Stop hiring professional resume writers.
Read time: 3 mins
A few weeks ago, I had an inquiry come through my website. This person sought someone “to write his resume and find him a job.”
When I informed him that I teach people HOW to look for jobs, and asked if he wanted to set up a coaching session.
He clarified that he wasn’t interested in coaching.
Instead, he wanted someone to find, apply for and manage his job search. Because apparently, he was too busy to look for a job himself.
In other words, he wanted someone else to take ownership of his career.
Of course, I do not offer this type of “full-service” job search support.
Nor will I ever.
And if fact, it goes against my entire belief system. If you want to act like the CEO of your career, you have to put in the work.
 |
There are no shortcuts.
I know resume writing and looking for a job can seem confusing and time-consuming. And allowing someone else to do it for you may seem temping.
But if you care about your career progression and your earning potential, you cannot take a hands-off approach. Therefore, I recommend that you stop hiring professional resume writers.
Five reasons why you should stop hiring professional resume writers:
Here are few specific reasons why you should stop hiring professional resume writers, or otherwise trying to outsource your career to others.
Reason #1: Your career is bound to stagnate.
Outsourcing your resume or job search means you’re placing your destiny in other people’s hands.
❔ How would they know what’s best for you?
❔ Which roles should you apply for?
❔ Is this company even a good fit for me?
❔ Does this role really fit my needs?
I always recommend that you clearly know the reason behind why you’re applying for a specific job.
In other words, why does this job fit into your
long-term strategy?
How can you act strategically in your career when you hire someone to do these things for you?
Learning to market yourself effectively will unlock new opportunities.
You’ll land better jobs, more promotional opportunities, and earn significantly more money.
As you can see, this is a skill well worth developing.
Reason #2. It could cost you…dearly.
 |
When you consider that the average person spends over 90,000 hours at work over their lifetime, learning how to make yourself more appealing seems like a worthwhile cause.
Imagine investing (let’s say…) 20 hours learning skills that directly improve your annual earnings by $5000.
This would equate to an additional $200,000 over the course of a 40-year career, not taking into account promotions.
Would you agree it’s time well spent?
It would certainly make the rest of those 89,980 hours more comfortable.
That’s what learning how to write an effective resume, interview with authority, and build the RIGHT kinds of networks will do.
Reason #3: Your job search will be slower.
Seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it? You hire someone else to do the work to speed things up.
Yet, you are not in control when outsourcing your resume writing or job search.
You’re at their mercy.
And you can only hope that they give you the attention you desire.
My backlog of resumes was about three weeks deep during “normal” times. Often during busy periods, getting people a completed package would take 4-6 weeks.
When you’re in a rush, time is money. You want to be among the first to apply to that new job to increase your odds of landing an interview.
All you can do is hope they have the same sense of urgency you do.
I’d rather have my tools ready to go on my own timeline, but that’s just me.
 |
Reason #4: It’s expensive…and not really effective
One of the main reasons I do not write professional resumes anymore is that they are not as effective as most people hope.
Why? Because a professional resume is generic. It’s not targeted to that ideal job you’re applying for.
So the chances you’re what that recruiter is looking for is relatively slim.
And this means that your callbacks will be lower.
Besides, hiring a resume writer to customize for each role isn’t realistic. That would get pretty expensive fast.
Your resume is such an essential document in your life, I couldn’t imagine not knowing HOW to write a great one myself.
Reason #5: You’re handing over your power
The most important reason on this list – you’re handing over all of your power to someone else. You’re letting them make the decisions for you.
And it’s unlikely they will care the same way you would.
When you act like the CEO of your career, you take ownership and make decisions that are in YOUR best interest first. This means making yourself as attractive to a potential employer as possible.
Any prudent business owner would agree – learning how to effectively market your “business” is in your best interest.
So if your career strategy isn’t worth investing in, I’m not sure what is.
Therefore, I do not recommend you outsource any aspect of your career.
In fact, I’d even argue that knowing these skills are more important than your college degree, trade school or a certification program.
So stop trying to hire professional resume writers – learn how to write a great resume yourself.
It’s much better to learn skills that will actually impact you directly for years to come than to rely on someone else to do it for you.
________________________________________________
Whenever you’re ready, there are 2 ways I can help you:
1 – If you’re still looking for traction in your business, I’d recommend starting with an affordable course:
→ Resume Rocketfuel: This best-selling course will teach you the exact system I developed to help over 1000 people land great jobs, myself included.
→ The Ultimate Jobseeker Bootcamp: This A-to-Z guide takes you from job search all the way to offer negotiation, provided detailed, recruiter-proven strategies.
→ Unlocking LinkedIn: This course walks you step-by-step on how to set up a profile for maximum discoverability, techniques for accessing the hidden job market and how to cut in front of the long application lines!
2. Gain extra personalized clarity with private 1×1 coaching
Have a specific question or strategy that requires more tailored help? I offer limited private coaching sessions. My clients have had too many “ah ha!” moments to count.
Happy hunting!
-Bryan
