Recruitment expert shares ultimate resume to help jobseekers land six-figure jobs
A careers expert has spent five years creating the perfect CV – and not only does it promise to land you a six-figure job, but it also claims to be "personality-proof".
Rita Chowdhry, the founder of UK-based career consultancy firm Savran, has designed the one-page, 450-word document that can be tweaked by anyone, regardless of the industry you work in.
She told news.com.au it was "irresistible" to recruiters and bosses – and a "golden ticket" for job seekers or those seeking a promotion.
READ MORE:• Recruiter reveals the words you should ban from your CV• CV lies can tell a tale on you• What the perfect CV looks like
The corporate coach and psychometric trainer said what separated her CV template form others was its focus on "cold, hard facts and figures".
She shared some general advice, such as to never include a photo or date of birth, to keep the CV to one page or a maximum of two if you are in a senior position, to list your work history in chronological order and to impress recruiters by referring to their company's values in at least one of your career achievements.
She also recommended giving at least one example of how you are motivated, and how you have and will motivate others, and mentioning two activities that demonstrate your personal values, such as charity work.
"Use positive language throughout that indicates a 'can-do' attitude and 'achiever's mindset'," she said.
"And my recommendation is that 75 per cent of your statement should be evidence-based."
An example of evidence-based information could be: "Exceeded sales and profit goals by up to 8 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively, from the first year of managing" or "Hired and trained 35 staff and reduced staff turnover by 5 per cent in one year".
Chowdhry urged jobseekers to avoid "sweeping statements and not backing them up with evidence" and said the specific words "passionate and motivated" should also be banned from your resume.
PERSONALITY HACKS
But the key reason Chowdhry's CV stands out from the crowd is that it uses subtle techniques designed to make it "personality proof" by appealing to each of the four main personality types according to the "DISC" psychometric category system.
Under the system, Dominant personality types are active and task-focused, Influencers are active and people-focused, steady is passive and people-focused and Compliant is passive and task-focused.
"To impress D personalities – typically managing directors (MDs) and chief executive officers (CEOs) – and Cs, such as chief financial officers (CFOs), use clear headings and bulleted sections, written in a simple, consistent font such as Arial or Times New Roman 11 or 12," Chowdhry said.
"This makes it easy to comprehend for Ds, who tend to skim read, while also including the structure and consistency that Cs look for.
"Keep sentences short and concise, and give proof supporting your career achievements. This appeals to D and I types who want facts and statistics and S and Cs who are put off by excessive self-promotion."
Chowdhry said in her experience, most CEOs and MDs would have D trait as their primary or secondary trait.
"They are very fast-paced thinkers and will want to skim read. They will lose interest if too much information is given – so be brief and get to the point. They are very results-driven so will look for results like impact on the bottom line," she explained.
Meanwhile, "I" traits are associated with "inspirers and motivators" and people who like working through others in careers such as sales, marketing and teaching.
"They too are fast-paced thinkers so a structured, clear layout with signposted information appeals to them. Recognition is important to them so they will be impressed with awards and how they are supporting and encouraging others," Ms Chowdhry said.
She said people with S traits were "steady, supportive team players".
"They are very people-focused and they like to see evidence of working with people and acting in the interest of others. This is what most of the population are so, therefore, it is essential to consider these," she said.
Finally, Cs have "high attention to detail and are task-driven and methodical".
"The layout is key – consistency and accuracy is important. Too many font changes … and not evidence will put them off," Ms Chowdhry said.
MAKE IT WORK FOR YOU
Another strength of Chowdhry's document is that it can be slightly tweaked depending on your industry.
For example, if you work in finance, she recommended showing evidence of being "very process driven with attention to detail", while those in marketing should "show creative skills to make the design of your CV stand out".
And no matter what field you're in, it always pays to "look at the company values and evidence how they are aligned to yours".
Stronger, wiser, better at 50 and beyond! The Know Your Value community share their comeback career stories
With the release of Mika and Ginny Brzezinski's new book, "Comeback Careers: Rethink, Refresh, Reinvent Your Success —At 40, 50, and Beyond," we wanted to hear your success stories on how you've managed to reboot, relaunch, return to, or reinvent a career. Here are a few of your inspirational journeys:
When I heard you talking on “Morning Joe” about Comeback Careers I didn’t think what I did was a big deal until you said it was!
I spent the first 25 years raising a family, and although I’ve had mostly enjoyable jobs, some were less fulfilling than others. In 2015, I took a leap and joined the local theater group; and it was no surprise there more roles going to younger women.
Finding myself out of work with too much time on my hands I was beginning to think this was it.
Then…
One day at a friend’s daughter’s wedding, I was surprised to see the officiant was my spin instructor! He called me over after the ceremony and said, “Bobbie you can do this.” No way!
It took nearly nine months and the baby was born! I became certified to officiate weddings and put myself out there on website to get leads. Still, I found reasons not to take on bookings: venue was too big, the date is too far out; and I was paying for these leads. Then I took a deep breath and said, “I do” to the next lead I received. It was a small gathering in the couples’ home. Easy Peasy!
Bobbie NovakCourtesy of Bobbie Novak
My next booking was four months later; I soon had 34 bookings for the rest of the year (a couple times there were two in one day!) and…I got a role in a show that ran all summer long!
Soon, I started becoming overbooked. I enlisted my son-in-law to take on some weddings; then my son approached me to join the team. With the two of them being geographically diverse, I was able to cover a larger territory. January has seen three weddings and we are booked out into October with 36 weddings!
BTW: I’m not 40 or 50…I’m beyond and I’ve become a business owner and am inspired by you to keep moving onward.
I can’t say I made a career change or a comeback. It was more that it made me.
My 17-year-old daughter died in a car accident in 2009. It changed everything I knew about the world. Staying in the environmental consulting business I started with my husband (now ex), wasn’t really an option for lots of reasons. Everything changed and now when I look back, I realize everything had to change.
I started a non-profit foundation for art, equality and education in my daughter’s name. The foundation has taken me from advocating for organ and tissue donation in the U.S., to Nepal, to Ecuador, back to Nepal, and now I am living in a small village in India, and organizing online yoga and meditation classes with an Indian yogi for women in Afghanistan!… I don’t make much money but I have inner wealth. That is the biggest comeback there could be, at least for me.
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I never thought I would find a new life and a new career but more than that, after such a tragic loss, I never thought I would find inner peace for myself. Learning to live with grief is one of the most challenging things we can do.
A career is a career, but a life is a life. I feel successful, so I am successful. I am 55 and looking forward to what more this crazy, sad, joyous life has to offer. My heart has led me into places I never would have expected.
Many people may feel that turning 60 is too old to start over. If anything, most people are looking toward retirement. Yet I felt like I had no choice. After 36 years of being a minister for the Unity church, I felt profoundly guided to move on from the only career I had ever known.
What I did know was this: I’d supposedly aged out of the “normal workforce.” I also knew I had far too much vitality, brainpower, and ingenuity to just wither up — even if I didn’t know my way around the world outside of ministry.
So what could I do?
I started with the two things I knew I could do with great joy: write sermons and cook!
It was from there that a book was born with co-author Noelle Nelson, called “Sermon on the Molehill.”
Almost at the same time, I formed “It’s All in the Mixx” with my business partner, Hope Delong, also in her 60’s. We created and developed Keto baking mixes that will be on the shelves with retailers nationwide, and e-commerce toward the end of this spring…
Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought my life post-60 would turn out the way it has. However, I knew, deep in my heart and soul, that there is always something much bigger watching over me. I just had to believe and take the leap!
I am a forensic anthropologist living in Montana, with my husband (who is also an Anthropologist). I married when I was 20 and also opened my first business--which I ran successfully for 20 years. A car accident took me out of the profession I loved, leaving me feeling vulnerable and lost. I went back to college at age 37 to earn a BSLS, Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degree. I earned my terminal degree at the age of 54. The journey through school was both rewarding and extremely frustrating.
One of the most frustrating elements of my education was encountering and fighting the widespread misogyny that exists in higher education. Allow me to give you an example: My husband, Stocky, and I attended the University of Montana at the same time and finished our doctorates in 2019. While I was met with obstructionists throughout my journey, Stocky was getting opportunities at every juncture. I finished my Ph.D. with a 4.0 GPA (he finished slightly lower, but he's still brilliant). However, I was not given one dime from my university while Stocky received funding throughout his graduate studies.
Doors shut in my face at every turn. Right before my dissertation defense, my male chairperson resigned off of my committee, leaving me hanging. It forced me to remain in school for another semester, delaying my ability to apply for jobs and secure employment. I truly believe they wanted me to quit, out of frustration. They tried to break me, but I'm unbreakable.
…But, what can we do about it? We speak up, but if we don't get support---how do we change things? What will make people change? How many women just throw up their hands and quit instead of continuing to fight? How do we wake-up America to make them care about women and women's issues?
I think it's important for people to understand that women face many obstacles, especially when attempting a "Comeback Career." To acknowledge that often not achieving our greatest goals is not for lack of trying or will, but more likely the fault of the toxic male-dominated era we live in. The future of women is at stake …
Six months before my 50th birthday, I had what Oprah calls an 'aha moment'. Now let's be honest, this flame was ignited in me was always there, as a flicker....But I simply woke up, looked in the mirror and said, "I haven't peaked yet, I'm just getting started".
For women at midlife there are so many changes, both physically and emotionally. They are needed in different ways, and their roles change and shift. My conversations with my friends were centered around a simple question, "Remember when" and "I'm just.” So that was all I needed to hear, and I knew it was my time to live and look forward, and certainly everything I had experienced to this point in my life, was all part of my journey, but you can't look back with Norman Rockwell-ish glasses and not continue to move forward.
I am not a celebrity, I've never been on a reality television show, but I am a woman on a mission to empower and encourage women over 40, 50, 60 and beyond to put their fears aside and take on this phase of life with confidence. I started my career in broadcast journalism and was ready to set the world on fire. My passion was writing and connecting people through stories. I got married, and started to reinvent myself over and over, as my husband's career took him on the leadership track. I embraced my role of traveling spouse. I chose to stay home and raise my children, and along that journey moved 11 times and lived in Germany with the family for six years. I continued to write my blog, submitted articles to online magazines, and of course, immersed myself in activities in the community, sitting on local boards, PTA and Booster President, Jr. League fundraising chair, you name it - I took it on. In Germany, I started coaching swimming at the high school level, which was something I knew a lot about given my experience as a collegiate athlete.
All of those pieces along the way, fit into my puzzle....
But now - it's my time. I decided to take my gifts and share them, continue learn, as a lifetime learning is vital as you age. Two of my children were off, out of the nest, and my baby....not far behind. After continually engaging in conversations with my peers about aging, and getting back into the work force, or dealing with the loss of parents, or relationships with their adult kids, I knew it was time to open the dialogue on these important parts of our journey at midlife and beyond.
I knew that one of the obstacles for me would be technology, so I signed up for course at the [Apple] Genius Bar, and when they saw me coming they might have wanted to turn around, but I continued to challenge myself and stay current. I launched my website with a blog, sharing my story, my journey with hopes that it would empower others to think differently and take action.
I researched and bought the equipment needed to launch a podcast, and using my gifts of networking and connections, I successfully launched Fearlessly Facing Fifty podcast. A weekly podcast that I host. My goal is simple - I share stories of incredible women and we dig deep into the conversations that need to take place. With their stories, and interviews with experts on women's health, grief, aging parents, returning to the work force, and so much more, these podcasts leave an imprint on the heart of the listeners and/ or inspire them to take action.
I am overwhelmed and excited with what has transpired as I launched my brand, Fearlessly Facing Fifty…
You're never too old and it's never too late…
Eddie Howe's Sub-Standard Transfer Dealings Are Finally Being Exposed at Bournemouth
The recent swing in public opinion regarding Eddie Howe's Bournemouth has been quite incredible.
Once held up as the antidote to English football's over-reliance on overseas talent to prosper, Howe was, until recently, viewed as one of the most talented and highly sought after managers in the Premier League.
Since his side's downturn in form, however, the 42-year-old has been slapped with all sorts of pejorative labels, with the most common of course being the football phrase that refuses to die: 'FRAUD!'.
Although this is admittedly simplistic, a lot of the ill-feeling towards Bournemouth stems from their development from counter-culture, plucky upstarts, into boring members of the Premier League establishment. When the Cherries burst onto the top-flight there was a certain lovable novelty about them.
Playing in a stadium with a sub-12,000 capacity with an unknown English manager, they soon become the neutrals favourites with their attacking and often exciting football. In the season's that have transpired thereafter, the excitement has dissipated.
People are tired of little old Bournemouth, feeling that - rather than being a breath of fresh air - the Dor-based side are now depriving a Premier League place to a team who actually belongs there. (See: Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Sheffield Wednesday... well, most of the Championship at the moment)
They're also sick of Eddie Howe.
Well spoken and a fan of David Brent-esque motivational techniques, they have found a new English messiah in the form of the straight talking, belt and braces, quintessentially English and tactically intriguing Chris Wilder. It's a remarkable fall from grace for a manager who in the past was prophesied as the man to carry on Arsene Wenger's legacy at Arsenal, as well as being a serious contender for the England job in 2016, before it was given to Sam Allardyce.
At the time of the Three Lions speculation Howe was dismissive of the links, stating that he had not achieved anywhere enough in his career to be linked with such a role. He was being too hard on himself, particularly when the same role had been conducted by the likes of Steve McClaren.
Beginning in 2008, Howe has engaged in an 11-year love affair with the Cherries, punctuated by a brief spell as Sean Dyche's predecessor as Burnley manager. When he took over at Dean Court, as it was known then, Bournemouth were teetering on the edge of survival in League Two, with financial issues threatening the club's very existence.
Eight years and three promotions later, smart investment and Howe's clever management saw the Cherries promoted to the Premier League. Since then, the club have largely managed to keep themselves out of relegation trouble, with Sunday's meeting against Watford marking the first time that Howe's side have started a game in the bottom three in two years.
So what has gone wrong at Bournemouth then?
While not being the sole factor in the Cherries demise - they can also point to a ridiculous blight of injuries this season - the club's transfer policy over the past few seasons has been misguided and imbalanced, helping to exacerbate their problems this season.
That is not to say that Howe is completely incapable of operating in the transfer market. The signing of David Brooks for a knockdown price last summer is testament to that. Brooks and a few others aside though, Bournemouth's poor recruitment has been harshly exposed this season.
The signings of Jordon Ibe and Dominic Solanke for a combined £34m are proving to be another example of superb business from Liverpool, while splashing £16m on Arnaut Danjuma for a return of zero goals and zero assists must also be questioned.
Bringing in Jefferson Lerma for £25m is also hard to defend, with the Colombian rashness doing little to compensate for the shortcomings of another disappointing recent recruit in Phillip Billing. For a club like Bournemouth, who suffer from a dearth of top young talent due to their Category Three youth academy, the effects of misspending funds on recruiting players are amplified - and so it has proved this season.
However, perhaps the bigger issue has been a pair of ill-advised summer departures. Since being sold to Aston Villa, Tyrone Mings has earned himself an England call up and is currently leading the league in blocks this season. The Cherries, on the other hand, look ludicrously understaffed at centre-back, with the calamitous displays of Steve Cook being of particular worry.
Allowing Lys Mousset to depart has also backfired, with the Frenchman's five goals and three assists for Sheffield United giving him more goal involvements than any member of the Cherries squad this season.
The departures of Mings and Mousset were short-sighted and indicative of wider failings with Bournemouth's transfer policy over the past few years. Although poor recruitment is not the only reason for the Cherries' drastic decline, it has certainly not helped Howe's attempts to address his side's slump.
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