Job Search Step 1: Get an updated CV ready

In a previous post, I outlined the job search process. Well, a warm welcome to Step 1.

Step 1: Get an updated CV ready
This one is a no-brainer. No CV, no job. Nada. Zilch. No hope.
A clear, well written, concise CV that highlights all your qualifications, experience and suitability for the advertised position is not only desirable, but absolutely essential to land that elusive interview. (Noticed the emphasis on the adjectives? I'm coming to that.)

Clear
Make it clear you are sending across a CV and nothing more. Keep it simple so that even the stupid can comprehend that it is a CV. Avoid colors, graphics, charts, diagrams and creative interpretations like the plague. Have you managed to develop a complex yet interesting symbol-based system to highlight your core competencies and accomplishments? Great! Throw that out of your window and restart with a simple, MS word document (essentially in plain English and preferably compatible with Word 97-2003). Remember, your CV is the first impression that a recruiter or employer will get of you. Make it matter.

Well-written
So, consider yourself a wordsmith? Have you managed to to create a CV comprising entirely of your profile written in witty limericks? How about a smattering of bombastic prose, foreign phrases and supercalifragilisticexpialidocious adjectives? Or better still, flowery verse strictly following the iambic pentameter? Fabulous. Now do yourself a favor. Chuck all that and begin again in plain English.

It's funny how people automatically tend to associate well-written with high-faulting or pompous. But well-written is, simply put, something that the reader can easily comprehend and appreciate. The magic mantra is to keep it simple, error-free and jargon-less. Don't worry about not being able to showcase your command of the language, even if the job demands it. The CV, as mentioned earlier, is your initial impression - not a replacement for a face-to-face interview.

Use keywords efficiently. Increasingly, recruiters have begun using automated tools to rate and segregate CV's. (Not something that is ideal, yet increasingly popular.) The ones most closely identified with the job description tend to get higher scores and thus increased visibility. Assuming you have the skills, qualifications and experience required for the job, use the same terms as in the job description. (Hint: You and I both know who a Pizza delivery person is. Why needlessly make him a 'Circular consumable commodity transportation executive?'

Concise
Finally, make it brief. For experienced candidates, two pages of A4 paper is ample space. For freshers, hell, what do you need more space for? Put in only those details which work towards establishing your suitability. Embellishments be damned.

Finally, in addition to the above, there is one essential element in a good CV: the truth. Many a stellar career have crashed into anonymity due to one teeny falsehood buried in the CV. But that is altogether another story.

Disclaimer: When I set out to write this blog, I fully intended to be the prince of the pungent pen, whining aloud about the system. This continues to remain my stated objective. I however foresee this blog becoming a job seeker's haven, laden with tips and tricks on resume writing. Good for you and also for me if you are impressed enough to outsource your CV writing to me. I promise I won't complain.