reposted with permission from Personal Branding Blog