ORCMS Career Blog

Leonardo DaVinci was the ORIGINAL Renaissance Man.  Below is a copy of Leonardo’s letter to the House of Sforza (his resume) that he sent over 600 years ago.  Modern day job seekers can learn a lot from Leonardo!

“Most illustrious Lord, having now sufficiently seen and considered the proofs of all those who count themselves master and inventors of instruments of war, and finding that their invention and use of the said instruments does not differ in any respect from those in common practice, I am emboldened without prejudice to anyone else to put myself in communication with your Excellency, in order to acquaint you with my secrets, thereafter offering myself at your pleasure effectually to demonstrate at any convenient time all those matters which are in part briefly recorded below,

1. I have plans for bridges, very light and strong and suitable for carrying very easily…
2. When a place is besieged I know how to cut off water from the trenches, and how to construct an infinite number of…scaling ladders and other instruments…
3. If because of the height of the embankment, and the strength of the place of its site, it should be impossible to reduce it by bombardment, I know methods of destroying any citadel or fortress, even if it is built on rock.
4. I have plans for making cannon, very convenient and easy of transport, with which to hurl small stones in the manner almost of hail…
5. And it is should happen that the engagement is at sea, I have plans for construction many engines most suitable for attack or defense, and ships which can resist the fire of all the heaviest cannon, and powder and smoke.
6. Also I have ways of arriving at a certain fixed spot by caverns and secret winding passages made without any noise even though it may be necessary to pass underneath…a river.
7. Also I can make covered cards, safe and unassailable, which will enter the serried ranks of the enemy with artillery, and there is no company of men at arms so great as not to be broken by it. And behind these the infantry will be able to follow quite unharmed and without any opposition.
8. 8. Also, if need shall arise, I can make cannon, mortars and light ordnance, of very beautiful and useful shapes, quite different from those in common use.
9. Where it is not possible to employ cannon, I can supply catapults, mangonels, traps and other engines of wonderful efficacy not in general issue. In short, as the variety of circumstances shall necessitate, I can supply an infinite number of different engines of attack and defense.
10. In time of peace I believe that I can give you as complete satisfaction as anyone else in architecture, in the construction of buildings both public and private, and in conducting water from one place to another.
11. Also I can execute sculpture in marble, bronze, or clay and also painting, in which my work will stand comparison with that of anyone else whoever he may be.
12. Moreover, I would undertake the work of the bronze horse, which shall endure with immortal glory and eternal honor the auspicious memory of the Prince of your father and of the illustrious house of Sforza”

What strikes me as most impressive (and perhaps most instructive for job seekers) is the way in which Leonardo highlighted his talents to meet the needs of his potential employer(s).  Leonardo most enjoyed painting and scupting — it’s what he is MOST known for these days (think of the “Mona Lisa” and “The Last Supper.”)  However, he doesn’t mention that until # 11 in his list!  That’s because he knew Sforza was looking for someone who could provide assistance with his military and building affairs.

Did it work?  Go to Milan, Italy and you will see that Leo did indeed get the job!  What can YOU learn about your job search from Leonardo DaVinci?

How do people in your profession establish credibility?  Years of experience?  Higher education?  Professionalism?  Knowledge of your industry? All of the above?

What “tickets” do professionals in your field need to “get punched” in order to be counted in the upper echelon of your field? Accountants sit for the CPA or CMA exam.  Lawyers have to pass the Bar Exam for the state(s) in which they practice law.  Project Managers can get  a PMP certification.  Human Resource managers can go for the PHR, SPHR, or GPRH.  For some professions these certifications are required.  In other fields they are a way of gaining status.  Sometimes these certifications require education and a certain number of years in practice.  Others can be achieved straight out of college or grad school.  Do you know the certification requirements and opportunities for your profession?

Many professions REQUIRE continuing education or advanced certification of their members.  Professional certification is a great way to keep up on the changes happening in your field.  It’s a way to learn more about what’s happening in your industry or profession, and a it’s also a GREAT way to distinguish yourself from others who do the same thing  you do.

You should note that there is a difference between certification and certificates.  Many universities have certificate programs for anyone who wants to enroll.  They provide a certain level of knowledge about a profession,  and they sometimes will help prepare students for taking the certification exams.  Certification, on the other hand, is usually provided by the profession itself.  Certification is often a more rigorous process and is more widely recognized among the members of the profession granting certification.

If you want to advance your career, look into obtaining a professional certification.

How much do you expect to make in your next job? $50K per year? $70K? $100K? More? Multiply that by the number of years you plan to spend on the job, and that’s how much your resume is worth! If you were going to buy space in the New York Times or Wall Street Journal for an ad campaign that would yield you this much revenue, wouldn’t you want to make CERTAIN you are getting your money’s worth? You bet you would!

Think about it. Wouldn’t it be worth your time and effort to make sure you get it right? Would it be worth an extra $500 or $1,000 to make sure you are presenting your product (i.e. YOU) in the best possible manner?

Here are my top 5 tips for making sure you have a top notch advertising campaign:

1. FOCUS your product offering. Know what you have to offer and who needs it. DON’T try to be all things to all people. Focus your USP (Unique Selling Proposition) to present yourself in the best possible way to your key target audience.
2. DON’T waste any space! Would you put a picture of your dog in a full page ad in the New York Times? Not unless you are selling puppies! Then why list your hobbies and accomplishments unless they are DIRECTLY related to your career objective?
3. BE CLEAR about what you have to offer. Don’t make the reader guess. Don’t allow them to read between the lines. If you can do something for them (which is really all they care about), state it up front and in clear language.
4. QUANTIFY results. The “native language” of the people who have the authority to hire you is NUMBERS. In order to best speak their language and gain their attention you need to quantify your results from past activities. How much? How Many? When? Where? How often? How much of an increase was that? These numbers will show your potential employer that you have done it before and could most likely do it for them.
5. Get help if you need it. There are a lot of great resources out there. Check out our “Resource Page” for more info on this. Especially helpful is “Doug’s List” (at the bottom of that page). If you need more direct coaching you can contact one of us at: info@orcms.com.

Your resume is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Think of it as a high priced advertising campaign. You want to make certain that it is clear, polished, and effective — because you can’t afford to waste time and money on anything less.

We tell people to claim on their resume the highest level of credible achievements that they are CAPABLE of and WILLING to use in their next career position.  We also tell them NOT to inflate accomplishments or lie on their resume.  Here’s why — IF YOU LIE SOMEONE WILL FIND OUT!  Don’t do it!  It’s NOT worth it.

No doubt you have heard the stories about highly visible professionals who lied on their resume and got canned for it.  You can Google names such as the following to find out who -  Marilee Jones (MIT), George O’Leary (Notre Dame), and NOW Chef Robert Irvine of the Food Network.  Why these people found it necessary to lie is beyond me.  Most of them would have gotten the “gig” anyway.  Did they think they would NOT be discovered?

Lying is never a good thing.  On your resume it can be a career killer, as it WILL follow you for the rest of your life.

I repeat — DON’T DO IT!

Seth Godin is one of the most popular marketing experts in the world today. What he has to say in his blog about resumes is RIGHT ON TARGET! Here’s a link. You should go read it.

I had a conversation with a friend yesterday who is discouraged about applying for jobs through job boards on the Internet. “Is there a better way,” she wanted to know?

“YES!” Almost any other way of looking for work is better than going through the job boards. While many people DO find a job through these boards, the vast majority of people DO NOT FIND A JOB THAT WAY. Only 2 out of 100 job seekers find their job through Monster, Jobdango, HotJobs, etc. Perhaps as many as 1 in 10 job seekers will find their position by posting on the company website, but that’s still a very inefficient way to go about it.

When you submit your resume online you are one in a million . . . literally. To the hiring manager or recruiter your resume looks like this:

The problem is that conventional wisdom tells us that applying for jobs online is the ONLY way to get a job these days. But is that true? Is there another way? Is there a better way?

In the African country of Mali there is a proverb that states, “No matter how long a log stays in the water, it will never become a crocodile.” I have a good friend who’s grandfather used to say, “no matter how long you sit in a garage, you will never become an automobile.”

I think these proverbs both deal with a deep truth that EVERY job seeker or career changer needs to address: “You can’t change your fundamental character.” Today we would say, “You can’t change the hard-wiring of your personality.” I will add, “and you shouldn’t try to!”

Of course, people CAN change and grow and get better as a person. We can learn new skills and improve old ones. We can “turn over a new leaf” to make our lives better. Otherwise, why go to therapy or engage in educational pursuits? But that’s not what we are talking about here. These proverbs speak to our “fundamental nature” . . . our “hard wiring”. They encourage us to build on our strengths rather than our weaknesses.

People who know me well can attest that I will NEVER make a good Accountant. I have a numbers phobia. I can’t stand to sit in a cubicle. I need personal contact (lots of it) on a regular basis. I am not particularly organized. Being an Accountant would NOT be a good career fit for me. Even if I COULD do the job, i would be miserable at it. However, I have a long list of strengths that do (and SHOULD) come into play in my career situation. I can always pay someone who has the skills and aptitude for bookkeeping and accounting to take care of those business details while I focus on utilizing my own strengths and abilities. Truth is, we will ALL be more productive if we focus on our strengths rather than our weaknesses.

We encourage job seekers and career changers to focus on the skills and abilities that they are both capable of and willing to perform in the next career position. When people combine “capable” with “willing” it creates a win-win situation. Employees are happier and more productive. Employers retain good workers who are happy and productive. This division and specialization of labor is one of the basic tenants of our free-market economic system.

The proverbs speak truth, “You can’t change your fundamental character.” Nor should you try to. Focus on your strengths and desired abilities when you are thinking about changing careers or looking for a new job. If you do, both you and your employer will WIN.

Isn’t that the objective? ? ?

We got a great response from readers on the last post. Thank you all for your input. It is helpful for job seekers to see a conversation on a topic that is important to their well-being. Today’s post is a brief, but potentially important one about whether or not to include your physical address on your resumé.

I read lots of resumes every week (some better than others, I might add!). I’m noticing a trend in resumés these days where people are including only email addresses and phone numbers on their resume. This makes a lot of sense to me for several reasons: 1) you don’t want people to know your actual physical address (a tonic to the devastating consequences of identity theft?); 2) it’s not necessary — all you need is contact info and email/phone is plenty; or 3) some other reason.

My question is simply this, is it necessary to have your physical address on your resumé? How will it effect your chances of getting the interview if your address is NOT on your resumé? Does it matter?

I hope to hear from recruiters, hiring managers, and anyone else who may have an opinion on this topic. Let us know what YOU think!

Here are my suggestions for reviewing 2007 in order to find a better, higher paying, more excellent job in 2008.

•  Go through your calendar and list successes you have had this past year -  YOU get to define success.  Did you hit a personal sales high? Re-organize a process?  Write a training manual? Help increase company profitability?
• List personal success as well — did you organize a trip to Europe? Increase your credit score by 100 points? Complete a major home improvement project?
• Don’t forget volunteer activities — professional organizations, faith community, service organization. . .
• Quantify your successes — Numbers are the language of business.  To catch the eye of upper level (i.e. hiring_ managers) you need to show numbers.  How many?  How much?  How quickly?  How often?
• Use % sparingly — real numbers count.  Percentages can be misleading!
• Write a brief narrative of each success including — a) did what?, b) for whom?, c) resulting in . . .
• Pick the top one or two success narratives that fit your career objective and work them into your resume. 
• Get help if you need it — ask a friend to proofread, contact your career coach, ask a recruiter to check it over.

These are simple tips — but doing this at least once a year will give you a leg up for when it comes time to find a new job, get a promotion, or ask for a raise!

I see lots of resumes, and often the Objective is unclear, vague, or downright impossible. Here’s an easy formula that will help you write a clear Objective statement for your resume.

Step 1) Begin with the level of responsibility you want. . .

“A leadership position…”

“A supervisory position…”“Management position…”

(alt.) Step 1) OR you may want to begin with the position title you want…

“A sales position…”

“A financial consultant position…”

“Project Manager…”

Step 2) Follow with the industry that suits you most . . .

“…in a manufacturing firm…”

“…for an international logistics company…”

“…in healthcare…”

Step 3) Insert a connecting “flex” word . . .

“encompassing” (for executive)

“utilizing” (for “hands-on” position)

“involving” (for mid-level)

Step 4) put 2 or 3 key skills (quantified) you have identified

“no more than 3 — it dilutes your power”

“use skills that MOST describe…”

“use wording from O*NET

Step 5) you may want to add geographic preference (if it is important)

“…in an international firm…”

“…in Portland, Oregon…”

Step 6) you may want to add something about the company

“…a closely held firm…”

“…a Fortune 500 company…”

Step 7) Finish with something you can DO FOR the company

“…to increase international sales.”

“…to reduce environmental waste, thereby increasing profitability.”

Step 8 ) BE CREATIVE — do NOT make it look formulaic and “just like everybody else’s.”

Example A:

“A management position within a small, family manufacturing business that will utilize my proven ability to reduce waste and increase corporate profitability.”

Example B:

“Sales management position in a major international firm that involves my abilities to develop, motivate and lead teams to successfully accomplish difficult goals and objectives.”

Example C:

“A senior level finance manager position in a Oregon-based company requiring flexible management skills, creative problem solving and effective communication, oriented towards deadlines while maximizing the corporate bottom line.”