Today’s culture is increasingly digital, and with a plethora of tech savvy young workers who lack the years of experience of older (though not necessarily old) workers, it’s important and even necessary for success to stand out from the crowd in a highly competitive job market. Workers are no longer staying with one company for their entire careers. Today an average person will change careers three to four times in his/her life. With this type of job mobility, a new way to represent yourself to a potential employer may be in order. Traditional resumes are great at showcasing large blocks of experience, which many, highly talented workers—who are no less qualified—may lack. Non-traditional resumes offer such job seekers a chance to show what they can do in the absence of accomplishments under the belt.
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Blogger and entrepreneur Sam McRoberts posted an interesting article on his blog, Samantics proclaiming the end of the reign of the traditional resume (and interview). He compares the average resume to a work of creative fiction, which cannot accurately portray an individual or their skills, only what they have accomplished in the past, not—as stated above—what they are capable of doing now. Quickly formed first impressions, McRoberts states, are key to accepting or rejecting someone, whether through resume or interview. Of course humans have been making and getting first impressions from our very beginnings and they are indeed often powerful influences, but how much of what McRoberts discusses is a symptom of today’s fast paced, shrinking world of constant connection which is tied together by an ever changing internet and constantly evolving, pervasive social media?
Consider the ease of applying for a myriad of jobs today in a relatively short amount of time. It adds up to an incredible number of resumes for employers to check. If a pair of human eyes manages to see a particular resume, it’s not going to have much time to make an impression, arguably less than in times past. Is it possible that tried and true methods of resume writing may simply not make sense in a digital information age? Consider last month’s post which featured some unique infographic resumes; if one of these lands on a hiring managers desk it’s sure to get noticed. It should be noted, however, that such highly visual resumes are not for everyone. If your field involves a high level of creativity then you should definitely feel free to experiment.
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Of course, a traditional resume is better than no resume at all, but you might try thinking outside the box. Sites like Brazen Careerist and Personavita are doing just that in highlighting a new trend in ‘social resumes‘. These sites allow the job seeker to display a sort of total package of themselves for potential employers, incorporating life elements and personality into a totally new take on the concept of a resume. And of course LinkedIn should not be left out in rounding out one’s resume package; its vast pool of social contacts can be a boon to any job seeker in the know. These sites, along with Chumbonus, are embracing the power of social networking to give job seekers even more opportunities and ways to express themselves in very creative ways.
The death knell of the traditional resume may not be sounding just yet, but with number of new and interesting methods of communicating today, it might behoove us to embrace change. Have you used a non-traditional resume to land a job? Let us know!
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