Notice of Reduction in Force (Me)
I suppose I should have been more prepared. I certainly wasn’t the first to go. I would be joining a group of thousands (including my own brother) who had entered the world of the unemployed sudden, unexpectedly and against our will.
But one moment I was sitting in a room full of people meeting about the week’s assignment, and the next, I staring down the barrel of unemployment. Twelve thousand emotions and thoughts swirl together in my head as I tried to come to grips with what just happened and how I was going to get re-employed in time to save my house from foreclosure, and feed the three small furry mouths that depend on me.
So that very afternoon, I took the first steps on the road of ended my 20+ years of aerospace writing and stepped on the path to a new career. I went to the Aersopace Transition Center and signed up. Now What?
So, what do I do best and how can I use it to make a living?
First, I signed up for unemployment. You can do that online now so there is no standing in line for hours before talking to a person who wishes they were anywhere else. Next, I took a resume writing seminar. Apparently, all these years I had no idea how to write a resume. When I read my version, it sounded like me. All the pieces were there, they were all accurate, and I AM a writer. I thought it looked good.
But unbeknownst to me, the rules had changed. The order of the universe, and my resume, had to be updated. In this new world, your resume may first have to go through an automated “sorter” that will toss any admission that doesn’t match the company’s criteria. The problem with this approach is that the submission of many qualified people will never make it to the hands of a human being because they used the wrong words.
Tip Number 1: If you have what the posting asks for make sure you call it what the posting called it. The sorter is checking for certain words that match the posting and anything different will never be seen by human eyes. However, you shouldn’t just copy the posting and add it to your resume. Even if you make it the same color as the paper so the eye can’t pick it up, as admissions that match too perfectly will also be tossed. These machines have figured out that angle.
If, by some miracle of God, your resume makes it past the mechanical dream shredder, then it will probably end up in the hands of an HR rep (or worse a preliminary screener who MAY have a high school diploma). This person is not anymore acquainted with the position you are applying for than what is in the job posting.
Tip Number 2: A person reading your resume in a hurry will hold it between their hands, which will be placed on either side of the paper about halfway down. This means that whatever you think will get you THIS job, needs to be placed on the top third of the page. Not much room, so choose your words for maximum effect (Summary: Degreed blah-blah professional with extensive knowledge of the production of whatcha-callits.)
Next is years of experience. I understood that you never say “over” however many years of experience, as it isn’t over your head. You should say, “more than” however many years, right? Well, grammatically maybe, but apparently there was a study done that said using symbols (@#&) brings focus to a particular point and slows down the rapid scanning of the content.
Tip Number 3: When noting years of experience, don’t use anything more than 10 years as it will age you (unless a position calls for more than 10 years), and use symbols. “Thing-a-ma-jig production manager with 10+ years of experience and a 100% weekly completion to order ratio over the last 3 years.”
Tip Number 4: It’s probably best to use a chronological list of your previous jobs and then bullet the experience within each job that applies to the job you are applying for. The chronology is something that an employer is comfortable seeing, and the bullets (like other symbols) direct the readers’ eye to your experience.
That is what I have learned so far. Hopefully these small changes will get me a fabulous new job.
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