career tips – South African Working Mom Blog

Here are 6 things you can do now to transform your CV in 20 minutes

Ensure Education is at the bottom

On the top you must reflect your actual work experience. Remember that recruiters and hiring managers are getting exposed to piles and piles of CVs daily. Ensure your best information is on top. Include education at the bottom so that the first few moments of people reading your CV are spent on the good stuff.

Having a Career objective is not necessary

A career objective is very self focused, and is not addressing the needs of the potential employer at this moment. If you want to show your potential employer how well you match the role, rather use your cover letter – which is a must. Also ensure that your voice comes through as you add your accomplishments (see next point).

Only have 5 – 6 Bullets per job

When listing your experience, limit the bullet points to the key impacts you made in that particular role. Add actual outcomes and accomplishments. Do not copy and paste the job description of your role in your CV. This says nothing about you and your contribution.

Run a spell check

Ensure you do a quick grammar and spell check, it makes a world of difference. Recruiters are reviewing piles of CVs per day and grammar and spelling errors are a huge turn off.

Save as PDF with a proper file name

Saving it as a PDF means that it will remain in a consistent format as you forward it on. If you leave it in word the formatting could be impacted, as people open it up from different screens. Oh, and name your CV correctly (Jon Snow 2017).

References are available on request – remove

This goes without saying and so there is no need to state this in your CV and waste space.

Bonus Tip: Last but not least, update your LinkedIn

Ensure your LinkedIn Profile is on point as potential employers will definitely be visiting your profile. Herewith an overview of how to step up your LinkedIn game.

The above will help you if you are in a bind, however, you do require more than 20 minutes to properly update your CV. You require focused time to reflect on your impact and accomplishments and to add your voice and personality.

Good luck! Any other quick tips that you think may be useful?

Further related reading:

Image Credit: pixabay

Knowing how to go about getting what you want at work does not need to be a mystery. As your company invests more in you, you return the favour by being the awesome employee that you are. It really is a win-win. It all starts with asking. Here are 5 working mom hacks you can apply right away, to get what you want.

What do you have to lose?

#1 More training / study support

So, you want to study further but HR advised you that the company only covers a fraction of the fees ‘as per the policy’? Here is what you do. Work with a sponsor (your supervisor or mentor) and draft a one page motivation to request an exception. Your motivation should outline costs and acknowledge the policy (this shows you read it and you are not disregarding it).

Finally, it should include why this programme is good of your career and for the company. The fact that you have applied your mind to your studies in the context of your career will count in your favour.

#2 More flexibility

Importantly, be good at what you do when you are in the office, then ask for flexibility . You want to be in a position where no one really cares about where you work, as you always deliver. Suggest a trial period at first and show how it helps your employer (i.e. you will be more productive, not just easy for you). You will often find a manager being more open to flexile arrangements if its positioned as a trial at first.

[bctt tweet=”If you are requesting more flexibility at work, ensure your work output is impeccable!” username=”cherralle_”]

#3 More maternity leave

Your company will probably have a set policy in place, but if you want to take more time off you need to negotiate your maternity leave with your manager.. This is quite a challenging one to navigate.

Position the maternity leave request as early as possible (immediately after your completion of your first trimester). The critical factor that will be considered in an extended maternity leave is the backup plan. You will be leaving your colleagues behind to take over your work while you are off having a baby (as important as this is, it’s a pain for those left behind).

Come up with a unique way to cover some of your responsibilities. Example, volunteer to train an Intern, you could groom someone for 6 months and you can set this person up to support the team in some activities. Whatever the solution is, do not throw your hands up in the air. You need to lean in and work with your manager to work out what your backup plan is. This may help towards getting that extra bit of maternity leave.

#4 More professional memberships

If you want to join a professional community, whether your company has a policy or not, you should request your boss to sponsor it. This reflects your dedication to your craft. It also helps with you remaining up to date with trends (which is good for business) and allows you to network.

[bctt tweet=”Studying further and professional memberships reflects your passion for your craft” username=”cherralle_”]

#5 More visibility

If you want to gain more exposure to high value projects, or gain more access to senior leadership – ask. Be good at what you do, and then ask for more. Your manager would be willing to expose you to more opportunities, if you have shown your credibility in other tasks.

In closing, an employer will invest in employees who have demonstrated their commitment to the company through their performance. As a valued employee, you can and must enhance your position in the company by asking for what you want. Spend time with your manager, mentor or HR to understand what is available but also be encouraged to lean in and ask for what you want.

What do you have to lose?

What do you think, do you have any tips for asking what you want at work?