I had a chat with someone over FB Messenger who has been trying to land his dream job for 3 months… with no success.
No matter what question I asked, he always reverted back to his resume. “I’m not getting an interview because of my resume,” he said.
“So you’re applying for advertised jobs?”
“Yes, so I know it’s my resume,” he immediately replied.
When I asked what he thought was wrong with his resume, he told me it didn’t have the buzz words they were after. It didn’t express his skills. The recruiter couldn’t see his value. It wasn’t speaking their language. And the list went on.
“I know I could get any of those advertised jobs with a good resume.” Which he finished off with !!!!! to emphasise his point. After that, he said his fears of being out of work were coming true. He was being made redundant on the 12th and he needed to get a job soon or he was in dire financial circumstances…. Followed by a LOT of crying faces in the chat window.
And I felt his pain. I could feel his frustration AND fear jumping off the screen. We all know how that feels, right?
So there was dead silence for quite some time when I told him… “You don’t need a resume to get a job”. He thought I was joking.
But I was dead serious.
It’s true. You don’t need a resume to get a job…
… when you stop following what everyone else is doing.
… when you stop using advertised jobs as your go to strategy to get interviews.
… when you stop competing with the masses.
There is a much better way. And it’s what I call The Secret Marketplace. Where you bypass what everyone else is doing and go straight to the source… where a job isn’t even advertised.
But there is a right and wrong way to take advantage of The Secret Marketplace. And when done right, you don’t need a resume. It knocks the socks off the decision maker and has them picking up the phone to call you in for a chat.
Which is what happened to my client, Annabelle, 7 days after an active job search in The Secret Marketplace.
After receiving her very impressive marketing document, they called her in for a chat. At that chat, they gushed over her marketing document and said it was the best “resume” they had ever seen. By the way, it didn’t contain any of her employment history or educational background. It was the furthest thing from a resume, but she was happy to call it that if they did!
Annabelle positioned herself in a very powerful way. And because of that, they noticed they could utilise her skills and provide a new service offering to their clients. Not once was she asked for her resume.
Yes. You CAN land a job you love without a resume.
Of course, the resume isn’t dead yet. You DO need a resume for various situations in your job search, but it’s not the BE ALL and END ALL in landing a job you love. And if you want to land a new job FAST, resumes and advertised jobs is not the way to go.
The guy I spoke to over FB Messenger? Yes, I could guarantee his lack of success with advertised jobs was due to his resume. But he doesn’t need the resume! And he doesn’t need to spend hours searching for jobs… wasting hours tweaking and tailoring his resume and cover letter for each job… only to hear crickets. It will be a further 3 months, 6 months or more before he lands a job he loves. I know this to be true… I. See. It. Every. Day. Unless he settles, and then he’ll only be miserable.
By the way, I covered The Secret Marketplace and a strategy Annabelle used to land a job… obviously, we need more than that. You need to know what’s etched on your heart. You need to define which strategy will work for you. You need to know who to target. You need to know how to find the key decision makers. What to say to position yourself as the ONLY person they need. How to use a powerful blend of psychology and marketing. How to follow up. How to have the ‘informal’ chat without turning it into an interview. How to negotiate a salary in line with your value… and more.
Sometimes we need some extra help. That’s why I’ve opened up some slots in my calendar to help you do just that.
If you’re a purpose-driven leader or professional who has a track record of results AND you want a job you love within the corporate sector… then book a complimentary call with me. Lock in your time here: https://bigoakcoaching.com/schedule/