How to Present Long Career Histories

Some of my clients come to me with a cv which is pages long and can't see any way of cutting down their career history so it fits nicely on to one or two pages.

I can see their dilemma - they may have had a series of jobs (too many to mention in full detail) but still need to list them on their cv so it doesn't appear as if they have any 'career gaps'. There is a simple solution to this.

Your recent career history is the most relevant and certainly the past 10 years is the most crucial and this is where the emphasis should lie.

Any jobs longer than 10 years ago can be listed under a heading 'Consolidated Early Career History'. List the name of the company, your title and the dates. Type them in as a list. Then do one or two short paragraphs that emcompasses what you have done in that period of your career. This saves space on your cv but gives the reader a sense of what you have done previously.

It works a treat, especially if you have taken up temporary positions or backward steps! It is unlikely that a company will want to delve so far back into your career that you are scratching your head to think of what you actually did in each role.

As always, if you need a hand with this, just get in touch!

When you get sick and tired of being sick and tired you'll change

That's a great quote by Andrew Matthews and one that I often hear from my clients. When people ask me what I do for a living and I reply a Career Coach, they often say they are sick of what they do and are looking for another job. But in reality, they often are not. It's what they'd like to do, but they haven't done anything about it yet.

When clients come to me I know they have got to the point where they want to change. Want to find another job and are prepared to do whatever it takes to get there.

Sometimes people are moving away from pain, and sometimes towards pleasure. What I mean by that is - some jobs have got so bad that they have to move away for their own sanity, security or well-being. Others on the other hand, may have just gained a qualification and have seen a promotion that they want to apply for and are moving towards a long-term career goal because they want to. They would probably be quite happy in their present position, but something bigger, better, brighter, shinier has come up and they want it!

My job as a coach is to find out what is the motivation for hiring me - moving away from pain or towards pleasure? Either way its a positive start and that's the only hard thing about taking the first step. The rest is easy....

Are you moving away from pain or towards pleasure?

New Look!

It's been a while since I blogged and since that time not only have I been having tremendous success with my clients (!) but I've also had a new makeover! Not me personally, but my whole brand so it ties together nicely with Twitter, Linkedin etc. etc.

Having thought about my own 'branding' it reminds me of advice that I always give my clients about thinking before they write on social media websites. Your profile and activity is so visible these days and potential employers are savvy enough to check you out either via Google or one of the numerous other sites available. Have a look at www.yasni.co.uk and see just how much information that can be amassed about you in just one website! You can also use this site for finding long lost friends etc. - I have used it several times to get back in touch with people!

Come back soon for more helpful information to get you into the career of your choice!