Thing #53: Visualize Your Resume

I really enjoyed this assignment. It gave me a chance to review my actual/traditional resume, refine a few things on LinkedIn (which I only just recently signed up for), and then put a more creative twist on my work and education history.


I've been kind of nervous about the looks of my resume. Although I've had many jobs over the years, most of those were in my high school and college years. I didn't bother listing that multitude of jobs (we've all worked at places like Runza and Walgreens, right? do those jobs we held for three or four months at a stretch really count?). Instead, I began with my first "gig" after graduating from college with my first Bachelor's degree. I did hold a job for seven years at an insurance company, but it wasn't a good fit for me. I've spent the past several years as a Stay-At-Home-Mom (SAHM)... something I find to be the most important job I've ever had, but not necessarily something potential employers might be impressed with or find to give me a leg-up over other potential hires. Anyway, those past several years as a SAHM have pretty much put a huge gap in my resume. I've always wanted a way to show that, while I wasn't working for pay outside the home, I've been working very hard for the past ten years at something I believe in.


Creating "interactive resumes" on these sites (I tried both) kind of validated those feelings I'd been having--that I wasn't wasting my time or being lazy by not working outside the home. I would like to think potential employers would agree. 


I recently attended the PLA 2012 Conference in Philadelphia, and I was pleased that my mentor for the trip suggested I get/make business cards ahead of time. Not being employed anywhere at the moment, I made some up on my own. I chose to use the interactive resume I'd created on re.vu on the business cards. I found that one to be a bit more reflective of my own personality than the vizualize.me one, though I do like them both. I'd like to think that, if there are potential employers out there who would not only value the education and experience I have, but they'd also maybe appreciate the innovative twist on the standard resume. I honestly felt more confident, in making up those cards, having the link to my re.vu site on there--whereas, if I hadn't created that site just before my trip, I may not have bothered making up business cards at all. I did pass out a few at the Conference, and I have to admit, I felt more sure of myself because I had them to hand out in the first place. I will use them more in the future, and I'm grateful to have had this assignment (right at this point in my life) to inspire me to be more proactive with my job search!


Here's my re.vu page: re.vu/trayceetee (I tried to insert a little re.vu logo and then embed the link into the logo, but I'm not quite tech-savvy enough to get there yet.....)


Here's my visualize.me page: vizualize.me/trayceetee