Why you should not paper the universe with your resume!

Yesterday before my session with a client, she sent me an email with a sentence similar to the title above, saying she was just going to paper the universe with her resume. She meant that she was going to apply to everything and see what sticks.

This client is highly talented and intelligent. She is completing a degree to take her in a new direction. Same healthcare field just a more hands-on role than the administrative roles she held for most of her career.

She is frustrated. People are telling her to dumb down her resume. Leave her credentials off.

She knows better. Her email was her way of venting so I could help her think through the conflicting job search information she was getting.

Does it help to paper the universe with your resume?

It never helps to use volume instead of strategy to get your resume in the right hands. Online applications are a necessary evil but one that most people will use to at least set up the connection with the employer.

However, if online applications or papering the universe with your resume is your only strategy, you will be looking for a long time.

Don’t dumb down your resume

If you have more than one degree, note them on the resume. Leaving off a Masters degree will not help when an employer does a fact check. You don’t have to go in-depth selling your old career path but don’t ignore it either. Find correlations that will make you valuable in your new career path.

Strategize reusable skills

My client also had a career adviser tell her not to add anything about her experience training others on the resume. While there may be skills that don’t translate well to your new career path, training others is very universal. Even in entry-level roles, every employer appreciates knowing that they are hiring someone who in the future could be called on to teach the team.

Don’t paper the universe with your resume

After we talked, my client was ready to face her job search again. We identified decision-makers for the role she wants in the future. She will schedule a networking appointment with someone who can help get her resume in the right hands.

If you are frustrated with the multiple forms of advice in your job search, I help you figure out what matters and craft a strategy to win the role you want. Learn more here.