RESUMES BLOG: July 2011

The resume you wrote yourself to save money or the low cost resume service you hired or the resume building software you used may all be costing you a ton -- in missed job opportunities and lost earnings. Your unemployment is also costing you plenty.

Some large resume writing services charge $69. That sounds like a great buy … but if you've considered such a service--keep in mind that a good resume takes me a 3 to 5 hours and I have 24 years experience. Services charging $69 either have to be putting in only 30 minutes on each resume or they've hired writers that they pay $10 an hour ... many such writers have never written resumes or worked with job seekers---their primary qualification being a degree in journalism (I know because many have contacted me to see if I will hire them).

Please check out other services, find out how many resumes each writer has written and ask for testimonials like those on this blog site. That's why a low cost or do-it-yourself resume is often a killer resume which is a very expensive kind of resume!

In the long run, any self-written or low cost or inexpensive or cheap resume that does NOT work, is a very expensive resume. What could you be losing? Please check out the following two newspaper reports:

"The average job search lasts 18 weeks, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

And given that the typical American worker takes home $34,020 in salary, those 18 weeks between jobs add up to a stunning $11,776 in lost paychecks, according to the same data.

That's a harsh realty for most job seekers, who frequently have less than 30 days worth of savings to pay the rent and put food on the table. "

One way to shortcut this stressful job search process is to send out the very best resume possible, because finding a job just 3 or 4 weeks faster with an outstanding resume can put thousands of dollars in lost salary back in your pocket."

WHAT DOES UNEMPLOYMENT REALLY COST YOU?

"$19,000 is what a job search could possibly cost an unemployed person looking to make a $50K salary and $77,000 is what it could possibly cost an unemployed person looking to make a $100K salary. "

WHAT? You didn't expect that? Let me explain.

First, this is obviously not an out-of-pocket cost, but it is wages and money you cannot get back. The general rule of thumb for finding and starting a new job is this - it will take 1 month for every $10K in salary (5 months for $50K job, 10 months for $100K job, etc).

Here is what a prolonged job search could cost in lost wages.

$50K pay = $19,000 lost ($960 per week over 5 months).

$75K pay = $43,000 lost ($1,440 per week over 7 to 8 months).

$100K pay = $77,000 lost ($1,920 per week over 10 months).

Again, these numbers represent lost wages.

But, even as wages and paychecks stop coming in, the expenses of life do not. People still have monthly expenses to keep up with.

So ... If you find yourself unemployed, quickly invest in the job search tools needed to shorten your job search and control lost wages (you can't get it back).

Secondly, you should promise yourself to make that investment in your future.

A highly skilled resume-writing professional has become a necessity today. He or she will give your resume a competitive edge.

To hire an experienced executive resume-writing professional would be a very smart move. He or she will increase your chances of being hired and also shorten the time your job search takes.

Moreover, the process of interacting with someone who has already assisted many others in similar situations, will usually benefit you in many ways. All in all, it may be one of the best and most profitable decisions you will ever make!

Austin Kiplinger, publisher of the Kiplinger Magazine, agrees about the importance of making an investment in your own career: "Look at your career as your primary investment. Keep your earning power at its highest level. The money you spend doing this will return more to you than all other investments you are likely to make. You are your own best investment!"

How much money are you trying to save?

A self-written resume that is plain or weak will NOT get responses. That will cost lost earnings, missed opportunities and time.

Recent college graduates have spent $10,000 to $50,000 on their education and should not risk everything by relying on their own writing skills.For any manager or executive to write his/her own, is madness! It's all about getting a competitive edge on other applicants.

But thousands of desperate job seekers still feel they should create it themselves. They are mistaken! That type of thinking belongs to the 70's and 80's when jobs were plentiful. They will learn the hard way that a cheap resume is a very expensive resume. That's telling it like it is.

Please E-mail or call me for a FREE consultation or price quote.

mattgreene@aol.com
Tel.: 1-718-436-3504