Don’t let your CV be put in the corner

I admit I don’t need much of an excuse to watch ‘Dirty Dancing’.

But recently I found some added justification for re-watching the trailer (and then accidentally also watching the clip for ‘The Time of My Life’) as part of my career coaching ‘research’.

I wanted to give some feedback to a client on their CV. The CV they had written included all the bits you would expect to see (personal details, work history, qualifications and education etc.) but I was struck by how little this document really reflected ‘them’.  It felt like something was missing.

So, this was all the dubious excuse I needed.

My suggestion to them was that when developing their CV, maybe they could think of it a bit like a trailer for a film?

When creating a film trailer the editor knows their target ‘audience’. 

They use the knowledge about their potential viewer to help them decide what parts of the film will be most likely to capture their attention.

They bring the film to life by emphasising the most important elements and making these stand out (cue dramatic music and voiceovers).

They don’t show their audience every point of the plot or every single detail of the story.

They select the highlights from different parts of the film, weave these key elements together in a structured way, and build a ‘mini-story’.

Their aim is to make it engaging and interesting and encourage their audience to find out more.

So, when you next develop your CV, put yourself in the place of your ‘audience’, by asking yourself:

• Have I made sure the content is relevant to the role, the organisation and the industry?

• Have I given an engaging picture of my key strengths and competencies?

• Have I made sure my most appealing transferable skills and experiences are clear?

• Have I really highlighted my ‘best bits’ and left my viewer interested to find out more about me?