Cv the marketing way François Meuleman

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How to write your resume

CV THE BRUTAL METHOD

Economic downturn, the Web,

the phone industry, fashion … Everything has changed, your CV/resume too

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To those who will enjoy this book as a summer reading,

To those who will take it as a leap into the unknown,

To those who will see it as their last chance, holding their breath.

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Contents Contents ................................................................................... 4

An introduction as a kick in the butt ........................................ 9

Tip ...................................................................................... 12

Chapter 1 : The EGO Marketing ............................................. 13

a) The Affinity Marketing ........................................... 15

b) The 3 channels of EGO Marketing .......................... 17

c) The unstoppable attack ......................................... 21

Tip ...................................................................................... 22

Chapter 2 : Job hunting is a full-‐time job ............................... 24

a) The 4 keys .................................................................. 25

1. The plan ................................................................. 25

2. Evaluations ............................................................. 29

3. Refocusing .............................................................. 32

4. New ideas ............................................................... 34

b) The CV as part of your Game Plan ............................. 35

a) It’s research time ................................................... 36

b) It takes time to draft the CV ................................... 36

c) Sending your mail .................................................. 37

d) Adjust your CV and manage your mail ................... 44

e) The letter of motivation ......................................... 47

f) Numbers on his agenda ......................................... 48

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c) At the coffee break .................................................... 49

1. Convince yourself ................................................... 50

2. Build a nest ............................................................ 51

3. Don’t write anything before you say « I’m so sure about it » 52

d) Planning : a practical summary .................................. 53

Tip ...................................................................................... 54

Chapitre 4 : It takes an army to fight one .............................. 55

a) An introduction with hotels and prisons .................... 55

b) It’s all about the method, fighting a war included ..... 59

1. Know your target ................................................... 60

2. Know your opponents ............................................ 72

3. Know your features ................................................ 73

4. Build your image .................................................... 76

c) The riff ....................................................................... 77

Step 1 : Choose your riff ................................................ 82

Step 2 : The variations of your riff ................................. 88

Tip ...................................................................................... 89

Chapitre 4 : The 3-‐wheel mechanism of the CV ..................... 91

a) The « you’re not in sync » intro ................................. 91

b) The support ................................................................ 92

1. The paper CV .......................................................... 93

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3. The PDF CV ............................................................. 97

4. The CV on CD ....................................................... 103

5. The on-‐line CV ...................................................... 104

6. The video CV ........................................................ 105

c) The content .............................................................. 107

1. The Company is the Queen .................................. 108

2. Go straight to the point ....................................... 109

3. Determine a structure and stick to it ................... 110

3. Make it easy to remember ................................... 114

4. Spark desire .......................................................... 115

5. Length : a never-‐ending debate ........................... 120

d) The layout ................................................................ 122

Tip ........................................................................................ 125

Chapter 5 : essential codes .................................................. 126

a) In the street, you always follow the Beauty Queen ; she seldom proves to be Miss IQ ........................................................ 126

b) Cv : the classic codes ................................................ 126

1. Typography .......................................................... 127

2. The picture ........................................................... 136

3. Dates/timeline/chronology .................................. 144

4. Language skills ..................................................... 149

5. Hobbies ................................................................ 152

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6. More details ......................................................... 158

7. Categories ............................................................ 162

The tip .............................................................................. 187

Chapter 6 : drafting your CV step by step ............................ 188

a) My CV leaves trails ................................................... 188

b) The Brutal Way : the 10 steps .................................. 189

Preliminary # 1 : Garbage can and Trash Can .............. 191

Preliminary # 2 : Review and choice ............................ 191

Preliminary # 3 : Research ........................................... 194

Step #1 : The oral test .................................................. 194

Stap #2 : Everything on one single sheet page ............ 195

Step # 3 : My riff as the Red Lead ................................ 196

Step #4 : Client-‐related arguments .............................. 196

Step # 5 : Characteristic features ................................. 197

Step # 6 : Then differentiate yourself .......................... 199

Step # 7 : The seven essential codes ............................ 200

Step # 8 : Classic or Eccentric ....................................... 201

Step # 9 : Two tests ...................................................... 203

Step #10 : Printer, fax and copy machine .................... 206

Tip .................................................................................... 207

A short conclusion ............................................................... 209

Last tip for the road ......................................................... 209

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An introduction as a kick in the butt Is life fair ? Is life sweet or ruthless ? Is job searching fair ? Sadly, It is easy to answer those questions.

Recruiters, companies, advisers you meet, the way they act, how they talk to you, the way they address you, it is all brutal : those guys mean business. Job hunting is a ruthless business, ruthless and unfair.

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Potentially, you have the upper hand though. You strike first. The first bullet is attached to your application email : your CV as a straight punch!

Do I need to be fair or is the fight inevitable ? You need to rephrase, the real question is : will you be knocked down again ?…

And yes, that is why this is agressive writing : it is brutal. You need to accept that job searching is unfair : the best guys don’t get the job…but the ones with the best preparation and the most effective weapons do. Let’s stop being candid.

You must muscle your way in, you must win where others lose.. There is only one winner. Second best is not enough, the winner takes it all !

Techniques to take the upper hand are out there, and, luckily, most recruiters are not aware of them (yet). You, yes, you, will strike first.

We want to be clear, concise and accurate.

This book has only one objective : to be easily understood in order to be easily put into practice.

Note : This book provides you with simple rules, but contrary to what you can find on the internet, we don’t offer any magic formula. Your CV is all about you, now and afterwards. There is no ready-‐made chewed up CV. This book explains the basic conventions, the codes and the essential tricks to master. It is up to you to cross the line from time to time. Own it all so it becomes yours.

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Tip Actors know that much: the first step into the role is your disguise.

Dress up like the perfect job hunter. Pick up the clothes which will make a good CV and motivation letter writer off you : a pair of jeans, a tee-‐shirt, a sweater and a pair of shoes.

Also, go in the attic and your polo shirt and camouflage pants from the military days or your favourite sweater from college will do : find clothes you would dress up with in the morning, whether you go to work or to war.

Practically, you will need two outfits : the regular one at home and the one you will dress up with for the job interview.

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Chapter 1 : The EGO Marketing True beauty lies within, I know that. The applicant’s qualities, his skills and abilities, his previous experience, that is what is essential, I know that too.

But most of all, the candidate will be picked up based on his appearance. Yes, mostly on his appearance.

What is critical here is the emotional aspect of recruiting, much more than the objective part of the CV. The appearance…How the candidate looks like, and we tend to forget it, how the CV looks like.

Long before the job interview, the way you look like begins with your CV : 8 CVs out of 10 suck ! In 8 cases out of 10, the CV doesn’t open any door. To the contrary, one door closes, the one leading to the interview.

To market yourself efficiently, you will need to accept the fact that marketing plays the major part in your job search : your CV is just an ad, a package.

The video store is big, really big. Movies all over the place. Or rather DVD or Blue Ray jackets. How am I going to pick one I haven’t seen yet. No way I can evaluate beforehand. The packaging will dictate my choice : the picture, the colors, the overall impression and the summary on the back cover.

Now I have a better understanding for the recruiter’s questions. Just like me, he has to make a decision based on the jacket, my CV and the summary, my letter of motivation.

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In the marketing world, you buy with your eyes first : the quality of the product is determined after use, if at all. In the corporate world, you recruit first with your eyes, you realise how good the candidate is after you hire him, when he is actually working.

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This book has been conceived based on aggressive marketing methods. They have been adapted to the constraints and challenges of this famous mail.

The job application works like a packaging would : instantly it is make or break, offering an opportunity to some people, cruelly slamming the door to others.

Therefore, welcome to the world of EGO marketing.

a) The Affinity Marketing Affinity Marketing is based on one simple idea : in sales, it is all about emotions.

For the last ten years, Affinity Marketing has been the favourite reference tool in sales, marketing and human resources : it is simple and mostly effective.

In recruitment, this type of marketing has long been limited to interviews. Nevertheless, it provides the candidate with a precious help during both the CV and the letter of motivation processes.

How to reinforce the emotional tie with the recruiter ? In front of the computer, how to create this bond as early as in the CV or the letter of motivation stages ?

First of all, nobody buys anything if he’s not in the mood to ! It is of the utmost importance to create an atmosphere in your job application. As in a supermaket, the atmosphere must be both dynamic and appealing. Dynamic, because selling means action, the recruiter is

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literally buying you. He needs to call you in and to hire you. Appealing because nobody tips a petty, niggling and sad waiter. You all need to shine : you, your CV and your letter of motivation : the recruiter should want to know more…Maybe you’ll get the coin, the token for the next round, the interview.

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Practically :

− No shadow (it’s dull), no frame (why locking yourself up when you should be friendly), a dynamic typography, an enjoyable and clear aspect (you are serious not your CV !)

− A smiling mail : too many letters smell like old school work, a conventional copycat. Your letter should stir up interest, it is not about convincing here. (that’s what the interview is for !)

− An open and self-‐confident signature : no scribble, no crossing out, not even squashed nor crossed.

− The CV must be pure logic itself : the recruiter should not think in order to understand it. If he does, it is a mental exercise at best, at worst an effort. Not too friendly, not too nice, both the effort and the exercise.

− At the same time, between the lines, you have to create a bond with the recruiter, with the company, the brand and its products. You have already « worked with », you know ; you are a great addition to the mix : it is all about the bond. To bond with someone is almost like feeling alike. Is feeling alike not synonymous with affinity ?

b) The 3 channels of EGO Marketing Theoretically, our marketing profesors tell us that a brand communicates about its products, its benefits and its values. The car is the product, I will promote its design, its engine mechanics or how resistant the bumpers are. The result ? Trips, holidays, work… Renault markets its cars to families, Alfa offers more seduction than mechanics, BMW sells teen dreams... For the last ten years, big corporations have been targeting a specific niche : values, playing with our anxieties, or with our desires.

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A good candidate should also bank simultanuously on those 3 channels : the product, its benefits and its values. As a product, he is offering his skills. His results represent the benefits for the company

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hiring him. The values are the essential part : they never hire a CV, they hire one human being.

In reality, never put all your eggs in the same basket. Play the three squares : the CV, the letter of motivation and the interview.

− The skills: the candidate introduces both his technical and human skills. The specifics as well as the assets of his detailed CV will be put to his credit in due time. Be careful, specific skills are required for certain positions and companies. For example, in the IT industry, and for accountants or technicians. Without those prerequisites, your CV will be rejected, so don’t forget to mention them. Practically, should you apply for positions with required technical skills, they should be listed at the top of your CV, below the position you apply for.

− The benefits : your CV is refering to your past. The employer is

interested in the future : your contribution, and how he can benefit from your skills. Ideally, each line on the CV should help the recruiter understand « what’s in it for him ». Too often, those lines are limited to a narcissistic description of the candidate’s past. What matters for the recruiter is his company, not you. What is important for the company it is not your past accomplishments but your future success. Conveniently, as for added-‐value CVs, for career change and for positions requesting mainly interpersonal qualities, the

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candidate may add a vertical column, in which he will specify how each line can benefit the potential employer.

− The values : we can’t say it too often, nobody is indispensable. Diplomas, training courses and skills are just lines on a CV. There will always be a younger candidate, more clever, better educated and speaking more languages. The only person no one can clone or dispose of is you. Your interpersonal qualities, the way you would deal with a problem, evaluate a situation or provide a different opinion or solution. Practically, we will focus on the values in Chapter 4.

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c) The unstoppable attack Curiosity is a greater motivator than profit.

Your CV doesn’t need to be exhaustive : to the contrary, it should stir up questions, the desire to know more. Remember that the person who said it all has nothing more to say.

Practically :

− Detail is the CV’s best enemy − Suggest your accomplishments, don’t explain them

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− Informations about your previous jobs should be limited to a minimum

− Your picture should convey sympathy : it should prompt a meeting, not express seriousness

− Your letter should be the starting point of the conversation, propose solutions without saying too much, bring up elements which will be elaborated during the interview.

The letter and the CV should be meant as baits. They should lead to the interview during which you will be clear and exhaustive. You should let the desire spark off.

Tip The important thing is to imagine yourself as the winner, to picture yourself with the contract in your hands.

Psychologists use a technique to reassure people who go through a test (and job hunting is a test), it is called the FREDERICK method. The person should project himself into the future. He should imagine a scene that comes right after the test. He should see himself happy and relieved. In order to visualize efficiently, daydreaming is on : you should imagine yourself, feel the atmosphere, notice some details and focus on one moment, one object.

You should imagine yourself right after the test as well : will you go for a drink, celebrate your new job at the restaurant, at his/her place, with a friend…

Plan a budget and put the money in evidence on a table, hung on the fridge or place the bottle of champagne right in the middle of your office, as a fetish, as a reminder.

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Chapter 2 : Job hunting is a full-‐time job

The candidate must admit that he cannot rush into the CV business like that. Often, the candidate should be persuaded to relaunch his project : even if he has been looking for a job for the past 1, 2 or 6 months, he should start all over again : job hunting implies organization, almost like in the military.

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You need to establish a game plan, you need to decide on a course of actions, your job search is a job in itself.

The plan works like one organizational, unbiased and, most of all, motivational tool. It gives you this exhilarating feeling that you have the key, the recipe to success.

a) The 4 keys During counselling, unemployed people are reluctant to be called unemployed, and most of all, they are reluctant to any shape or form of organization : skills assessment, evaluation, planning. For them, it is just all theory, hot air, psycho tricks.

Yet those things are essential : job searching is a professionnal process. Accept this methodological approach, and you are already back into a work mode, no more into the unemployed mode. This approach turns the unemployed into a real professionnal in the job search business.

There are 4 secrets to this search methodology : the plan, the evaluations, refocusing and new ideas.

1. The plan When you are looking for a job, the plan is like a roadbook : it guides the candidate, shows him where he is starting from, where he is heading to and mostly the challenge he will be facing.

You should make it a step-‐by-‐step process : how could I write my CV without a clear understandig of my past, without a clear vision for my future. The Skills Assesment process is essential. It is essential in order to define your strengths and assets, but also to define your objectives :

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one out of three unemployed person is unable to clearly state which position he is aiming for !

There are 7 steps to the job search Game Plan. These steps are simple but too often tend to be neglected. Always bear in mind that this game plan offers you the opportunity to find a new motivation from the very start and the chance to have a companion during the process. Your very own brother in arms.

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This book will only develop the CV part of it. But we all understand that each of these 7 steps brings you closer to success. If you ignore them, they work as well like a trap, a liability…

− Before anything else : get organised 1. Draft your dream team and fight together as a team ! 2. The night before : change the world, understand

certain things, question others, express resentment and bring back dreams of success, new lives and families

3. Day 1 : one day to develop my Game Plan

− Step 1 : The Skills Review 1. The research 2. The review : I force myself to reflect on the course of

my life 3. The job : I force myself to determine the position I am

aiming at 4. What about training and education ?

− Step 2 : Drafting your CV

1. Research 2. Allow time to draft 3. Organize your mail 4. Adjust your CV and manage your mail 5. The letter of motivation

− Step 3 : The approach

1. Research

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2. Survey the job market 3. Determine the necessary steps

− Step 4 : To prepare for the interviews

1. Research 2. Play the game and be the character 3. Be the one they expect

− Step 5 : To apply

1. Determine how you approach the market (opportunity approach, qualitative and targeted approach of specific companies and quantitative approach of one particular business field)

2. Crunching numbers: answers ratio, first and second interview ratio

3. Decide on your approach 4. Adjust your CV and your letter of motivation 5. The go no go : Should I accept anything ?

− Step 6 : To prepare for the big day

1. Research the company, its partners and its competitors

2. Research the products and services offered by the company

3. Theoretical and practical upgrade (emphasis on management, on change management and on communication)

− Step 7 : My first day

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2. Evaluations Every project requires a follow-‐up : it needs to be evaluated. For the man in the street, evaluation comes with a taste of monitoring and sanctioning.

Evaluation is not about monitoring nor sanctioning. Evaluation is the only valid method to follow-‐up a project, to evaluate its accomplishments and mostly to limit its failures.

From the get go, self-‐evaluation is necessary : I have done my homework, « have I bought the best books ? », I have met somebody, « have I validated what he told me ? », I have picked up a job « have I asked a third party for an opinion ? », and finally, I have drafted my CV « has somebody read it ? is it understandable ? is it up to the current standards ? »

Practically, two persons are not to be trusted : the one who knows and myself.

− I should be wary of Myself as I am too close to the action. Either I like myself too much or I despise myself. I think I control the process whereas most of the time the process controls me. I think I know where my flaws, my qualities and my strengths lie, but the reality is that I disregard (or I hide) my flaws, I am suspicious of my qualities. And the strengths I display are just a cover.

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− Also, I should be wary of the know-‐it-‐all expert : the person in charge of a charity or an institution, or even worse the friend working at the HR Department. Often, these people

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are not well informed, often these so-‐called market experts speak the same lingo they used…ten years ago.

Drafting your CV, the TO-‐DO list :

1. The documentation at your disposal: check the release date, double check the advice, and mostly adjust them (a) to the position you apply for, (b) to the particular field, (c) and the company you are targeting, (d) to the job market and most of all to yourself.

2. They all give you advice. Ideally, pick up three persons from different origins : one working in your field, a former colleague or one friend on the inside, the one who is helping you finding a job, Mr Job Center for example, and the HR person, on the other side of the fence.

3. Your CV : after you draft it, have people read it again and again. (a) your baker should be able to understand it. The guy from HR doesn’t have a clue about your job anyway. (b) Also, your CV should promote your skills. The expert in your field should be able to determine your added value, your expertise. (c) He is also your first messenger : he should spread your word. He should be like you. Remind yourself that your CV is at the intersection of three roads : yours, the company’s and the recruiter’s. There must be something for each of them.

4. The letter of motivation is critical. Force yourself to draft it, to draft it again, to have people to read it. Documentation is available too, you’ll be told almost everything, good and bad. Your job is to sort out right from wrong so it becomes your

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« foot in the door ». The same foot the buyer uses to close the door on the seller.

5. Before you draft your CV, both your skills assessment and your choices should be evaluated.

3. Refocusing Refocusing means that you accept other people’s comments, criticisms and propositions. Too often, the job seeker looks like a victim, worn-‐out, demotivated and sensitive. Too many people overprotect you, they restore your confidence and they hide the truth from you: 2 CVs out of 3 are below average ; 4 letters of motivation out of 5 are ineffective.

Equally, 2 candidates out of 5 showed up inappropriately dressed up for the interview ; 1 candidate out of 2 is unable to express himself or simply communicate what he wants or likes. You don’t need to be praised, you need help, advice and to be questionned. To find the person who will dare to tell you where your strengths are, and most of all where your deficiencies, your weaknesses and our shortcomings are, well it is up to you. Forget about your partner’s opinion, she/he has always seen you as a wonderful person. Also, forget the opinion from so-‐called friends and former colleagues, they avoid unsettling you more at all cost (although they do know why you have been laid off !)

You enjoy the feedback ? Fine, but now you should learn the lessons and refocus your approach accordingly.

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Which parts need to be reframed ? Almost all of them : the field, the position or the company you are targeting, your CV, your letter of motivation, the way you deal with the corporate world, your presentation skills whether during the interview or over the phone, your salary expectations, …

Consider your job search as a journey, a journey during which change occurs constantly. It is more wearying, less reassuring … It is a full-‐time job!

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4. New ideas The best way to bounce back ? You come up with a new idea. Full reset. This very idea gets you motivated, lifts you up and whispers to your ear : nothing is lost !

But there is a downside to this new idea. You are forced to admit that you were wrong, on one side, on the other you are forced to start again : to draft your CV again or your letter of motivation, to question the way you deal with the corporate world and your presentation skills …

This new idea may come up in a different shape : you may be thinking about a new career or a new life.

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b) The CV as part of your Game Plan You don’t start with the CV. First and foremost : you set the frame, you draft your dream team and you get the skills assessment process under way.

− As for the assessment process, there is a lot of help, advice, software and books available. Unfortunately, it will put you off and make you feel guilty very often. Several efficient assessment tools are out there. Bear in mind that each assessment process begins with questionning your childhood dreams, your status back in the school yard days, your regrets as a teenager and your dreams as an adult. A fair assessment is all about someone’s life, not about a position to be filled. It is up to you to pick up the right tools, to activate the well-‐advised help.

− It is pretty uncommon but ideally you would draft a team, a group of people, « the Magnificent 5 », all of them job hunters, ready to help and support each other in order to reach the objective. You all meet every morning at 9 a.m. to start a real day of work. You set up goals, you share tasks, why not designate leaders and even enjoy lunch breaks. Together we perform better, we come up with differents ideas, we recover the strength and team spirit we can thrive on so we don’t let go, so we keep on fighting when others would quit.

Note : There is no secret. As a young job hunter, you get up at 7 :30am on the first day, at 7 :45am on the second day, and on the third day, you have second thoughts about setting up the clock …

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− Don’t forget to schedule a couple of days to consider and draft your Game Plan.

Done ! Now let’s get ready for the CV.

a) It’s research time There are several dedicated books on the subject in every bookstore. Most of them are obsolete. The online data also lack innovation, boldness or simply relevance ... They all seem to agree on the same 10 years old rules. The corporate world, the way we communicate and the world we live in have all gone through an amazing evolution : the web, the phone industry, standards… Few aspects have been left unaffected. CVs followed suit.

Best practices and requirements to draft CVs need a serious update. The recruitment process definitely accounts for that : most CVs and letters of motivation lack of adequate layout, draft and often are hardly understandable.

Try to sort out good from bad and identify the relevant sources : buy or borrow several books, surf the web and ask recruiters for advice. What you get from bureaucrats or teachers, well, that is not enough.

b) It takes time to draft the CV I allow myself one week to draft my CV. Not two weeks or, as it is mostly the case, two hours.

The majority of job hunters is convinced that two hours is all it takes to draft their CV, one day at best. No way. A whole week is required. The worst CVs ? The « CV Ctrl C-‐ Ctrl V » ones. These CVs follow you nicely from the early days of college graduation on. Each training, each

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position is just another line added to the original CV. Well, you throw this kind of CV into the trash can.

Any job search starts with a blank CV : you start from scratch. With the assessment on your mind, you draft your Cv on a blank sheet of paper.

Once drafted, as mentionned earlier in the book, you need people to read and proofread it.

When your CV is done, you will now dedicate two days to your letter of motivation. Be careful, there are techniques, tools and DIY stuff available out there too.

c) Sending your mail You will need a spreadsheet (or a squared sheet of paper).

Sending CVs requires dates, determined quantities and objectives.

Determine one day of the week to send your mail. Three different kinds of mails should be sent at the same time : the qualitative mail, the quantitative mail and the opportunistic mail.

− The qualitative mail : you should target your favourite companies according to your skills, your ambitions and your preferences. These companies are your prime choice : that is where you would like to work. For them, you will dedicate time : the time to get to know them, to research them, their history, their products and their needs ; and finally, the time to draft your CV once again, to adjust your letter of motivation. The stakes are high now, it is taylor made work. Practically, don’t send out more than 3 to 5 qualitative applications on a

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weekly basis. Each application involves : a research phase, an approach you decide upon and a customized draft of both the CV and the letter of motivation. This process involves a follow-‐up over the phone. Have you got my mail ? Has it been addressed to the right person ? May I email you one copy ? Also, it involves a specific preparation to the interview, including the search for contacts you might have on the inside (sponsorship, support or cooptation). You send the mail on mondays, so it is delivered on the right desk by tuesdays. The follow-‐up calls will be placed on wednesdays or thursdays. Fridays are not recommended : for some people the weekend has already started, the rest of them are overloaded (what has to be done before the week-‐end !).

− The quantitative mail : CVs are mailed in bulk. As for advertised positions and unsolicited job applications, it is all about quantity not so much about the follow-‐up. You determine a planning for this type of mail as well : no more than 20 on a weekly basis. The mail is not as qualitative but it nevertheless requires the usual research and follow-‐up over the phone. Those mails are sent all week long, as a result, the research and the follow-‐up are assigned during the whole week.

− The opportunistic mail : This is a very specific process but you should dedicate half a day to take advantage of any particular opportunity, to cash in on a « lucky shot ». It may come from randomly surfing the web, a former colleague can tip you off, someone you meet, anything…

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Don’t discard luck during your job search, don’t turn your back at what may appear imposible. Fact is : 100% of the people hired have applied.

Let’s rephrase 4 simple things :

ü The unsolicited application : without any prior job ad release, the candidate mails his CV and letter of motivation to the company. The CV is focused on the targeted company’s needs. Some of its key elements can be refered to : proposals or references related to its services, products or management . But mostly, the letter of motivation should be reworded : more dynamic, more deliberate, it should be almost intrusive. The candidate should market himself as one unique product. This candidate is off the traditional job ad channel, therefore he is one of a kind, he is motivated. The letter should be specifically focused on the company‘s needs, issues or expectations. The candidate doesn’t matter, the solution he is providing does. Most companies don’t advertise vacancies. They use straightforward techniques : cooptation, headhunters, online vacancies on the company’s web site, or hiring away from its partners, clients or competitors. The unsolicited application appears like one of the most commonly used and efficient approach.

ü Seeding by calling : There is no CV without a follow-‐up over the phone. To make sure the mail has reached the right person, to

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get the interview, to answer a question from a recruiter or, more generally, to introduce oneself or to start convincing. This one phone call is crucial : it is do or die, your CV can either land in the trash or lead you to the interview. To talk over the phone seems to be easy. But for many candidates, to catch a recruiter’s attention over the phone proves to be a difficult thing to do, almost an act against nature : I talk, I sell myself, I open myself to a person I don’t meet face to face. You need to practice. Techniques are available, mostly related to online sales.

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For example, don’t forget that : a. 30 seconds, that is all you have to introduce and sell

yourself. b. The terminology gives depth to what you want to say. It

must convey your energy, drive and enthusiasm. c. Thirty seconds then : 10 are about the recruiter’s

company, 10 are about your professional skills and 10 are about your people skills.

d. Always end with a proposition (not a request !) for a meeting within the next 5 days.

e. Someone from HR does not have a clue about the technical requirements, whereas a Department Head or a potential colleague basically need reassurance regarding your technical background .

f. Heads of department are generally available before 8 :30am and after 5 :30pm. No secretaries to block calls at those times.

ü On-‐line research : thanks to the web, it only takes 15 minutes for anybody with a fair knowledge of Google to gather enough data regarding the company, its history, its products and its referrals . Another 15 minutes to get a clear picture of its environment : its market, its competitiors and its business partners. Practically, the data is then gathered on index cards or on a spreadsheet.

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Check-‐list for the targeted company : a. Name of the company, business field and sales figures b. Name and phone number of Head of HR c. Name and phone number of future boss d. Date of application mail and follow-‐up e. List of products and services available f. Business partners and/or main sub-‐contractors g. Main competitors with their strengths and weaknesses. h. Perhaps you should google the people you will meet.

Interesting : the person I will be meeting tomorrow plays golf…So do I !

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ü Cooptation : When an employer decides to hire someone, he is taking a risk. The new guy should have the requested set of

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skills, he should be a team player, he should get along with the clients, he should be reliable and honest… To limit these risks to a minimum, the employer asks his personnel to find « a gem ». This is what cooptation means. Following an internal notice for a vacancy, the staff is asked to come up with names of candidates. This is more reliable than a recruitment procedure open to anyone : less candidates and of higher level. The selection is easier: the staff is reluctant to introduce sub-‐par candidates. An irrelevant candidate is bad PR. It often involves a finder’s fee.

d) Adjust your CV and manage your mail Very quickly, the once alleged perfect CV appears to be inadequate.

An inaccurate analysis of the job market, or of its objectives, poor drafting or inadequate layout, content too far from the realities of the corporate world, … whatever the reason, your CV needs a radical change.

Now, the candidate should work on his CRM approach (Customer Relation Marketing). He will adjust his CV after a better understanding of the expectations of the corporate world.

During your job search, you will be forced to a by-‐weekly review of your CV, of its layout and content. On the agenda, every second mondays, you redraft your CV and the letter of motivation.

The feedback from the employers will dictate the planning of your mail and its follow-‐up. By Week 2, he has already been altered : not enough (or too much) time spent researching companies, or on the follow-‐up

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by phone, then no, too little or too much feedback, interview propositions or petitions for complementary informations

The qualitative, as well as quantitative and opportunistic mail should be rescheduled. Two mistakes to be avoided : the work overload caused by too many answers from employers or the lack of activity, idleness as a result of poor or inadequate feedback or mail.

2 simple things to rephrase :

ü The different versions of the CV : Few candidates apply for only one job. Most job seekers aim at various positions, sometimes totally unrelated. Several explanations : the diversity of the candidate’s academic or professional background, past dreams or old ideas. Generally, you should draft not just one CV but several. Each one targets a particular position or business field, in relation with the size of the company, the origins, or the company’s and/or the recruiter’s operational language and culture. The same goes for the letter of motivation. Careful, most CVs are digital. The file name should meet some requirements. The name should include :

1. Name of the candidate 2. Vacancy (not your diploma !) 3. Year 4. Perhaps : the reference of the vacancy

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The client, always the client CRM : Customer Relation Management. In this case, the recruiter is the client. Usually, you should research your client : his background, his products, his market … but also his expectations, his needs, his preferences and his wishes.

In short, all these terms are instrumental during the recruitment process :

1. The expectations refer to the requirements or requests put forward by the recruiter in the vacancy release.

2. The needs refer to the technical or interpersonal skills required for the position. Often, the needs and the expectations mentionned on the vacancy are different things. The applicant can take the initiative and voluntarily detail his current needs to the recruiter and therefore profile himself as the answer to them. The CV and the cover letter are the perfect tools for that matter.

3. It is more difficult to identify the preferences. They can work consciously, and sometimes unconsciously. The recruiter may prefer a certain type of profiles, backgrounds or sets of skills. But it is not limited to that. The colors, the design, the typography and even the writing style used in the letter of motivation (and the signature !) will have an impact on the perception of the candidate by the recruiter.

4. The recruiter has an idealistic idea about the perfect candidate : he will either be the answer to his problems or a true wall against his difficulties, or the almost magic solution which will allow him to save or keep his company. It is not easy, but you can do it.

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e) The letter of motivation First, you draft the CV(s), then the letter of motivation.

You will need a couple of days. You will ask for advice or for help. More than for the CV.

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Practically, (in Part 2 of the Brutal Method) ee will see that there are simple methods to draft a killer letter of motivation.

f) Numbers on his agenda There you go : you’ve done a rough draft of your planning, with numbers and dates.

Now, you’ll add objectives : how many interviews should you get ?

Usually, job seekers are aiming at a certain number of weekly (or by-‐weekly) interviews.

How many of them ? it depends on the vacancy, the current trend within the job market, how old the candidate is, or his qualifications.

For lower skilled positions, the objective should be one interview per week, with an answer ration of 35%. For higher skilled positions, the objective should be one interview every two weeks (or three) with an answer ratio of 60%.

If the answer ratios are lower:

− Either the CV or the letter of motivation need a new approach. Change them

− Or there is a lot of competition on the markey (lots of job seekers, few vacancies). In this case, both the CV and the letter of motivation should be adjusted. More agressive, more straightforward, in order to outshine the competition.

The same goes for the interview : just one and you are out.

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The question is : « are my interview skills up to the standards ? ». You should question yourself, review your strategy or find new ideas.

Note : Both the CV and the letter of motivation are crucial. Symbolically, the candidate switches into action mode. He has something in his hands, something to give out, something to stand for. Therefore it is important to draft those documents at the earliest stage of the process.

Consider those documents as a work in progress : they represent a never-‐ending process. Each mail, each interview gives you the opportunity to review, amend or re-‐draft them.

c) At the coffee break Candidates usually enter the interview room and introduce themselves to the recruiter as Calimero’s twin brother.

They look like they are responsable for all the miseries in this world : « sorry for being here but i simply wanted to give you my resume »

This is a classic : most candidates (notably senior ones and people unemployed for a long time) persuade themselves they will fail at the interview. It shows on their face, on their body language, on their tone of voice. It tells the recruiter : it won’t be him.

It works, believe me : it won’t be you. Nobody likes a depressive victim, a pain in the butt or a loser in his company.

« It’s me or them ! ». This may sound offensive but this is successful Job Search 101. You should welcome the competition and enter the

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battlefield as a winner and not as a loser, or worse as Mr Nice and Candid.

This is a statement, it is my decision : THIS JOB IS MINE !

1. Convince yourself Conveniently, you should stage the decision. Solemnly you tell yourself : THE JOB IS MINE !

Dress up, stand in front of the mirror and talk to yourself, persuaded you are one of a kind, up to the standards…You are the one they are waiting for. This is not stupid at all.

It may appear easy, but it is not.

Even worse, nobody can help you : like the guy who wants to quit smoking, the only person who can convince yourself is you !

Build a nest : with a clear goal in sight, a small group of committed and devoted people around you. This nest works like your base camp, bulletproof with certainties.

Which certainties are we talking about ?

It doesn’t matter, confidence is universal and contagious. If you are convinced to be the best table football player, or if you cook the best crumble, then it will be a piece of cake to convince yourself to be the best developer or the best secretary.

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This nucleus of certainties is the cornerstone to your success during the interview : the recruiter feels it when it is there, and feels it when you don’t have it. So stop being Calimero’s twin brother too.

2. Build a nest For those of you who think it is easy, well, it is not. During my training sessions, I use a simple technique, it will make you smile but it is efficient.

I. Pick up one skills by which you stand out in your family. Focus on your expertise and challenge yourself. Prove yourself that you are the best at cooking chocolate, at cutting a flower, at mixing music, at riding uphill.

II. Build your nest and verbalize what you just went through. Finish the following sentences :

− Whatever happens, … − I can punish if … − I am there to … − I have solutions : … − I am taking full responsability, and even more so…

III. Do the same exercise for the position you are aiming at, or for a set of skills you have.

Never forget that the motto « I believe I can fly » is crucial during the interview.

You cannot convince the recruiter if you are not persuaded yourself.

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3. Don’t write anything before you say « I’m so sure about it » This certainty will come out naturally expressed on your CV, and mostly on your letter of motivation. If you don’t trust yourself, this lack of confidence will show : you will come up with a poor CV and an unimpressive letter.

Build up your certainty first, then you start drafting the CV of the letter.

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d) Planning : a practical summary

Week #1

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Tip Practice your signature, make something nice of it, something deliberate and professional. Most signatures don’t represent the person but reveal his weaknesses. Don’t let it become your weakest link.

Preparaoon

Analysis

Drap

Mail

Création de sa capsule : « I am the best ! »

To draft my dream team : « I won’t be alone ! »

The Game Plan : dates and objectifs

The Review : « Where do I come from and where am I going to ? »

Research : books, web sites, tips

To draft my CVs

To draft my letters of motivation

To plan the mail and the follow (to adjust the CV and the letter

letter))motivation)adaptation du cv ou de la lettre)

1 to 2 days

1 to 2 days

1 day

2 to 3 days

2 days

2 days for each CV

1 day = 1 letter

1 day

Week #2

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Chapitre 4 : It takes an army to fight one

a) An introduction with hotels and prisons Remember the sad and cruel « without collecting money as you pass ». Playing Monopoly, you had to play and play over again in order to collect lots of Title Deed : and there, with luck and strategy alterning, you had to collect properties, money and rents step by step.

And then, one stroke away from the much coveted fourth train station, you end up in jail…worse…without collecting money as you pass.

In jail, the person you helped in the previous round so he would not go bankrupt, was stealing your train station away from you. And there was nothing you could do about it.

The game of Monopoly, without touching it, is teaching kids real life lessons :

− Lesson #1 Hide your objectives : « Train stations ? well, not really, you cannot build an hotel there. » Threfore, before you enter the interview room, don’t show too much enthusiasm, you would over-‐motivate your « opponents ». Also, don’t share your tips with anybody : there are very few gratifying well-‐paid jobs out there. Keep some of your cards to yourself.

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− Lesson # 2 While some people easily forgive other people – forgiveness being a very judeo-‐christian attitude – gratitude is more difficult to come by. We all know Judas, but do we know who the Good Samaritan was ? After a few months, to find a job is a matter of life and death : no money to pay for the rent, to buy food…our very own old ethological demons come back to haunt us : our survival is the only thing that matters, like an animal in danger. Don’t rely on your opponents’ humanity. Be fair and honest, don’t be naive nor candid.

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− Lesson # 3 Know your opponents, their game plan, their weaknesses ; also, you should master the general framework of the game and, this is not the most easy thing to do, to be aware of your strengths and weaknesses, at all times.

This almost military approach is causing anger.

In the recruitment business, just like in any B movie, there is a yellow demarcation line : to the left, those who make it, to the right those who complain while watching others step over them.

The objective of this book is to provide everybody with the same weapons, it is pure logic and common sense. To provide equal opportunities to everybody for a fair fight.

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b) It’s all about the method, fighting a war included

To gather data about the battlefield and the opponents, that’s usually a job for Special Units or the Intelligence Department. Equally and ideally, your Dream Team and yourself you should scrutinize the field of operations.

Target 4 essential elements : the opposition (your opponents and the recruiter of course), your strengths (your assets), your target (the position you are aiming at) and the way the opposition is considering you).

This introduction has been agressive on purpose (troops need to be motivated again !), those informations are indispensable. Without them, the candidate starts with a serious handicap.

In other words, he doesn’t start the fight on equal terms.

My posioon

My assets

The compeooon

The target

My image

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Switch on your PC , take a pen… Roll up your sleeves, this means work : you need to analyze, research and put into perspective.

1. Know your target To reach your target, you must scrutinize it. Any salesman would tell you : know your clients first.

The target, 4 elements absolutely necessary to analyze : the job market, the company, the vacancy and the recruiter.

Note : Some writers include other elements in their analysis, but it gets too heavy.

My preference goes to a limited, practical and simple approach.

a) The job market The job market (or more precisely, its circumstances and current trends) plays an undefined part. The crisis is not inevitable, it turns into an opportunity for those who can make the most of it. Companies are in desperate need of salespeople who would bring in new business, managers who would put things straight, creative people who would relaunch their product line…

Practically :

1. Analyze the job market globally : is it optimistic ? Pessimistic ? Are there profitable niches ? Is the crisis (or the sunny break) there for the long run or is it just temporary ?

2. Determine the business fields you are aiming at For each field, analyze : • the consequences of the crisis

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• the opportunities the crisis can create (very important, this can be your get-‐out-‐of-‐jail card during the interview)

• the expectations or needs as far as recruiting goes • the trends in the recruitment business : hiring, interim,

sub-‐contracting… • the discriminating criteria : some will help you (highlight

them in your letter of motivation), others will stop you (don’t waste your energy !)

b) The company : its culture, its needs, its expectations As for any qualitative approach, its company should be extensively researched : its core values valeurs, its hiring trends, its teams, its business partners, its competitors, its products…

Practically :

Create an index card for each company.

To draft those cards represents a substantial amount of work, but in the long run they will be instrumental to a successfuk career…knowledge is power.

The company index card :

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1. Overall description : Name, legal form, address, number of subsidiaries or franchise network and turnover/sales. Possibly, its history, Eventuellement : son histoire, its subsidiaries abroad, or the names of their CEOs.

2. Products or services available (or offered, for non-‐profits). For each of them:

− Brief description − Target audience (or prescriber1) − Strengths and weaknesses − Rival products (or services)

3. Main accomplishments, good or bad.

4. Prospective analysis : How will the market, the

company and its products be like in the next 5 years. Will they expand, decline or be able to adapt ? This is not an easy analysis. It requires research and a fair bit amount of imagination. During the interview, the prospective talk, (when seemingly improvised) makes quite an impression. The recruiter meets a candidate who, not only

1 The prescriber is the person who influences the consummer in his choices or in his purchase decisions. For example, the purchase of a car is greatly influenced either by kids, or the social background, mainly, or work colleagues, or friend of the parents.

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masters the current issues at stake, but who comes up with a medium-‐term vision about the risks, the opportunities and the potential developments for his products.

5. Its management structure, its main departments, and their Heads. Especially the department you are aiming at.

6. The main business partners and its competitors.

c) The person I meet Between the company and you, the recruiter stands in the way. He has many disguises, he can be your future boss, the Head of the HR Department, the in-‐house psychologist, one external agency or a future colleague.

Many people will be reading what you have sent, together they will proceed to the first selection (awarding the first ticket to the interview. Or not).

In most cases, the same people will be attend the interview.

Practically:

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− Before sending your CV (even in the case of a press release), call and ask for the name of the person you should send it to, ask for his posituon in the company

− In both the presentation and in the letter of motivation, include the exact name of the person (be careful to the spelling !)

− Usually, an alias, one fictitious email address is activated to receive the applications ([email protected]). Try to find the personal email of your contact person2.

− Use the search engines, does he have hobbies ? Has he published articles or books ? where has previously worked ? You might be able to use those informations to your advantage. Be discreet so it will look spontaneous.

2 Surf on the company’s site. Analyze their email policy. Every company has a logical way to allocate their email addresses, whether it’s [email protected] or [email protected] ou [email protected]. You will be able to determine your contact’s email address. Some specialised web sites an give you access to those informations as well. But don’t send your application to your contact’s private email address, this would look bad.

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d) The position When applying for a job, you need to walk the talk : you should know all the technicalities. Your analysis will take into account the technical and logistical weaknesses, as well as the poor output rate.

Everything related to those skills must be within the scope of the prerequisites. The recruiter must be persuaded that you have mastered those abilities prior to the interview.

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You get the message, your background and your technical skills are not enough. There will always be a candidate with a more relevant background and a wider set of skills.

I understand that if you draft your CV you must be relieved. Up to this point, it is all about lists : the list of your previous jobs (number of years or duties), and the list of skills (or softwares) you master.

Unfortunately, it is not enough : there is more to you than just being able to use one welding kit, one drilling machine, or being able to develop a project or write anything.

The position also requires people skills, personality, a sense of humour and social manners. Those details will tip the scales.

Practically :

1. Short description of the vacancy (10 lines max) : objectives and related duties, stakeholders…

2. The applicant describes how he can add value to the position…highlighting both his technical and people skills. Example :

The company TECTI is looking one IT technician for its Help desk. Requested skills : ASP, JTML, JAVA and CSM (one of them) Your proposition :

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− Technical skills : to add one DB interface (for example ORACLE)

− People skills : crisis management, capacity to explain abstract concepts for computer non-literate people

My CV

Skills related to the position: … … …

YES NO

Requested technical skills : … … … Complementary skills : … … … Requested people skills : … … … Complementary skills: … … …

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3. Description of prerequisites : what is necesary to the position, to make it work properly or to improve it.

My CV


YES NO


4. Description of collateral functional supports : who is helping me, when and how. To manage the situation, other skills are required, other might be suggested to improve collaboration.

My CV


YES NO

Requested technical skills : … … … Complementary skills : … … … Requested people skills : … … … Complementary skills : … … …

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5. Description of delivrables : what the job actually produces or delivers, to whom and how does it transfer to.

My CV


YES NO


What should I do with those four figures ?

The GoNoGo approach : should I go ? yes or no ?

1. This will help you get a picture if you have the required skills for the job, whether technical or human. The recruiter would consider all of them, some are non negotiable (a spot welder must be able to weld), others are implied (can he do it under water or in vacuum ?). The candidate should determine whether his application is relevant or not.

2. They should allow any motivated candidate to get a complementary training to fill the gaps in his education, or to acquire a new skill which would give him the hedge during the interview.

3. This could also be the stopping point : if you don’t have the necessary skills nor the time or the opportunity to start the required education.

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The « this is who I am » approach :

4. The suitable candidate is gathering valuable ideas for his

CV, the letter of motivation and the interview. He can prove he has the required set of skills but on top on that he is adding priceless qualifications : precisely those required by the position. The recruiter is bluffed : the weapon is yours. Just like any Pokemon, you need training. The Pokemon improves with his training, he is developping new weapons, and mostly new abilities. In addition to the training, the fight contributes to its evolution. Each training session contributes to your developement, so does each interview, each rejection brings you closer to your next evolution. One day, you’ll meet the Boss, face-‐to-‐face.

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2. Know your opponents Your are seldom alone. A single recruitment campaign results in dozens, even hundreds of applications.

Remember that you should try to know (and this is not easy) :

− How many CVs have arrived ? − Which ones have the edge ? − Is one of the candidates already working for the company ? − What is their competitive advantage ? Which salary

expectations do they have ?

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Situation #1. If you appear to be the right candidate, ahead of the pack : be suspicious. It is not a done deal.

You have the most unconfortable seat. Everybody wants to go after you. First you will be the most expensive candidate, then the oldest, and then finally you are the best one. Walk on thin ice, let the recruiter gradually make up his mind : you are the best (don’t tell him, he should come to this concluson all by himself !)

Situation #2. So you are not ahead of the pack, you are swimming with the sharks : cheer up. It is not over yet.

Knowing that, you need a game plan. Unfold the map on the table : just like Caesar, you place the heavy machinery at the forefront, and you keep your efficient and mobile troops there in some grove, in one announcement banner, or in between two sentences in your letter of motivation.

The heavy machinery, numerous and powerful footsoldiers, will open the doors to the recruiter’s office. There, during the interview, you activate your swift resources : your asset cards. The recruiter’s certainties are challenged by the qualities you kept to yourself. You touched him. You haven’t won yet but he is having doubts. There is a fifty-‐fifty chance now.

3. Know your features In college, our latin and greek teacher was a big man. He was permanently sweating, his right hand mopping up his forehead and the top of his head with his embroidered handkerchief. He had a loud and harsh voice, we thought we were at the Parthenon. It was not easy for him. He could not conform to the the usual 50-‐minute lesson format :

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he was as passionate as a young Harry Potter, as pathetic as he was near the end of his life. A greek lesson by him was just too much for us to bear.

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Sometimes, being a good teacher is not enough, even with the highest technical qualifications, as a wizard in ancient greek, even with great people skills.

Some jobs require a special personality (a math teacher in a troubled suburban area), a certain level of fitness (life guard at Brighton beach), a quiet and patient personality (working at a check-‐in counter at Heathrow Airport), good looks (model or singer), even an age limit (cashier at Sainsbury’s should no older than 45 years old…).

The Ruthless Method introduces a different approach regarding the review process. One of the chapters examines the features :

• The « + » – Motivation – Appetence – Education – Accomplishments – Technical skills – People skills

• The « -‐ » to be improved towards « + »

– Age – Visible / non visible physical features – Clutural, regional or religious affiliations

This is a sensitive matter.

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The Ruthless Way/Method3 reverse-‐engineered the review process. Rather than starting from the current situation, which may prove delicate, the candidate is being thrown back to his earlier years : back in the schoolyard days, which status did he enjoy ? which was his favourite game ? was he a leader or a dreamer... The seminar on the review process will allow you to rebuild your personal history, where there is only a meaningless list left on your CV.

4. Build your image The warriors are facing each other. The old lion is bumping chest, most probably for its last fight. Standing tall on its front legs, it seems huge.

Young Yvan, the War Lord, his body covered with paintings, can hardly move. His powerful armour is impressive. His new weapons shine, sending white flash lights towards the village.

The young lion cannot wait : bent muscles, prominent and powerful. Showing teeth, grunting and ready to jump, bite and kill.

The village is located on its territory. Everybody is armed, everybody is shouting. Traps are hidden, allowing for excessive self-‐confidence. The eldest stand in the first row : nobody is afraid, we are immortal.

Tonight, the village won’t be destroyed. After two attacks, Yan stopped the fight : the traps and the self-‐confidence among the people won.

The young lion fled, too.

3 Book 4 of the Ruthless Way/Method examines the review process

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This example illustrates the power of image (superior to stregth or reason) and of its codes.

During the interview, we will see that it is all about the image. The CV and letter of motivation converge towards 3 requirements : support, content and layout.

The next chapters will examine how to format or sometimes stage your CV.

c) The riff « All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word», Sir W. Churchill is right : and the more important it is to express, the shorter the message.

As for marketing, the birth of the WWW placed Imprint Communication under the spotlights.

Imprint Communication is based on a simple premise : everytime you meet somebody, your brain creates one index card.

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On this index card, you will file all the data you have gathered regarding the person in question : his overall aspect, the way he expresses himself, the way he thinks, his sense of humour (or lack

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thereof), the experiences your shared together… everything about this person will be filled here.

Mr X personal index card

Various Informations

Experiences

….

Memories

The storage point

The imprint leads to the catch tL’empreinte permet l’accroche acca

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The index card is filled with data, important or not, about the person. Your judgment will evolve over time, so will the person. Your brain will automatically update the index card. You can add, delete or modify the informations…Everything goes.

Except for one thing : one piece of information cannot be altered nor deleted. It is the first impression.

The outline illustrates the key role of this first impression : it is the imprint which will fix the card in your memory. In other words, it is its storage point, which will allow you to find it back. You cannot change it. This is the imprint this person left « in your nerve cells ».

The first impression remains. Therefore the impression you will make to the recruiter is there to stay.

Psychologists have also demontrated that this first impression is elusive, not deliberate, to the contrarym it is simplistic. It is limited to one single word : one adjective or one qualifier.

The recruiter sees you (with the occasional exception) as newcomer, somebody he meets for the first time : as result he will also create one index card, one with your name on it.

What kind of first impression will you make on the recruiter ? which qualifier will best define you ?

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The storage point

The imprint leads to the catch acca

Regarding the candidate, the recruiter will keep in mind : his CV, his answers to his questions, your feedback but also the way he looks, the way he walks, the way he dresses up.

All these informations can be altered (you can make up for any blunder during the interview), all of them but one : this first impression : it is there to stay.

At the end of the interview, in case you face two recruiters, they don’t know who you are anymore. They met with 20 persons, 20 CVs, 20

Candidate’s index card

CV , letter of motivation, recommendation, previous collaboration…

Professional background & skills

e-‐reputation….

Behaviour, presentation, requests, ….

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personal histories and even if they use the pictures, it is extremely difficult for them to discern who is who.

To do that, they often use one word : the stressed guy, the tall guy, the dynamic guy, the professional guy, the funny woman, the black guy …

If the word is a positive one, it’s ok … if it is a negative one, or worse, when it relates to the physical appearance (the fat, the ugly or the blond), it’s not good at all!

It is that simple : our first impression works like one pedestal, it is the clincher in our job search … so be it ! But why shouldn’t we make the decision : let’s choose and impose this famous imprint !

The tool is already : it is the Riff.

Originally, the Riff is guitar sound, a little song, simple, which will be with you the whole day. Same goal here : your tune should remain in your recruiter’s ear.

Step 1 : Choose your riff To determine the one qualifier which describes you best is not easy.

The Method introduces a special approach, both fun and efficient :

1. List your qualities and your flaws – Practically, no more than qualities, no more than three

flaws – Skip the obvious : motivated, team player … – The same goes here : skip aggressive, alcoholic, thief …

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– Turn your flaws into qualities : nervous turns into dynamic, stubborn into determined, manic obsessive into disciplined …

2. Among those qualifiers, determine which one is the most

marketable to the recruiter : that’s your Riff. This qualifier will epitomize the first impression you make to the recruiter. – It either fits the corporate culture – Or it is an added value to the position you are aiming at

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Nos qualités professionnelles ou humaines. Attention peuvent parfois vous desservir….

Mes défauts peuvent s’avérer pour certains postes des points forts (pourvu que vous puissiez bien les choisir et les présenter de façon judicieuse)

Instant advices :

– Don’t get trapped with a Riff related to your physical appearance (skin or hair color, disability, weight) or related to your personal situation (religion, sexual orientation …)

– The job market is not your typical friendly party, they don’t hire you so you can have a good time, but you get hired so the company can take advantage of you. Don’t be surprised if your flaws, not your qualities, get you the job.

My qualities … … … … … …

My flaws … … … … … …

Which quality will fit the job best or will match the corporate culture ?

Sometimes my flaws can be assets : they will offer the company what it is missing in discipline, authority or creativity.

My riff

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It takes a strong temper to manage of night crew of 180

…

– Equally, the recruiter often turns your qualities into flaws : the nice guy turns into the candid guy, the friendly guy into the gossip guy, the disciplined guy into the inflexible guy… Bear that in mind for the interview !

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Avoid the following pitfalls:

A) Don’t deliver above expectations : no lie, the Riff thrives on your qualities and flaws. Don’t pretend to be a peaceful person in order to please the recruiter,you are under stress and it shows. Be energetic.

B) Always stick to the same Riff : change your Riff to match the position or the company you are aiming at.

C) Be conservative : professional, energetic, eager… You should

stand out.

D) In between sending the CV and the interview, you may get a call from the recruiter : sometimes for a complementary question, a detail, or to test you in a foreign language. Get ready for this interview. In the tone of your voice, the recruiter should hear just this one thing : your Riff.

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Step 2 : The variations of your riff Once decided upon, you should impose your Riff to the recruiter. How do I make the first impression off it ?

You should give it a variety of forms whether visually, orally and kinesthetic.

Everything should relate to your Riff :

1. The syntaxe of your letter of motivation You are a pro, your letter must be professional !

2. Your signature Yours is a friendly Riff, your signature must be open, solar…

3. The way you write the address on the envelope. You introduce yourself as a disciplined person : the address, the stamp and the envelope must be beyond reproach.

4. The structure and the layout of your CV If yours is a creative Riff, come up with a new structure, play with the layout … Your CV must be creative.

5. The content You are marketable, your CV shouldn’t be like an off-‐putting catalogue, it should sell too !

6. And most of all, the opening banner Whatever the Riff, it will show up on your opening banner. (banner present at the beginning of your CV

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Tip Forget the advice of your sucessful uncle. The poster man of the family, everybody is proud of him, got his job interview back in 1997.

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Back in the days, the telephone was there but not the internet. The How-‐to guide he used had been written in 1980. And finally, he followed the advice of somebody who died more than 10 years ago.

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Chapitre 4 : The 3-‐wheel mechanism of the CV This chapter will examine the heart of your CV. Which features does it have ? How does it work ?

a) The « you’re not in sync » intro During one of my seminars, one participant was comparing himself to a sad and fallen hero from the movie « Modern Times ». Crushed and most of all dragged by one faceless « ogre », the community. His last words were : « François, I’ve had it. »

Yet, there is nothing unrelenting or unfair in the etymology of the word gears. It relates to logic and efficiency.

Next to the machine, Chaplin looked really small. But what would have happened if Chaplin had understood the machine ? If only somebody had explained to him how it was working and his own role, « My job is to produce cars so kids can go on holidays », then he would have been something else than a wheel in the mechanism.

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Figure XXX : The wheels of the CV

Legend : There is something mechanical about the CV : either it is spinning or it stops. When we enter inside this machine, we discover a simple mechanism : 3 wheels constantly spinning in sync.

The drawing is in black and white. In reality, the epigastrium of your CV, its bowels, is in full color. When it starts working, it chews up lots of information, digests, transforms and communicates them. Pretty chaotic …

With carefully manufactured and maintained wheels, it is all colourful and lively…a true storytelling. With an ill-‐manufactured mechanism, the wheels are squeaking, the CV is slow, everything is confused, nothing comes out…

b) The support The CV is usually written and printed on paper, but nowadays it can have other types or forms, as the CV on a PDF file, the CV on one CD Rom, the o-‐line CV and the video CV.

Layout

Content

Support

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1. The paper CV It remains the format of reference.

The paper format is reassuring, it conveys a sense of global community and intimacy of contact no other support can give.

Be aware, for example, that most digital CVs are printed. Sachez, par exemple, que la majorité des CV informatiques sont imprimés. Paradoxically, the best paper CV is sent by e-‐mail.

The email has one advantage : your CV wil remain spotless. The trip won’t have him crumpled or dirty (mailmen eat croissants in the morning and French fries at noon too !), or folded. It will be all clean, all flat, ready to be read.

This is no small detail. Do the test : fold your CV 1/4 or 1/3 of the way. Its visibility loses 20%, do does its efficiency ( Il perd 20 % de sa lisibilité, donc de son efficacité (when you photocopy it, the folds turn into black stripes upside down).

Practically, the support itself can either lead to rejection or be a liability to the candidate :

1. The Rejection level (1 Cv out of 10) concentrates all discriminatory mistakes :

• your CV smells (perfume, alcool, tobacco…) • it has stains. • Like the envelope, crumpled or torn. • Spelling mistakes to the address or the name of the

beneficiary. • Graph paper or paper with holes.

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2. The Liability level (1 CV out of 30) refers to all those mistakes which, without being descriminatory, are a liaility to your application : the first impression is negative.

• The paper should be spotless.

• The A4 format is the norm.

• Not too thin (you read through it), not too thick. Generally, a 80 g. thin paper sheet is being used.

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• Not too ostentatious either : no manila or coated paper, no letterhead (except for our notaries and lawyer friends).

• No photocopy : the recipient must be persuaded it is unique even if the application is ranked 58th out of 200.

• When you sign, use an ink pen on the paper CV, whereas for the PDF format, use one ball pen, scan the signature and cut and paste it on the cover letter.

• Avoid the aggressive and various time crossed signature.

• Don’t place the signature on the edge of the sheet. The impression is negative : « I’m afraid, all alone in the middle of this sheet, I need an edge to lean on! »

• Finally, no narcissistic, huge or graphic signature … We know you are the best candidate, but let the recruiter find out …

Our signatures have been following us since we were 12 years old. They evolve with the times. Sometimes they become more emancipated, more creative, more restrained…

Some of us appear to have kept their old signature : always carefully crafted and shaky, the name is calligraphed and the letters are identical to the ones

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dating back from our early schooldays. Why not. But during the interview, you will appear like a rigid person, or mommy’s boy (at best), or the retarded in the group (at worse).

• The envelope must be spotless : white, rectangular, with the stamp ordenly stick.

• Use a regular stamp. No Simpsons, no Superman, or worse (it is now possible), not with your picture on it!

• The address is beyond reproach : you can read it, it meets the international regulations and is without spelling mistakes.

• Don’t forget the return address on the back.

• Use a ball pen and, sorry for the computer literate among you guys, no computer generated labels.

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Ouch, most of all don’t forget to :

Check if your CV and letter of are well in the envelop before you seal it!

3. The PDF CV For the last 20 years, the Internet has been reshaping the world and the way we al communicate. The mail is a rare commodity, the fax is now considered like registered mail, the e-‐mail is the norm. The vast

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majority of companies, have elected this « 2.0 »4 approach/process, synonymous with speed, even with a zero timeline.

Thus, according to one study published in 20075, 80 % of the recruiting agencies prefer to get CVs per email. They can be transfered, stored, printed and evaluated more easily.

This axiom is : without a internet connection or an email address, it is difficult to apply for a job nowadays.

But careful, no Word file (or other office softwares), use the PDF format :

− PDF files cannot be modified/altered. − Your layout is permanent, it won’t be altered by earlier

software versions. − Your documents are compatible with everyoperating system

on the market. For example, most computers work with Word 2003. If you buy a new computer for your job search, your PC will work under Windows Vista and therefore with Word 2007. Some users might have problems to open your documents (CV and letter of motivation).

− Within Word and most word processors, one function allows anyone to access all the versions of the document since its

4 2.0 designates the current WEB. Unlike the original Web, the internet users play a major role now. 2.0 sites offer basic content ; they provide one online framework activated by the users. For example : Flickr, YouTube, FaceBook… and all this waiting for the next trends to happen, such as 3.0 web, telephony and wireless everywhere. 5 Survey by Oasys C June 2007 (available online : www.oasys.fr)

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creation. Practically, the recruiter is able to see your spelling mistakes, the modifications (to hide a gap ?). Worse, surprisingly he has access to your friend’s CV, the one you used to start yours (it was so nice !), you did not change anything regarding the motivations, the hobbies as weel as the first two paragraphs on the letter of motivation (« really well thought of ! »).

Practically :

1. Use Word to draft your CV (or its open source equivalents). 2. Draft your letter of motivation. 3. Save those documents in PDF6 format.

6 For most word processor softwares, the procedure is the following : once the document is drafted, proofread and saved, print it as PDF.

When you click on « Print », a window opens up. Select the « PDF Creator »

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4. Draft the email. − Give it a clear name.

Bad examples :

mycv.doc

application 2009/125

unsollicited application

Bon exemple :

Mickey Mouse CV – position : cartoon character – January 2010

− Determine the right recipient. − The body of the mail will consist of three paragraphs

you will draft in order to introduce yourself. This is not a copy of your letter of motivation. It should be (much) shorter. No argument, just what the mail is

Your document will be automatically printed as PDF file. It works like a picture (in theory, it cannot be altered and it can be read by anyone). If you need to alter it later on, start again from the original file, adjust it, save it and print it again using Acrobat (this software manages all PDF files).

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all about, a go-‐between : pushing the recruiter to open your documents7.

− Join the documents as attachments (CV, letter of motivation and maybe letters of recommandation or any document requested by the recruiter).

− Don’t forget your signature : with all your information.

5. Sending the email : no more than 10 emails at the same time in case you BCC send (blind copy) emails in bulk. There is always the risk to have your internet provider label your emails as spams.

7 This text should meet strict criteria. Book 4 of the Ruthless Method/Way describes those criteria as well as the method to draft those cover emails.

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Ouch, most of all, don’t forget to :

… not CC send (visible copy) if you send emails in bulk, for the qualitative approach. The recipients would learn about the other companies mentionned at the beginning of your email. Not too professional, not gratifying for the company. The message would would read : « dear company, you are 9th out of 10 … »

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For the quantitative approach, use BCC.

4. The CV on CD Very fashionable some years ago, but not so much nowadays. This technical support is not 100% secure. It can be distorted or damaged during transportation.

Moreover, the recuiter needs to back it up on his PC – an additional hassle after the paper and the email versions.

Nevertheless, this support is convenient for candidates who need to provide recruiters with heavy documentation : pictures, movies, 3D mock-‐ups…

Ouch, don’t forget

… to stick a label on the CD (not just on the CD case which can be lost or changed).

You can buy those CD (or DVD) formatted labels easily. You need to specify :

1. Your name, first name, mailling address, phone numbers, e-‐mail address

2. Motive : unsollicited application, proposal of collaboration, application following a vacancy published in the press (don’t forget to mention the references of the vacancy).

3. The date 4. The list with the attached documents

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5. The on-‐line CV It is not an obligation to post, or rather, more accurately, to edit your CV on-‐line. Contrary to what you can read or hear, it is not always appropriate.

To be or not to be on the WEB : it must be the result of careful thinking.

You should ask yourself : the main features are the position itself, the type of company and its field of operations, your personality, are you confortable with the WEB as a communication tool ?

Your presence can have different forms :

− A blog dedicated to your job search : the CV-‐as-‐blog, or, why not, a blog where you would write about your day-‐to-‐day adventures in Job Search Land.

− A page, an application or a dedicated space on social networks

− The CV-‐as-‐a-‐web-‐site with a detailed and appealing account of your backgroung

− Popular Web 2.0 tools : Slideshare, Flickr, Twitter… − For those more experienced among you : to manage your

buzz through tags, comments or shortcuts the Google way.

Practically, imagine weighing scales, with a big « + » on the right pan and a big « -‐ » on the left pan : if the scale leans towards the « + » side, be on the WEB ; if it leans towards the other side, then keep your CV off the WEB.

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Weighing scales 2.0 :

Ouch, don’t forget that

… the paper version of your CV should (more or less) match the on-‐line version the recruiter will have access to !

6. The video CV If you are photogenic, it is a plus.

Go find somebody who can help you shoot a 2-‐minute trailer8, to illustrate your CV.

8 Trailer : an advertisement for a feature film, typically consisting of

brief portions of scenes from that film

Posi7ve Keeping up with the WEB trend

To use and master the communicaoon tools Direct access for recruiters, companies and headhunters

Almost unlimited amount of informaoons, links or references available

To increase (and control) one's digital footprint

Nega7ve Cvs must be consistent (no possibility of duplicate campaigns : two

different posioons or two different fields). Your CV could be duplicated and used by your compeotors.

Your personal data are available to the public. Your current employer may be aware of your intenoon to leave.

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Don’t overlook the quality of this video. Everything must be professional : the framing, the light, the script and the editing. Not so easy, right ? Or, if in sync with the vacancy, play it spontaneous, the phone clip posted on YouTube (linked to your blog or your CV).

Ouch, don’t forget

…if you give the recruiter a link to YouTube or Daily Motion, make sure they can’t find footage featuring other aspects of your life. Your ex may have uploaded his/her « favourite scene » from his/her mobile phone,

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or a childhood friend may have discovered an old VHS movie (your bachelor party) and upload it on YouTube.

Sometimes it is funny ; it can also be really embarrassing.

c) The content Which informations should I communicate on my CV ? How do I structure them ? Which ones should be highlighted? Should I keep some of them for the interview ?

There are no pre-‐formatted answers to those questions. It depends on the situation, on the position you apply for.

Hereafter, I’m giving you some pads. They are meant to associate your personal history with the history of the company, establishing a link between them.

Those links work as references, they allow the recruiter (a) to understand your approach, (b) to consider if you would be a good fit for his company, (c) to assist him (you suggest the questions he should ask you, or even, the answers) and finally (d) to determine your main qualities on the spot and how it can benefit his company.

The links

1. The Company is the Queen 2. Go straight to the point 3. Determine a structure and stick to it 4. Make it easy to remember 5. Spark desire

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6. The length : a never-‐ending debate

1. The Company is the Queen You are not the most interesting person to the recruiter, his company is. He is hunting down the advantage for his company in every lines of your CV.

Therefore, two rules :

− To adjust your CV to each vacancy or company − To talk about your future within the company without focusing

on previous accomplishments.

To adjust yourself conveniently, target companies and don’t take a rough approach : to mail applications in bulk can lead to an unexpected opportunity.

Trap #1 :

To explain how you snapped up a contract to the recruiter’s company …

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Trap #2 :

The job market often requires some legal shortcuts : you don’t mention that to the recruiter. In front of him, you will always be the White Knight.

2. Go straight to the point Details are your enemies. Recruiters always say : some CVs are really tedious ! The essential part is sunk into the amont of informations : you should only communicate what is really important for the recruiter. There are important features in every CV. The recruiter won’t be able to spot them if the CV is 10-‐page long. Moreover, when he gets to the tenth page, he will forget what he read before that.

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Practically:

− Determine the essential features in your CV : your Trojan Horse to be called in for the interview.

− Put a strategy together so the recruiter would only see them. − Draft your CV according to this strategy. − Highlight the head banner and the headlines.

Hammer it. To hell with norms, what is important repeats itself !

Trap #1 :

The sticky spelling mistake is hidden there in the headlines, even after proofreading.

Trap #2 :

Never give a therapist a stick to hit you with, he will use it !

Don’t mention your failures, your deficiencies or your weakness …

3. Determine a structure and stick to it To be clear, you need a structure.

Your CV tells your story.

Like you would do for any tale, you will give this story a structure, a framework : with a beginning, unexpected developments, trials and a happy ending.

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You don’t need to be a great literary talent to be able to give your CV a structure, but you should respect a frame.

The framework

The framework is quite flexible. It is up to you, it is your decision. Three rules to follow though : span, congruence and repetition.

I. The span Social conventions have it that, our civilizations are used to tell things by 3, 5 or 7. We are used to it : candelabrum have 7 branches, religions have 5 Pillars, Snowy White and the 7 Dwarfs, there are 7 days days in a week ; also, trinity,

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the 7 Days of Creation and the 7 Mercenaries. Examples abound ; from religions in the Antiquity to the current communication campaigns, the span is everywhere : everything is staged in 3, 5 or 7 !

Studies showed that we understand, remember and accept any piece of information structured according to this span9 more easily.

Ideally, the structure of your CV and of your letter of motivation should reflect it.

II. The congruence Your application is not unique. It comes under numerous channels. The three most commonly used channels are : the CV, the letter of motivation and the interview. But we could add : the on-‐line CV, the digital footprint, the co-‐optation or the letter of recommandation…

In order to be relevant, your CV must be unique. Congruence means that those channels are homogeneous : they must tell the same story, according to the same structure, all of them.

Practically :

− Your letter of motivation must reflect the structure of your CV.

9 Briefly, 3 is the span for a crisis, 5 for a and 7 for dialogue or explanation.

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− Same thing for the interview. − The same goes for your on-‐line CV, your

presentations or your pages in the social networks. − Should a friend, a family member or a former

colleague wish to introduce you, rehearse with them so they can talk about the three in your career or your three main qualities.

III. The repetition After 65 years, the Little Prince is still right : What is essential is invisible to the eye. You will have to insist for this essential to be visible.

To be fully understood, a structure must be explained and repeated.

This is particularly important during the interview : the recruiter should have the card in his hand, he should understand at all times where you stand in your explanations and where you are taking him to.

Practically :

− Your letter motivation may explain the structure of your CV.

− The banner may well play that part as well.

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− Don’t hesitate to remind the reader where he stands, where he is coming from and where he is heading to.

Trap #1 :

It is always positive when you repeat things, never when you turn it into childplay : never let the recruiter think you take him as stupid person.

Trap #2:

Don’t get obsessed with the span, it is just communication tool. If you already have held four jobs in four different companies, keep them all, don’t sacrifice any of them for span-‐sake !

3. Make it easy to remember Ewhat is the first step of the recruitment process in any company ?

The secretary has torn the envelopes open, unfold the CVs and the letters of motivation as far as the the applications sent by mail are concerned, she has printed the other ones.

Sipping his coffee, the recruiter reads through all of them. He enters an office where a colleague is expecting him to make the first selection. When he says « This one looks interesting », then he has a winner.

You need to make a big impact. You should help the recruiter, he is overwhelmed by 50, maybe 200 CVs : whisper the winning feature to his ears.

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Everything goes : banner, cover letter … but both keywords remain the same : synthesis and structure.

Trap #1 :

Maybe the secretary doesn’t have a stapler, maybe there has been no refill for weeks. When you send your application through the mail, staple your documents ; on the PDF version, mention the page number and your nameand first name at the bottom of the page…the pile of documents might fall on the ground.

Trap #22 :

Some candidates hide their added value.

Why ? To be cheaper, to level with the other candidates, to look older or younger.

Sometimes their strong feature was the root of the problem or of their discharge. I remember a participant to one follow-‐up group : he was meticulous, orderly and honest. Those qualities lead to hostility and eventually to being laid off. He was trying to conceal those qualities although they were actually his strong features.

4. Spark desire Do you remember ? We had agreed to turn our backs on our parents’ standard/vintage job application in order to enter the « wild » world of Marketing.

Marketing is all about desire : some are aware of it, others sense it : to awake it, to keep it alive, to spark it off, and even to devise it : to

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create it from scratch. Back in 1980, nobody was alienated by mobile phones, Pcs or Ipods.

The same goes in the recruitment business : before getting to know you, no interest at all. Once your CV has been sent, Votre CV envoyé, the spark should twinkle : the recruiter should feel like wanting to know more. He should wish to meet you, to listen to you or to stand up for you.

To reach that, here are some techniques :

1. The layout Desire, or more simply curiosity come mostly from what is seen, or not seen, (what is guessed or suggested). This will be examined in paragraphe (d) of this chapiter.

2. The frame, not the detail In your CV, when you submit your professional background, don’t explain your job in detail. Name the company and your position : the recruiter will determine whether that position is a plus for his company. He would want to reinforce or invalidate his evaluation, he would call you in to discuss it. Most candidates tend to speak at great length, giving lots of details regarding their duties, their responsabilities even their accomplishments. They give the recruiter every opportunity to say NO to every lines he is reading. He is not imagining anything, he is making his selection. In the first case, you had sparked desire ; now, you generate rejection.

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In all cases, the CV is just a collection of misunderstandings10, let’s take advantage of that !

3. The cliffhanger Officially, nobody would confess enjoying those soap operas on TV, but unofficially, I know for a fact that all of you will understand what I am about to explain. Tuesday is when your favourite soap is on. I should say, every Tuesday. Therefore, you wait a whole week for the next episode. But TV producers are aware that the audience can be volatile. The following week, their heart can beat for another soap : you need to make sure they keep watching yours. A long time ago, HBO, Canal+ and other TV production companies have come up with a secret weapon : the cliffhanger. At the end of each episode, at the final scene, the audience should be frightened, surprised… What comes next ? The CV as « an endless list » should work as a soap opera, it should come as a surprise to the recruiter, he should reassess the situation ; he should be hanging around in full doubt, curious, with many unanswered questions : he needs to know ! Badly !

« 5 nights to go,and he will be meeting you for an interview ! »

10 My gratitude to Georges Bataille for his paraphrase about communication mishaps.

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Again, what you don’t mention, what you don’t explain, well, that is the puzzling part : you should therefore organize and stage those missing informations.

Trap #1 :

If you put everything on your CV, you won’t have anything to say during the interview.

Trap #2 :

Too many gaps and you are the Invisible Man ! So, don’t over play the cliffhanger trick.

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5. Length : a never-‐ending debate The norm says : two pages, one page if you have just graduated.

Some positions may require longer CVs. Their length depends on various criteria :

− The job descrition of the position you apply for : some of them may require itemized CVs (in this case, recruiters do request them).

− The number of candidates : the more CVs the recruiter receives, the less time he will spend reviewing each of them. Ideally, the CV should be short, concise and should match the job requirements precisely.

− Specific recruitment policies of some companies or institutions : both the EU Commission and public administrations like detailled CVs.

− Recruitment and outplacement firms as well as headhunters like to « know a lot » about you.

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Trap #1 :

The recruiter should never have to think. Everything should be simple and obvious to him, not to you.

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Trap #2:

Don’t behave like a grumpy old man : nobody is interested in what you did back in 1982.

But what about those 15 years of experience ? Digest them ! And at the end of the CV, come up with a detailed version.

d) The layout Crucial : you are not there when the envelope opens up. You are your CV and your cover letter ! Their looks, their style, their physical appearance lay down the ground foundations of your image in the eyes of the recruiter.

The adage was right : you don’t judge a book by its cover… but it does help.

There are three steps in the logic of visual perception : what you see, what you recall, and what you feel. Those steps dupicate those related to a young child when he discovers an object : one morning, the baby is able to see. He can see the object as it is. Then, some weeks later, he is able to recognize it : within months, he will give it a meaning.

Image marketing has been taking advantage of those steps for decades : logo creation, posters, packaging or videoclip.

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Most CVs neglect the layout and give priority to the content : « Why your company ? Why do I apply ? Which idea, which benefit do I offer ? »

Those questions are fundamental, but as relevant as they may be, they only mean something if they get answered.

Before it gets understood, analized and evaluated, your CV should get noticed : it should stand out of the stack.

The following chapters deal with the layout. The layout doesn’t exist by itself, it applies to a specific content. They both should be consistent.

To be seen

• My envelope is not a neutral object: I use a pen. • My CV stands out in the stack of documents. • My le}er gets nooced too.

To be nooced

• In the stack, it gets nooced. • The recruiter recals it. • During the interview, you personify your CV.

To mean something

• There are objecoves: for what ? • There is a logic process : a reason why ? • There is a capital gain for the company.

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Tip Be passionate, ambitious : aim for the moon ! Too many candidates refuse to embark on the spacecraft. Afraid of the risks ? Afraid of the responsibilities?

Somehow it is pure logic : 100 % of the astronautes who stepped on the moon had previously embarked on the spacecraft.

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Chapter 5 : essential codes There are rules in order to draft a CV. So far, codes were left up to everybody’s imagination, common sense or habits.

Job seekers, professionals, job center employees, they all have their ideas, their methods, sometimes efficient, often intuitive.

a) In the street, you always follow the Beauty Queen ; she seldom proves to be Miss IQ11

Practically, the job seeker was getting a different version from every person he/she was talking to. So many different advices, it is hard to come to a decision. Too much uncertainty around the person and the CV : « What should I do ? Who should I trust ? ».

Usually, the most appealing option gets picked up, therefore the worst option. Forget beauty, go for efficiency.

By writing those pages, I wanted to explain the reason behind those seven codes, so that it is clear to everybody that they are not about intuition or beauty. It is the result of years of work, analysis, test and finally daily trial by thousands of job seekers who followed my courses.

b) Cv : the classic codes The seven fundamental codes are synthetically hereafter exposed.

Three important things for me : you should be able to understand how relevant those codes are, their impact on the efficiency of the CV, and

11 Let me emphasize that this cruel quote has been made by a woman …

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you should be able to apply them to your CV. Each of them get an explanation, the « why » and relates to « the wrap up ».

1. Typography Since the early days of the print industry, typography plays a major role. It is the first contact : the transition between what you see and what you understand.

Why ? In these times of crisis, CVs get shorter. Each classified advert generates more and more applications. As a result, the recruiter spends less time reading. Too much material : « it has to be quick ».

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There are ways to shorten a CV without losing one single sentence, without losing on the content. The idea is to make the reading easier. If you can read it quickly, it will seem shorter.

Therefore, the elected typography should be conservative. Some of them appear to be artistic or genuine but the reader is lead to a cognitive effort in order to be able to unscramble them.

The typography should not be too small nor too big : size 8 and even 10 are both difficult to read. The average recruiter may have sight problems.

On the contrary, with a size 13, it seems like you fill the space, as if you would hide a lack of experience or skills. It is a « rookie CV ». It is much better with one well-‐structured page, even one and a half page, than with two « empty » pages. Equally, in order to avoid the dilution effect, line spacing should be minimum.

Text messages changed our lives. They have permanently influenced the spelling, the syntax and what is caaled « the visual layout of the text». These new codes begin to have a big influence on how people draft their CVs.

a) Spelling Be careful, contrary to text messages and emails, the spelling here must be beyond reproach. It takes a few seconds to write and read friendly emails and messages. The language and mostly the spelling are ready-‐made : words get shorter, abreviations are systematic (for example : CU, LOL) and typographical rebus (IluvU for I love

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you). New words suddenly appear and a few letters mean a word, a sentence even a feeling. Blogs, Forums, social networks and text messages : some rules apply to all of them but each channel its own spelling logic. New abreviations and emoticons12 are now accepted in cover mails, and as a fact, they spread in CVs and cover letters. The rule is : parsimony, not too many LOL or ;o) then !

12 The emoticon is the exact word for the smileys in our text messages.

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b) Syntax The 160 letters max of the text message physically shook up the syntax rules. They don’t amount to very much now. The phone industry did not cause the death of the syntax, but it evolved.

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For your CV and your letter of motivation, syntax must be simple but accurate. As for the CV, new sections have appeared since the 90s, especially with what was known as the NICTs (New Information and Communication Technologies) : skills, expertise, motivation… Those sections can be found at the beginning of the CV (it is better) or at the very end (where they are useless !). In those banners, everything goes, or so it seems : words, abreviations, sentences with no verb or mixed with words, technical terms or verbs.There is only one rule here : do impress. Careful, two downfalls to these sections :

(a) They work as a catch-‐all. Therefore they lose their purpose and are counterproductive because from the get-‐go they give the impression that the candidate is disorganized and that he cannot express himself.

(b) They are conventional. As if the candidate did a cut and paste on old quotes or uninspired idiomatic expressions off timeless selfhelp books on recruitment, unreliable WEB sites or old course logs photocopied over and over.

Reminder : motivation is not a quality nor a skill. It should be demonstrated, expressed. It is not something you mention on a CV.

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c) Visual design

Your CV and, most of all, your cover letter should very much look like a phone dial. The basic layout is a long vertical square. Don’t use the sheet on horizontal mode (the landscape mode in Word). As for text messages, that are never « justified », but rather « left-‐aligned », the current trend for letters of motivation and CVs is to make them « left-‐aligned» too, and to limit the « Centered » to the position you apply for. Finally, in text messaging language, the CAPITAL LETTER means shouting or it is a sign of aggression. Don’t use them arbitrarily. Obviously, family names and words at the beginning of a sentence keep their first capital letter. Traditionally, family names are written with capital letters as well. This allow the reader to tell the name from the first name, especially for the cases when some family names are also first names (Mathieu, Frederick, François…) or when names and first names come from a foreign origin. Initials and acronyms13, keep their capital letters all the way.

Important : don’t use any italic, in both your CVs and letters of motivation. Italic imposes a cognitive translation to the reader. You push the recruiter to a neuronal exercise ; for him, it is like going from one language to another.

13 The acronym is the abreviation for a group of words, formed by the first letter(s) of these words.

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The same goes for any change in font size or colour.

The consequence can be extremely negative : in 50% of the cases, the reader doesn’t read the words in italic. The context helps him get the meaning.

Not too many bold characters either : use them to highlight the important things.

Usually it is limited to :

− Last name and first name − Position you apply for − Headlines − either years of occupation, or previous jobs, or name of

companies for the job experience section (up to you) − training courses, diplomas or ranks if releavnt to the applied

for position.

Too often, frames are being used : to highlight headlines, categories or even the picture (« Somebody died ? »).

The rule is so simple : no frame !

The frame shuts up, locks up, giving the CV a square appearance, entangled, almost obsessive. It is not nice, it is inefficient, it gives a negative image of the candidate, psycho-‐rigid, telling « I followed one MS Office training course and I discovered a new function, the one with the frames in Word ! ». Never, it is not professional

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Even for your language skils, don’t use them. Those frames on 50% of the CVs are like the plague for any recruiter out there : each CV comes with its own logic, its very own little neat chart.

Understanding a chart seems easy to you ? During my seminars, I take a stack of 30 CVs – which is not a lot for a recruitment campaign. Reading them, people who told me their charts were fairly easy to understand eventually admit that it is not the case at all (back at the Job Center, « people » tell you the contrary, I am aware of that : do the stack test!).

Finally don’t use any shade, not for words (you can’t read them anymore), not around the pictures (not nice…not nice at all !), no around the frames (I told you, no frame !).

The wrap-‐up ü Only one typography ü Conventional typography : arial, times new roman, calibri… ü Not too small, not too big : i usually propose size 12 ü Left-‐aligned (except for the position you apply for) ü Line space 1,5 (and conventional margin size) ü No arbitrary capital letter ü No colour ü No italic ü Very few bold characters ü No frame ü No shade

Did you know it ? One CV out of 2 makes people smile, one CV out of ten is made fun of.

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2. The picture The picture is the introduction, the opening door to your CV. It is also your first step towards this special job, your ticket to « a normal life ».

« You will pay a special attention to the picture », Master Yoda14 to Luke Skywalker, one afternoon in Dagobah swamp.

Why ? To all recalcitrants, the WEBmakes it compulsory :: the picture is a must. Blog, FaceBook and MMS : we have entered the image era. You should display yourself.

You don’t put your picture, you send a mesage to the recruiter : « I have something to hide » or « I am not good looking, spoiled…no self-‐confidence or darned shy ».

Usualy it is locted on the upper right side.

A more technical paragraph :

You need to know that CVs are cross-‐read, starting by the headline in the middle, then the picture and then, depending on the recruiters, the names and the job experiences.In the first part (job and picture), it is a logograph read ; this all about the image. Your picture is not decrypted, but acquired in a figural way. It is relevant, it gives the CV its first image. Remind yourself : one CV doesn’t hired, a person does !

The logical reading starts with the skills or objectives sections.

14 Master Yoda was the mighest of all Jedi Masters in the Galaxy. Mostly he was one of the Jedis of the Republic who survived the takeover by Dark Vador. Luke Skywalker has been his latest pupil. Should he have drafted one CV, that particular CV could have changed the course of history …

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I told you so : italic is tiresome ! This being said, you may be among the 30% of readers who skipped that paragraph. Learned your lesson ? No italic in the CV, never!

No change in the font size either.

Ok ! Your CV is divided into two parts : the upper part, dedicated to graphic reading, the lower part, to analogic reading. Therefore, when you are in this graphical part, be friendly. Your picture should be a friendly one.

This image, it’s you! This is the one you introduce yourself to the recruiter with. Be positive ! Don’t look depressed, sad or, as it often is the case, scared. Has the flashlight of the photo booth at the Mall frightened you ? Ask a friend with a digital camera to take a picture of you.

Most of all, no loser or has been looks. Let me remind you the axiom at the begining of this book : you are the right person, the one who will get the job. Your picture should reflect exactly that.

One simple rule : no pathos at all ; don’t look sad, supplicant, or tired …

Ideally, your picture should illustrate your riff, that is to say : the first quality you want to impress the recruiter with. But it is not that easy : explain your friend (the one with the right camera) that he is booked for the whole afternoon!

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Just like the CV itself, the picture should not let the recruiter think. Beware the background : the more things behind you, the less visible you appear. Nothing beats the good old immaculate wall.

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And please : no staple, no paperclip. CVs get moved around when the recruiter handles, carries or drops them off. Your photo, stappled (or worse, clipped) to your CV, will get pulled off : it will end up on the floor and then in the garbage, for real.

Can you imagine this ? You, your picture in the garbage ? That’s a good start15 !

Contrary to what most people would think, the picture does not contribute to select or eliminate candidates. Except for some racist or frustrated among them, no respected recruiter will base his choice on your picture.

The picture will help as a reminder of the candidate at the end of the day, it will establish a link between the CV and the candidate the recruiter met in the morning : useful when they meet 20 of them daily. The picture does the trick.

Ideally, on the day of the interview, you keep the same appearance : same suit or dress, same haircut, same make-‐up. When your friend (the one with the camera) shows up, have several outfits ready.

Your picture goes back 5 years ? Why not, but some of your features might have changed, and not for the best.

Sometimes and rightfully so, some people think they start with a handicap. The colour of their skin, their religious beliefs, their disability emerge on the picture – which would lead recruiters to dismiss them.

15 With Word, it is relatively easy to insert a picture into a text. If you are no computer literate, get some help : from the guy at the Job Center ? a former colleague ? your son or your nephew ?

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Some people will advise you not to add your picture in order to raise your chance during the interview, others, like me, make it a rule. Even if this behaviour thrives in these times of economic crisis over-‐suply in candidates.

Besides, the name can tell about religion and colour of skin.

Nevertheless, let’s keep our eyes on the ball : the job seeker is not there to change the world, he wants a job. When the recruiter or the company have racist motives, it is a good thing then when your CV is being rejected. You show up for the interview, and you are dismissed because you are disabled, arab or black, well that is a slap in your face. At the tenth slap, the candidate’s motivation is wearing thing.

Sometimes, the candidate may well decide it is worth the risk. That whould be the case for the Qualitative approach. It is his objective to work in that specific company. He is exposing himself to this setback, but he is prepared16. The same applies for people with disabilities : preparation is the key. Specific processes are available in order to draft the CV and to prepare for the interview. Enquire.

Notes to our men friends :

− As a child, we are told, openly or implicitly, that in order to be a real man, we need to be tough, real tough … But on the picture, avoid posing with eyes of steel, aggressive, accusatory ; don’t give that french lover type languorous stare. Too bad my publisher’s lawyer forbids me to release them…

16 In Volume 3, dedicated to the job interview, we tell you how to deal with those situations.

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I’ve got a spectacular collection of those CV pictures, a cast of monsters, for real.

− Even if your girlfriend/boyfriend likes it, no three-‐day growth beard (the same for the interview).

− If you are bold-‐headed, then be bold-‐headed on the picture too !

Notes for our women friends :

− The more jewelry, the less you’ll get noticed... A jewel emphasizes a feature of your personality. Jewels attract attention on themselves, not on yourself. They captivate, hide, conceal. On interview day, you don’t want to look like a Christmas tree, do you ?

− No sex, no sex at all : no outrageous make-‐up, no plunging neckline, not this pouting grin some young female applicants usually have on these days.

− One last thing : DON’T BEND YOUR HEAD ! I’m shouting my brains out here. On most CVs, women do have that flaw. Ladies, remind yourself that it is a sign of submission. Not conviced ? Have a look at those pictures with your partner : unintentionally, you bend your head towards him/her ! At the interview, no submissive woman, you are there as a professional.

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Finally, don’t pick up a colour picture, or in case you do, test it. It must survive the Quick Draft Print Mode tests and two consecutive photocopies.

The wrap-‐up ü One picture is a must ü Usually in black and white ü In the upper right corner ü Positive attitude ü Riff ü No pathos at all ü No background ü No staple, no paperclip ü Same clothes you will be wearing during the interview ü No sex

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Did you know ? Similarity emphasizes sympathy. Most recruiters acknowledge they have unintentionally favoured candidates from common origins (place

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or country of birth or residence, religious or philosophical beliefs…), or candidates who looked like them or with the same first name.

Equally and despite of that, a common background can lead to competiton, therefore rejection (one cock in the yard is enough).

3. Dates/timeline/chronology The timeline is an essential component on your CV. By reading it, the recruiter should be able to understand the course of your career, the logic behind it, even better.

Too many candidates rush through that step ; CV must have a temporal dimension, a fluent one. Remember the old saying : time is about haste.

Why ? First thing : the CV is written in a time-‐reversed style. You start with the latest date or fact, and you end up with the earliest ones. Normally, your added-‐value thrives on the latest date or fact, this is the starting point of your CV.

Reminder : no italic, no bold. Dates are not important, previous positions, education or diplomas are.

Two categories relate to chronology : job experience and education. Once again, job experiences usually come first.

− Job experience Before each job, start date and end date. Contrary to what is being usually advised, don’t mention any months nor days.

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February 1st, 1998 – March 31st, 2001 becomes 1998-‐2001

As a result, he recuiter is able to read the CV more easily, he can memorize it better. Another advantage : you will be able to hide a small gap of several months.

February 1st, 1998 – March 31st 2001, Beach attendant at Hôtel du bon rivage October 15th, 2001 – July 31st, 2010, Welcome desk attendant Euro Disney becomes 2001–2010, Welcome desk attendant at Euro Disney 1998-‐2001, Beach attendant at Hôtel du bon rivage

Cthis is more obvious indeed, this can avoid having to tell at each interview that the Hotel owner’s daughter dumped up, that his father fired you and you wre feeling depressed for the following six months ! Generally speaking, recruiters focus on gaps rather than on your experience.

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Everybody tell you not to lie in your CV, I prefer to tell you not to arrive naked at the interview. If you do so, you will have to explain your nervous breakdown or justify your cancer to a stranger. Even if it means making a mistake by a year or so, well it’s only a typo. For those with many job experiences and skills, you’d be well advised to set your priorities straight and select what is most relevant to the situation. Don’t mention each and every position you have held. You can send a very detailed CV on request.

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− Education : diplomas and training courses Dates can be mentioned before stating them or rigt after, between brackets. Don’t mention the months, just like for job experiences. Don’t feel forced to list your three university diplomas (you might as well scare the recruiter off, he only gets his college degree !). Don’t list the 15 or 20 different training courses leading to a qualification. The message to the recruiter would be : « this is heavy stuff, a genuine unemployed person », some would even cruelly characterize it as « meat for state-‐sponsored education ».

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The wrap-‐up ü Time-‐reversed chronology ü No month, no date ü Fill some gaps ü State the job experiences ahead of your academic credentials

and training courses ü State the dates, then the job experiences ü Cut to the chase ü Limited use of bold ü No italic

Did you know? Dates are reassuring, they represent the practical part of your CV. They are logical, carefully tought-‐out, without any affect : everything is meant to reassure the recruiter.

Pay special attention to your dates then !

4. Language skills In bilingual countries, this section is on every CV. This is a section in which candidates can be very creative…

Why ? Everybody lies about his/her language skills. So, don’t be modest. If you are fluent bilingual or trilingual, it has to appear just below the position your apply for. It will thus be the second line of your CV.

Programmer/Analyst Bilingual : french -‐ english

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Nevertheless, avoid the classic mistake : the diploma doesn’t count, the skills do. Iof you do mention the diploma or the training course in any foreign language, it means you don’t fully master it, your current level is limited.

Make sure you include a translated version at the end of your CV. Send your first mail (along with your CV) written in the main local language. Who knows ? The person in charge of the recruitment process may not be bilingual …

We mentioned this before, don’t use any matrix, nor chart to present your language skills : a cognitive chart is much more difficut to understand than a few sentences.

A contrario, it may smetimes be advisable not to mention a second language. You have spent your early childhood in Tunisia ? Even if fluency in arabic is asset, it could (unfortunately) prove to be a handicap…

Finally, a language is built on a small nucleus of basic vocabulary : expressions as well intonations you learn very early as a child. When you prepare for an interview in a language different to yours, spend two hours watching cartoons on TV every evening. The result is guaranteed.

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The wrap-‐up 1. Don’t be modest

2. Diplomas or traning courses are useless

3. Propose a translated version of your CV

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4. Bilingual : write it at the beginning of your CV

5. No cahrt, no frame

6. No bilingual CV : one language per CV

Did you know ? For some languages, such as dutch, the accent matters more than grammar. You may be speaking correctly, but with the right accent, you’ll hardly listened to.

For others, such as english or german, grammar matters most.

Finally, for some others, vocabulary is essential, such as french or japanese. In english, it is much better to use limited and simple vocabulary.

5. Hobbies Here comes the much talked about section. Everybody comes up with advice, tips and tricks… Some are in favour, and of course, others are against it.

The candidat sees it as an easy section to fill in, a mere formality.

Nevertheless, you should dedicate time and thinking. The stakes are too high : they are the last trap the candid candidate stumbles upon.

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Why ? The desk stands between them. Silent, the recruiter is thinking. The candidate is not aware of it but the interview went well : the right profile, the requested diplomas, he successfully passed the language assessment tests and even the team likes him.

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Precisely at this moment, the recruiter has decided to ask the so-‐called « coffee break » question. The only objective is to get out of the restricted focus of the interview. The hobbies. Is the candidate relaxed ? The question is not meant to test him. The tone is less formal, more friendly.

We call it the « coffee break question » because it allows the recruiter to imagine how the candidate would fit in the workplace, how he would behave socially : is he comfortable engaging in daily small talks ? … just like he would do at the coffee break.

Let’s not forget that the newly hired person should fit into the life of the company. Seven or eight hours a day. Therefore =, for everybody’s sake, that person shoud be a happy camper.

Back to crime scene : the recruiter looks at the CV. At the bottom of the document, he reads that the candidate is interested in literature. He raises his eyes and candidly asks : « I haven’t a chance to read the latest book from Ken Follet yet. Is it as good as the previous ones ? »

The room is dead calm during a few seconds : the candidate doesn’t even know who Ken Follet is. He has never heard about Ian Rankin, nor about the latest Pulitzer Prize.

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This case is no exception. Many candidates fall over the hobbies section during the interview. Righ there, the recruiter is quickly connecting the dots : « he lied about his CV, the whole CV is now under suspicion ». Trust is lost, suspicion is everywhere and somebody else gets the job.

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Don’t you ever lie ! Don’t mention the most common hobbies : gardening, literature, cooking, travel or bicycle. By reading CVs, one could tell that the population of Northern Europe likes sports, is cooking, travelling and reading a lot !

List all your hobbies first, then select the ones most relevant to the job, the ones which add value to your CV. Don’t be eccentric at all costs.

Once your made up your mind about the list (careful : no more than threee), do your homework, research them so you’ll be able to answer questions.

Last precaution, some hobbies have bad press : political activism, hunting, sewing (for men), boxing (for women)…

The wrap-‐up 1. Be relevant (it is more about relevance than about imagination

or eccentricity).

2. The « coffee break question » is all about the hobbies : it is the « make or break » question.

3. Brush up on your hobbies.

4. Don’t mention any hobby which would put you in trouble

Did you know ? One CV out of 2 never reaches the right person’s desk : you’d better make sure who the right recipient is and whether the mail has reached him or not.

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Call him to make sure (in front of your PC, ready to email another copy).

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6. More details You get the picture : I don’t really favour eccentricity. Nevertheless, the candidate can differentiate himself with a few ideas without being too simplistic.

Why ? Often, this eccentricity makes people smile ; not everybody can be odd and tasteful altogether.

No pink-‐coloured paper, no perfumed CV, no poem at the beginning …

Each eccentricity must be self-‐explanatory as it requires an effort from the reader : he needs to read AND understand. It should be relevant to the company, its business field or to position the candidate applies for.

Some details may be added ; others shouldn’t.

1. Non-‐profit sector, NGOs : yes 2. Politics : no 3. Religious beliefs : usually not advised 4. Allergy, medical or psychopathological condition : no

(except for security or health reasons) 5. Car and driving license : no (from 25 years old onwards, it

goes without saying !) 6. Recommandation letters : only if requested 7. Previously self-‐employed or managing own company:

depending on the position or the company 8. Regions or countries you would agree to be sent : if the job

requires frequent travels 9. Last gross salary : yes 10. Salary expectations : careful, the salary is negotiable.

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Salary : some tips worth of gold:

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ü Research: how much money people your age, with similar education and job experience are making ? It is so easy to go online or to call a couple of friends.

ü Be aware of your financial needs before signing : simply, list them all : simplement, faites-‐en la liste : car installments, rent, food, clothes and hobbies … The amount corresponds to your lower limit.

ü Come up with a consistent proposition, negotiate a gross amount

ü Start the negotiations with a higher amount : you lose prestige if you start with a low salary. Just like the recruiter, we don’t trust what is cheap. Expensive is good. Cheap means that the quality is not as good. The idea is to convince the recruiter you are an expensive item and that he needs to offer the right money !

ü Prepare your arguments so you can explain during the interview the reason why you lower your expectations : fringe benefits like a car, a phone and meals … or, more simply, the distance from your house and mostly the genuine interest for the job or the business field.

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Did you know ? Find an ambassador to drop off your CV ! Nothing beats that !

Activate your network !

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7. Categories Informations on a CV follow a certain structure.

You’ll find hereafter the conventional structure, as of today.

In this last part, I come back to points I have already explained in this book, adding some more details.

Why ? Categories are presented one by one, each of them with its own set of rules, codes and dedicated use.

But don’t forget to consider the CV as a whole. It should be meant and drafted as something homogenous, logical and balanced.

A. Personal informations Basically, a CV is being drafted according to the same rules you would a letter. In the upper left corner : your name and first name. If you are an important person, start with your first name. Usually, it comes after the name. The first name in normal typograpy, the name in capital letters, both in bold.

Below that, your email address, phone number, fax and mailing address. Some add they birthdate.

Don’t mention your place of birth : it doen’t bring anything, and might even emphasize ethnic or religious singularities. Of course, particularities shouldn’t be denied, but, not to the extent of writing them on top of your CV…

It is also common practice to add informations regarding the driving license or the marital status.

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Practically : − From 25 years old onwards, you are supposed to know how to

drive a car and even to have your own car ; − As military service is not compulsory, this information doesn’t

add value to your CV (except in the safekeeping or security business, or some positions related to the management of underqualified-‐teams) ;

− Finally, your marital status is nobody’s business. For a woman or man, single means available ;

− The same goes for the number of kids, it should’t be on your CV.

Should you really wish to add those informations, confine them in the last category, « miscellaneous », don’t give them a major relevance by putting them at the top of your CV. Some tips: − No icons : so small phone, no flag.

− Should I write « curriculum vitae » ? I say it is redundant (we all can

see it is a CV !), but if you do want to write it as such, or if the guy at the Job Center advises you to do so, be discreet. Some would write it at the upper-‐left corner, but most would write it right in the middle.

− If you are a doctor or an engineer, write your title before or after

your name (are your narcissistic or not ?). But no obligation.

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− Don’t include any quote. Not at the beginning or at the end of your CV or leter of motivation. Thanks but no thanks!

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B. The picture

Insert your picture in the upper-‐right corner, facing your personal informations. Usually both spaces are similar : same horizontal alignment, same size, equally left-‐centered for your informations and right-‐centered for your picture.

This symmetry is importante : your CV epitomizes your qualities, or your flaws. An ill-‐balanced CV (the picture is too big or unconveniently located on the page) can communicate an impression of imbalance to the reader, it will contaminate your image in the eyes of the recruiter. More tips : − One of the keys to a successful picture lies in the quality of the

photographer. He boosts your self-‐confidence, he can tightly crop the frame so he can highlight the pertinent detail.

− Focus on the way you stare. It is crucial. It shows your personality, your motivation and it draws attention. Don’t use any make-‐up in order to enhance your expression. Two efficient tips : (a) force yourself to stare intensely at the photographer, try to get his intention, try to convince him ; (b) look at the ground, and right before he takes the picture, raise your eyes !

− Of course, smile is an advantage. But most smiling pictures are pathetic : it is a forced smile. Squeaky, sometimes sad, often undecided.

− Don’t show your teeth : for men, it is sign of aggressiveness, and for women it has a sexual connotation (most of all, don’t bite your lower lip).

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− Portrait is the norm and the norm is good ; but try to go the extra mile, dare something else : zoom out (show your chest, your hands …), have a picture with a tool you use at work …

− No black frame around your picture. No way. Some think it is serious ; personaly I see a dead man.

Tips to the pros :

Photographers can be touchy. I will then carefully chose my words so I won’t appear like I teach them something about the job. In fact, I don’t know much about photography. First of all, pick your zoom very carefully. Sometimes it can squash a face. If too powerful, the picture has no volume, no depth. You lose all expressiveness : you don’t communicate any feeling, and you don’t want that for the picture on your CV. Play with the light or the angle, or try with a wide angle (17 mm). The wide angle shot gives you a more open face : its central part is a little bigger, it sort of bulges out. The face seems more energetic, the gaze deeper. But beware of the cartoon effect. The side view reveals a more authentic graphical aspect, but it can be sometimes viewed as arrogant. The ¾ pose is placing the candidate into an emotional setup ; depending on the angle of the shot, he/she will look like a dreamer,

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a visionary … or absent (more informations can be found in books related to facial codes in NLP17). When you stare at an object or at somebody off frame, it create an atmosphere. It is an advantage but it is seldom used because as it can be viewed as pretentious, just like for the side view. For some jobs, depending on the field, photomontages are a valid option. The effect is guaranteed. Applicants love backgrounds : convince them otherwise, it clouds the message. If they do insist, the eyes should be your focus point ; the background will be fuzzy (so the face will stand out). Dear photographers, avoid small lenses.

C. The central headline

The name and the picture should not be center-‐aligned : too narcisstic. You are not important, the solution you provide the company with is. Center-‐aligned then : the role or the position you apply for: developer/analyst, graphic designer, drawing teacher…

It should be underligned, or even beter, it should be written with a bigger font. Practically, if you use a size 12 font, then pick up size18. If you have multi-‐language skills, use size 12.

17 NLP : Neuro-‐Linguistic Programming

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D. The header banner

Below the main headline, there comes the header banner. There are different kinds of banner : the essential skills, the Goodwills, the main qualities, the objectives and the motivations.

In less than 10 years, this banner has become an essential component to any CV. At the beginning, it was an original idea being activated in order to highlight one specific feature : a quality, a technical skill or the objectives of the candidate. Nowadays, it has become a trash can filled with platitudes.

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Let’s put some order in there. Let’s begin with two axioms. An axiom is a rule you would not even think to oppose !

1. One header banner and only one ! 2. Its objective : to point out « the important element on your

CV », the one the recruiter expects or the one you want him to remember.

Two other rules, two tips :

First, don’t mention qualities which are not real qualities. Being honest and on time, well, these are no qualities ! These are prerequisite : we are all supposed to be honest individuals and to arrive at work on time. A candidate who tells me he/she is honest sounds like my car mechanic … What is he/she hidding ?

Second, don’t cut and paste the conventional tips off self-‐help books or blogs.

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GRRR 4 : Manque un « s » ! BARK #8 : never start with « I » !

Not in the letter, not in the CV !

CV

BARK #7 : name the company !

My objectives I would like to ofer my motivation to the company. I like to work in a versatile environnement and I blossom working within a team.

The « self-‐help book » effect can kill your CV. Those words, those conventional spoon-‐fed sentences are too « perfect ». Nothing spontaneous in there.

Ok, you get it : I don’t like it, it sounds so fake, so « cut and paste », so « learned by heart ». Never forget that truth matters more than perfection. When you speak about your objectives, be yourself.

I would have prefered a more enthusiastic tone. The motivation or objectives banners should personify the candidate, you should almost hear him/her speak through them.

Also choose your words carefully : make sure you actually understand their true meaning.

BARK : not underlined, and most of all, not bold and underlined BARK #2 : no frame !

BARK 3 : too much space !

BARK 5 : no justification ! BARK #6 : not in italic !

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Another classic moment during the interview, questions like :

How would you define change ?

What do you mean by « professionnal empathy » ?

Your letter of motivation indicates that you tend to procrastinate18a lot ?

Also, you should use the kind of vocabulary and syntax that match your level of education or the one in your region.

Why do you apply for a job at Bristol Airport ?

What do I like in the aviation industry ? The people working there, the permanent activity and the travels : the suitcases and the smiles of the families who travel to the other side of the globe. The holiday feeling while you are working.

Figure 3 : Caroline will get the job.

Legend : in some situations, to use spoken language can be very promising. In this case, the picture shows how solar, friendly and cheerful a person Caroline is. Reading this, the recruiter is able to imagine Caroline talking. He can sense her tone, her personality and this little hint of « dynamic emotion » called Motivation !

18 Bad luck for the candidate : procrastination is a nasty shortcoming, not a quality. According to Wikipedia, procrastination is a behavior which is characterized by the deferment of actions or tasks to a later time. Psychologists often cite procrastination as a mechanism for coping with the anxiety associated with starting or completing any task or decision. We all procrastinate to a certain extent but it is a real handicap in any job related situation or in the personal life.

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Hereafter is a list of the essential header banners. But you are free to come up with something new. As for any ad, the sole objective is to sell : in this case, to market yourself efficiently to the recruiter. It doesn’t matter how you do it, the key is to leave your mark on people’s minds.

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− Essential skills In the IT industry, it is all about the technical skills. Equally, other trades also require technical skills as prerequisite. It is the first screening step. Recruiting professionnals sometimes use the GO-‐NO GO idiom : you don’t have those skills, it all stops there. That’s why they should appear at the very beginning of the CV. As check-‐lists, without explanation : no date, no detail. The 2009 trend tends to duplicate this banner at the top of the letter of motivation as well. It doesn’t look too nice but it is a tremendous help to companies and recruiting agencies. There are more and more CVs around. Before they even get looked at, te first screening is based on those on those requirements. As a candidate, by clearly pointing out those skills, you make sure they will be considered and understood.

− Goodwills In this case, they refer to any other quality which would complement your skills and technical accomplishments such as immaterial and interpersonal qualities. Interpersonal qualities are key :

-‐ Team management, -‐ Ability to listen to patients, -‐ Ability to handle stressful clients,

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-‐ The understanding of foreign cultures or religions…

For certain jobs, those skills are crucial, more than any other technical skills (a training session will bring you up to speed). Therefore, they should appear on the header banner, and, important point, they should be included in your presentation on the letter of motivation. The most commonly used headlines : skills, main qualities and motivations. My motivations

To find a working environment where my quiet personality and my ability to handle crisis situations and deal with difficult personalities can serve a cause, a higher purpose.

Figure 4 : John wants to save the World

Legend : John doesn’t know it yet but the beginning of his CV has reached its target. After proper vaccination, he will work overseas for a big ONG.

− Main qualities Usually the candidate is advised to write whatever he can think of.

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This is the first thing I cross out when reading CVs. It is a catch-‐all : sentences next to adjectives, titles of training sessions, sometimes language skills, availability (never mention that you are available straightaway), even salary expectations. Forget that, it has nothing to do here. Available ? Yes or no ? Why should you not mention whether you are available or not ? Let’s cut to the chase : (a) it would be like insisting on your status as an unemployed person who sits around all day ; (b) availability makes you cheaper, you are asking for something (almost begging) and as such you are losing value and you are in a bad postion to negociate anything.

− The objectives The candidate can take advantage of this opening in order to communicate his objectives to the recruiter. Young graduates or older people looking for a new challenge can find the banner very helpful : it offers another perspective to their CV. The explanations can add meaning to a CV which might be either too short or too long.

− The motivations The candidate explains how the job, the field or the company are a motivation to him. I value that, if it is well done and efficient. But stay away from cliches : no ready-‐made arguments off « self-‐help books ».

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It is equally important to understand that these motivations should generate the connexion between the candidate and his future job. This connexion is promising, it simply tells the recruiter why you apply for the job and how the company will benefit from your commitment. So never mix motivation with a narcisstic presentation where the candidate is only talking about himself. The good example : My motivations I’d like to join the company where my father and my oncle are already working, a company I’m familiar with since my early childhood days. I would like to offer the new perspectives my education taught me. The bad example : My motivations My academic background has provided me with the most efficient team and change management skills. I’d like a job where I could apply these new methods in a company where I could move up the ladder. I am a man of challenges and responsabilities.

E. The professional background I like the way the person is communicating his/her experience in the good example. The usual check-‐list with dates, jobs, positions and company names should be avoided.

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At best, you should tell a story : all your job experiences end-‐to-‐end tell a story, your story. You are the result of all these steps, you have matured, they have built you up, they allowed you to gain qualities and skills. This is what you sell to the recuiter : you sell that story to him (not the check-‐list !).

This storytelling is crucial during the interview.

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For the CV, follow these three rules :

-‐ Time-‐reversed chronology (see below) -‐ Be relevant rather than exhaustive. Not too many details (see

below) -‐ Bold typography should be limited to the companies or the

jobs you had.

F. Studies and training courses As previously mentionned, it is not an obligation to write all of them. They will be also be presented in a time-‐reversed order. Should be included : rank or diploma, school or university, graduation year, city. Internship souldn’t be included, except for young graduates or in case the internship has been completed abroad.

Some candidates use this section to explain how relevant these courses and studies to the job.

G. Publications Essential for some added value professions, publications should be mentionned right after the candidate’s studies.

Some would include copies of articles or books.

Ideally, take a low-‐key approach : I would then advise to include links to websites where the information is available.

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Anyway, bring one book or a copy of your publications at the interview.

Do your homework : has your recruiter drafted, published or edited anything ?

Praise your recruiter’s ego. Do it lightly. This might be the winning touch.

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H. Language skills

As we mentionned earlier, don’t use any frame nor chart, don’t specify the diploma or the course, just state your level of fluency.

Let’s remember that you shouldn’t be modest here, everybody lies in this case anyway.

Once you sent the CV, you could be contacted by phone the very next day. Don’t be surprised, your language skills will be put to the test.

Be prepared, and why not, have an ace up your sleeve : an index card with technical vocabulary or specific idioms.

I. Computer skills If those skills are not included in the header banner, they should be mentionned at the end of the CV.

The candidate may indicate the softwares he masters as well as his certifications.

Don’t mention MS Office and Explorer when these software are requested as prerequisite.

J. Miscellaneous This section includes the basic informations about the candidate (if not previously included on the CV) :

− Age or date of birth, not the place of birth

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− Marital status : it’s ok if you are married, but don’t mention it if you are single.

To be married is considered as a quality, if you are single, you may be viewed as an unstable or available individual (therefore as a potential disruptive person)

Avoid presenting yourself as divorced or in a relation, official or not … : stereotypes and prejudices are sticky.

− Number of children : kids are considered as handicaps by recruiters. The candidate is less available, he has « family obligations ». Ideally, this can be turned as an advantage.

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Bad example :

Miscellaneous: 45 years Divorced, alternate custody of my 3 children.

Good example :

Complementary informations Year of birth : 64

Sagittarius and Dragon in chinese astrology Father of 3 children

Ability to handle conflicts and to reach compromise

− Military rank : only when it is an added value to the job : security, housekeeping, safekeeping or a job in logistics or in organization development.

− The type of driving licence (except for young graduates or for jobs where a special licence is requested).

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The wrap-‐up : the road book 1. Upper-‐left corner : your personal informations 2. Upper-‐right corner : your picture. 3. In the middle : the job or position you apply for 4. The header banner (only one !) 5. The professional background 6. Studies and training courses

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7. Publications 8. Language skills 9. Computer skills 10. Hobbies 11. Miscellaneous

Did you know ? It is very difficult to write a CV from scratch, it is human. But it is critical that you do it : trends come and go, codes evolve, your story too.

If you experience problems writing your CV, well you are the only person to blame. You are a tough element to master, let alone to explain.

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The tip It is not an easy task to draft your CV. For the candidate, this document is about « my life, me, my setbacks and my regrets … »

It is also a synonym for failure. While summarizing your career, it is pointing out your mistakes, like a mirror would do.

During the interview, candidates are afraid of it. As if the recruiter would discover the lie, the weakness or the missing argument.

Your CV is not an exam sheet you would hand out to the professor ! It is your friend ; you should consider it as a friend : an ally, something to lean on, or a life-‐belt.

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Chapter 6 : drafting your CV step by step As such, drafting your CV comes at the beginning of Week #2.

a) My CV leaves trails Recruiters keep lots of CVs, just in case…So you’d be well advised to dedicate quality time into writing your CV in a professional manner.

Preparaoon

Analysis

Draping

Mailing

Create your time capsule : « I am the best ! »

Draft your Dream Team : « I am not alone ! »

The game plan : dates and objectives

The Review : « Where do I come from ? Where am I going to ? »

Research : books, websites and advices

Draft your curriculum vitae

Draft your cover letters lettres

Plan your mail and follow-‐up (adjustment to your CV and letter)

Week #1

Week #2

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Don’t leave behind any sketchy and badly written CVs, full of mistakes and « half-‐truths » : they could come back to haunt you, especially in our digital world.

If it is too late for that (damn, damn…), I would advise you to operate a drastic change in the presentation. Recruiter might not establish a link with your previous CVs.

b) The Brutal Way : the 10 steps Our method introduces 10 steps to drafting your CV. To start with, here are three preliminary actions to be carried out :

Preliminaries :

a. Garbage can and basket

b. Review and choice

c. Documentation, research

1. The oral test

2. Everything on one single page

3. My riff as the Red Lead

4. Client-‐related arguments

5. Characteristic features

6. Then differentiate yourself

7. The seven essential codes

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8. Classic ou Eccentric

9. The two tests

10. Printer, fax and copymachine

During the training sessions, participants must follow those steps very closely. Each one of them is important. They all matter.

The job seeker on his own always considers that drafting his/her CV is a 2-‐hour task, merely updating the last version of it.

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It’s wrong : drafting your CV can prove to be a severe test. Nothing comes easy : you should invest time and resources, face the course of your life with your successes and setbacks. This is a real job, it takes method and organization.

Preliminary # 1 : Garbage can and Trash Can First of all, get rid of the latest version. Tear it up and throw it in the garbage can. On your computer, move it to the Trash Can. Start from scratch : this is the best way to start all over again. Re-‐write your story, find a meaningful patter within the course of your professional life.

Out of experience, I am aware that this is the most crucial moment, mental block may come up.

I repeat, the worse you can do is to do it the « Ctrl C-‐ Ctrl V » way, the Cut&Paste solution.

There is only one solution in order to avoid that : drop your old CVs.

End of Preliminary #1 : You got rid of all your old CVs. The trap : To work on a previous version or to use a CV from a colleague or a « really cool » friend.

Preliminary # 2 : Review and choice You should perform your Assessment Review before drafting the CV.

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This process can open many doors : new posibilities, new directions, new projects for business ventures… But, at this stage, the candidate has to make a decision : one or several targets, and plan accordingly one or more distinctive campaigns.

The candidate may also decide to target one specific business area.

End of Preliminary #2 : On one single sheet of paper : one or two jobs (and sometimes a specific business area) The trap : To take your last job back without a thorough analysis or to accept the first proposition coming your way.

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Preliminary # 3 : Research No problem for this one : you bought the right book !

Nevertheless, do your homewok and research the current trends in recruitment in your business area.

End of Preliminary #3 : You now own the necessary methodological tools in order to draft your CV. The trap : To forget some basic rules and listen to an adviser or one « know-‐it-‐all » friend.

Step #1 : The oral test Find a friend. Or better, draft your Dream Team, say five persons, as we mentionned in Chapter 1.

You will tell him/her/them all about your professional life. 7 minutes tops.

Practically, on your desk, there is your watch (or your phone) and in front of you, your « partner » listens and writes your keywords.

After these seven minutes, he should be able to digest your professional life. If he cannot make it in a structured way, start the exercise all over again.

After listening to you, he/she/they will summarize your CV : it should come down to a few stages. The result of this will be your starting point. Your counterpart(s) has/have some distance. He/she/they is/are

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not caught up in the small details of your daily life : he/she/they can see which are its essential components.

What is most interesting, (on top of the rehearsal for the job interview), is that the backbone of your CV is not what you tell anymore but what somebody else will remember of it.

End of Step #1 : A sheet of paper with the main stages of your life (keywords only). The trap : To confuse memories, emotions or resentments with advantages for your employer : the key points of your career are only meant as future benefits for him.

Stap #2 : Everything on one single sheet page At last, you get to write a CV « for real ». Its backbone will consist of your friends’notes.

Respect the maximum length : one single page (no font reduction to size 9 in order to write more !).

The page is not processed : no layout.

End of Step #2 : A one-‐page-‐long rough CV. The trap : To start the layout or to put too many details.

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Step # 3 : My riff as the Red Lead This page should start to look more like you now. To do so, we will decide which feature of your personality you want the recruiter to remember (this is called the riff).

Creative, disciplined, friendly, energetic, ability to show empathy … pick one up.

This feature, your riff, will literally epitomize your CV : everything will relate to it, the sections, the colours or the shades of gray, the vocabulary and the syntax…

End of Step #3 : A reprocessed CV, with its final shape and structure. The content has been modified according to the riff as well. The trap : To pick up a feature based on the client expectations, rather than on your skills.

Step #4 : Client-‐related arguments Now you fill the CV with arguments, details or links the recruiter can relate to. These additions are designed especially for the client : the company that will maybe hire you.

Let’s put it this way : you are on Page 1, and what is interesting to the recruiter is on Page 2.

End of Step #4 : A two-‐page CV (maybe more)

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The trap : To underestimate the client’s needs, expectations or preferences. A good CV is equally balanced between supply (your skills) and demand (what the company needs).

Step # 5 : Characteristic features Never forget that : before you become superior to other people, you should be like anybody.

Each job, each business field comes with its own set of referents.

Characteristic features refer to the elements requested and expected by the recruiter or the employer. In other words, they refer to all stereotypes related to your job, your diploma or your business field.

-‐ Diploma : an engineer is supposed to be a thoughtful, emotionally-‐stable and logical person ; a social worker : a friendly and tolerant person with the ability to demonstrate empathy ; a graphic designer : a creative and innovative person…

-‐ Position : a secretary : a communating and extravert person ; a developer : a disciplined person ; a mailman : a friendly and smiling person …

-‐ Business field : in the IT sector, people are young in spirit, with a good sense of humor, and even second-‐degree humor ; in

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the logistics business, people are forthright, straightforward and working hard …

These characteristic features are restrictive, sometimes caricatural. But as for any stereotype, they give our knowledge a structure. In other words, they work as previously filled in index card.

Practically :

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1. Make a list of the expected qualities related to your diploma, your job and your business field.

2. Illustrate these qualities in the layout and in the content of your CV.

3. If necessary, include those qualities in your header banner. 4. If necessary, match your qualities with the layout and the

content of your letter of motivation.

End of Step #5 :

Your CV has been modified to match these expectations, these characteristic features.

The trap :

A too straightforward approach make for a dull CV. These characteristic features should be understated : suggested not explained.

Step # 6 : Then differentiate yourself

Once the recruiter is reassured (you definitely have the « basic features » for the job), you should differentiate yourself. You should bring something else to the table, so you can actually be ahead of the rest of candidates.

To do so, you should not identify the qualities anymore, but the most common flaws in your line of work. This is where you can add value to the situation.

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You are a matured, emotionally-‐stable logical person, just like any other engineer, but, on top of all that, you are a creative individual.

You are a disciplined person, just like any other accountant, but also, you are a talkative and open-‐minded individual.

You should be able to persuade the recruiter he can have your cake and eat it.

Practically :

1. Make a list with the acknowledged flaws in your line of work 2. Reverse them : you have the one uncommon quality ! 3. Illustrate these qualities in the layout and in the content of

your CV. 4. If necessary, include those qualities in your header banner. 5. If necessary, match your qualities with the layout and the

content of your letter of motivation.

End of Step #6 : La première partie de la rédaction est terminée. The trap : Just one quality is enough. More than two qualities, it sounds fake, it is sounds like « too good to be true ». Step # 7 : The seven essential codes Till now, you were into the analysis, reflexive and draft modes. Now you should conform the CV with the norms.

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Codes are essential : they put the recruiter at ease (you answer his expectations), they provide all CVs with a common ground (it can easily be compared), they make for an easier read (it provides the recruiter with a deja-‐vu aspect) and finally, they have been subjects to tests and analysis. These codes work as solutions to deficiencies or dysfunctions.

This is a disconcerting step : the layout and the content of your CV will be radically transformed.

End of Step #7 : Your CV is set. The trap : Beware of the so-‐called experts at the Job Center. Beware of those « knowledgeable » associations. Refer to trustworthy sources, then adjust your CV to comply to these codes. Your CV will be just like you : unique.

Step # 8 : Classic or Eccentric Your CV is done. According to the essential codes : efficient but conventional.

Now you are free to give it a more eccentric aspect so it will stand out.

The main criteria are :

-‐ The business field (fashion, graphic design…) -‐ The trade (fashion designer, interior decorator…) -‐ The personality of the candidate (engineer…but an innovating

engineer !) -‐ The company you apply for (Apple, Google…)

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Originality is not an easy concept. It is about creativity, taste, boldness and methodology.

Practically, there are many ways to convey or communicate its difference.

Les principaux modes de déclinaison sont :

-‐ The support -‐ The colours -‐ The graphic design -‐ The layout -‐ The typography -‐ The object or the composition of the picture -‐ Sections and informations to be included -‐ The attachments -‐ The mailing option -‐ The follow-‐up

End of Step # 8 :

It depends on your decison, your CV remains conventional or has turned into an eccentric one.

The trap :

To be eccentric before having a conventional CV. To decide for an atypical framework or content would be a mistake.

An eccentric CV starts from a conventional CV. So it remains consistent with its pertinence, its structure and its content.

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Step # 9 : Two tests That’s it ! You have your CV. A rock solid CV.

It is done but not entirely : it has to pass the rookie test and the expert test.

Note : le béton a deux points faibles peu connus qui sont, pour reprendre l’expression populaire, les défauts de ses qualités : d’une part, s’il est inattaquable, il apparaît aussi rigide et impénétrable ; d’autre part, sa résistance ne connaît quasiment aucune limite en compréhension mais, en traction, elle est nulle.

L’objectif serait de doter votre CV d’un béton qui n’ait pas ces défauts et en garderait toutes les qualités : inattaquable et résistant à la pression. Il va falloir se débarrasser de l’impénétrable, du rigide et de cette sensibilité à la traction.

Le test du novice a pour objectif d’écarter les CV impénétrables ou rigides. Celui de l’expert, de repousser ceux qui seraient trop faibles à la traction.

-‐ The rookie test : Take your CV with you and meet your butcher, your baker or your florist :

« I need a favour. I am applying for a job and I would like to make sure that a total stranger to my field of expertise is able to understand my CV. Can you please read it ? »

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Why would you need a John Doe to read your CV ? Somedoby who doesn’t know anything about your trade, like your baker ? He/she is the young person in charge of HR who will meet you at the first interview. This test will make sure he/she will understand your CV. The same goes for temp work consultants, executive assistants or else employees in charge of these first steps in the recruitment process.

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-‐ The expert test : The same CV must be credible when somebody with the same level of skills reads it. That person could be your next boss, colleague or an external expert. These guys will fiddle with your CV inside out to test it.

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End of Step #9 : Your CV is validated. The trap : The advice from your husband or wife, he/she doesn’t know anything on the subject but he/she is appreciative and is impressed by you.

Step #10 : Printer, fax and copy machine Last step : the copy test. All the books advise it, but in reality, very few candidates do it.

Practically:

1. Select the « black and white draft » quality option on your printer and print your CV.

2. Select the Quick Print option (with colours) and print your CV. 3. Photocopy both CVs. 4. Fax them.

The quality of these copies must be beyond reproach ! Your CVs will be equally readable as the first one. You will be equally recognized on the duplicated picture.

End of step #10: Your CV is ready. The trap :

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The margin is too small. There is the risk of having the page numbers or the informations on top the pages disappear with the copymachine or the fax.

Tip Be assertive : if you can make it during the interview, you will be able to make it during any meeting.

Don’t be afraid to talk about the salary and the compensation package : if you are able to successfully negotiate your situation during the interview, then you will be able to do it with clients.

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A short conclusion The CV I’ve always dreamed about seems trivial. It isn’t much to look at, would a casual reader say. It is simple, clear and… malicious ; it gently whispers to the recruiter’s ears : I am the right one. Better than technical advices and DIY tips, the Ruthless/Brutal Way is an motivational machine.

If there would be a conclusion, it would be electric : packed with energy, rage and the will to succeed.

Do clench your fists and get to work : this time, it’s your turn!

Last tip for the road Up to this point, there has been more than two hundred pages filled with certainties, tips, tricks or codes. And now, you should turn the page.

You are going to write the next chapter : you’re on…

It is up to you : a real CV, a CV just like you.

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To Sylvie, my snow ball

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Thanks to our ball boys and ball girls :

Maxi wanted to become a chemist or an inventor, a job which would provide a big house to him and his girlfriend.

Mark wanted to be famous and to be on TV.

Matthew thinks the world should be a better place, with more justice, but he doesn’t know where to fit. He doesn’t know he is being pictured as smaller than Mark …

Lola will be an accountant, just like her mum, but she wants to do it all her way, she wants to invent things, she wants to come up with new ideas, just like her dad.

Cv the marketing way François Meuleman

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