Why Does Your Resume Drive Your Interview? (It Is Not What You Think)

You’re probably thinking that the relationship between your resume and your interview is obvious. A resume gets you the interview, right? Certainly, in some cases, and expertly prepared resume that a hiring leader cannot ignore will generate the interview you need. However, in every well-conceived job search strategy, your interview is actually a reflection of your resume, not the reverse. Read on to learn why your interview strategy depends on your resume strategy.

Your resume drives your interview–study up on YOU now!

Let us assume that you have set up your dream interview. In your excitement , you prepare in every way you think possible:

• You wear the right suit.
• You read the right books on how to answer questions on your weaknesses and other tricky interview questions.
• You learn something about the CEO’s latest initiatives, so you can ask savvy questions.

The one thing you do not do is brush up…on yourself. You have no idea how to talk about your career experiences and accomplishments. In fact, the first time you put your stories into words is at the request of the interviewer to tell something about your expertise. Because you have no preparation for the task, you fail. You are practicing when you should be performing.

Surprisingly, you can avoid this major interview pitfall by having an expert resume writer prepare your resume. On the one hand, you’re more likely to increase the number of interviews you do receive. On the other hand, the process of having your resume expertly prepared will actually increase your level of success in the interview process.

Let us examine why this is so. When you choose your expert resume writer, you will have sought a professional who will give you uninterrupted one-on-one attention. He or she will sit down with you and draw you through an extensive question and answer session, perhaps over the course of several hours, to elicit the best of your experience and accomplishments. This might be the first time you ever have verbalized your expertise, so you can feel free to take your time to explore and elaborate on your talents, history, skills, and specific achievements. Through this process, you’ll have the privilege of telling yourself the story first, then seeing a distillation of your reports in a well-crafted, professionally written executive resume.

Now let us re-imagine your interview. When the interviewing executive asks you to relate some specific expertise, you can do so confidently. At this point, you are retelling a story that you’ve told yourself, had told to you, and reviewed extensively. You will be eminently ready to walk your interviewer through your career history–moreso because you have had your resume professionally prepared.

Image courtesy of Stock.xchng / mart1n.