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Adding value to your Career Documentation | Career Coaching

Your Resume: Do You Have a Disability or Inability?

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There is no single legal definition of “disability.” The legal definition of a disability varies from country to country, and even within different United States laws.

ADA & Social Security

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a person with a disability as someone who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity. A condition does not have to be severe or permanent to be a disability. On the other hand, Social Security disability defines a disabled individual as someone with an impairment, either medical, psychological, or psychiatric in nature, that keeps them from being able to do a substantial amount of work for at least 12 months.

One thing that all definitions agree upon is that “disability” is different from “inability.” For example, if you are able to run but not able to run a marathon, you have an inability to run marathons, not a disability. You can still perform major life activities without running a marathon and can hold a job, though maybe not in the field of long-distance running.

Accommodations by Employer

If one of the requirements for a job is that someone flies internationally, and you are terrified of airplanes, you should probably look for a position that does not require international travel. Although fear of flying could rise to a psychiatric condition and companies are required by the ADA to make reasonable accommodations, there is no reasonable way to travel across oceans without flying: ships are just too slow and infrequent.

On the other hand, if you have a temporary or permanent disability that prevents you from walking up and down stairs, a company might easily make reasonable accommodations. For example, if the building does not have elevators, they could ensure that your office is on the ground floor; or they could allow you to telecommute from home or another accessible location.

Conclusion

That is where I come in. When you are applying for a position with a company, honesty in your resumes and your job search—about your skills, education, accomplishments, and abilities—is very important.

At Robin’s Resumes®, we monitor the current regulations related to employment so that we can craft a resume that makes the most of all your abilities.

Customizing Your Resume for the Job Opportunity

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Q. I am the quality control manager at a firm that makes medical equipment. My quality control skills are transferable to almost any industry. I want a job as a director of quality control, but I will look at other opportunities, too. If I can manage a quality control department, I can manage any department. I want to leave my options as open as possible. How do I write a resume that will show I’m a great candidate for any management job in any industry?

 A. You never want to put hiring managers or recruiters in the position of guessing where you will fit in their organization. No one is looking for a manager of “any” department in “any” industry. Companies have specific needs, and they outline those needs in their advertisements and job postings.

It is possible to write a resume that highlights your transferable skills, but that is not the same as writing a resume for any job in any industry. When you customize your resume for the job opportunity, you:

  • Pay attention to the requirements in the specific job posting or advertisement, showing how your skills, experience, and education fit you to fill those requirements.
  • Focus on the value you have created in the job you hold now and in prior positions by focusing on achievements (“increased quality 15%,” “reduced turnover from 10% annually to 2%”) that would benefit any company.
  • Highlight any skills, experience, and education that prepares you to fulfill a new role; for example, certifications you have recently acquired or skills (like fluency in another language) that you may not have used before.

Do not be afraid to think outside the box if your goal is to move outside your current career path. For example, your background in medical equipment may have given you the knowledge you need to move into sales for a medical device firm.

Whatever you decide, always remember that hiring managers and recruiters know what they are looking for—and the burden is on you to prove that you are what they want. Please contact me today at Robin’s Resumes®, and I will be happy to help.

Seven Wrong Ideas about Resumes and How to Fix Them

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Happy Fourth of July! It is always good to celebrate freedom, including our freedom from wrong ideas about resumes. It is time to overthrow them! Think how much happier you will be when you no longer believe that:

  1. Resumes are magic. Unfortunately, even the best resume does not come with a magic wand to gain you the perfect position. It should be able to get you interviews, but it cannot ace the interview for you (unless it is a federal position where interviewing is optional). And there are many, many reasons why companies reject candidates that have nothing to do with the quality of the candidate or the resume.
  2. One resume fits all. Instead, you should be customizing your resume for the jobs you are most interested in by making sure your resume contains the skills, education, accomplishments, and previous experience that employers are looking for in your field and industry—and in the job announcement.
  3. Small mistakes do not matter. The truth is that hiring managers and recruiters are overwhelmed with candidates; small mistakes may give them just the opportunity they need to reject your application. Proofread your resume carefully.
  4. Bragging is a bad thing. On the contrary, you should be collecting a brag book starting now for your current job, for every job you have held in the past, and for every job you will hold in the future. That book will remind you of your accomplishments. You never want to exaggerate or lie, but you do need to show hiring managers and recruiters how you used your skills and how you contributed to your company’s success.
  5. Resumes should hide layoffs and other gaps in employment. In this age of turnover and change, being laid off is no longer a barrier to employment—everyone is laid off at some point. You should explain gaps in employment, not hide them. They will come out anyway.
  6. No one can improve a bad resume. You would be surprised at what a professional resume writer can do. We interview you to find those gems of experience and skill you may have overlooked. We know the right phrases and words to add zest to your resume. Give a professional resume writer a try!

Resume Q&A: I’m Not Getting Interviews

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Q. I think I have a great resume, but clearly employers do not feel the same way. I cannot get an interview. Why would a resume fail over and over again? What can I do?

A. The reasons why a resume fails to gain interviews may be entirely out of your hands. For example, financial difficulties in the industry where you are applying may lead to cutbacks or employment freezes. Changes in industry regulations or qualifications for the position you want may mean that you need a new certification or additional training before you would be considered.

If the problem is a mismatch between your skills and employer expectations, then now is the time for you to brush up on your skills or take additional courses. You should be reading job advertisements and postings carefully to make sure you understand what each company is looking for—and customizing your resume each time to make sure the company understands how qualified you are.

Make sure you have explored every avenue for finding a new job. Simply searching the internet for help wanted is not enough. You need to network in person—attend meetings of professional organizations; talk to former employers and peers who might recommend you for new openings; and become more active in the community, perhaps by volunteering, so that your name and talents are better known.

You might also want to send your resume to a professional resume writer. A truly professional resume writer will interview you and work with you one-on-one to see if there is anything that can be added to or better emphasized in your current resume.

As a certified career coach, I can also offer you suggestions for reframing your resume for careers, positions, or industries you might not have considered. You probably have many transferable skills and achievements that would land you a job on a career path slightly different from your current path.

Please contact me if I can be of further help to prepare your resume for the next great interview.

What Not to Include in Your Resume

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  1. Your high school education, unless you are applying for your first job after high school. Generally, employers only look at—and care about—your post-secondary education.
  1. Badly outdated skills. No businesses are currently using WordStar or mimeograph machines.
  1. Skills you do not have. If your German is not fluent, then say that it is “conversational German” or “basic German.” Do not lie and do not exaggerate.
  1. Your religious affiliation, sexual orientation, or political party, unless you are applying for a position where that information might be important—for example, secretary for a church or campaign manager for a politician.
  1. Personal information that employers are legally not supposed to ask you about, such as your marital status, number of children, race, religion, and health. If you will need accommodation for a disability, you can bring that up when it seems appropriate. If you absolutely cannot fulfill the duties of the position (“must lift 50 pounds” or “driver’s license required”), then you should not apply.
  1. A personal email that sounds too personal, such as greatdude@aol.com. The contact information that you include should be professional.
  1. Your references. While references may be crucial later on, you should wait until the company asks for them. You do not want your references bothered over every potential position, only the ones where you are an actual candidate.
  1. Overlong explanations about a job loss or gap in employment. Most job losses do not need to be explained at all. You should be honest about gaps, but a short sentence is enough (“Moved to Los Angeles to care for a relative”).

It can be difficult to sift through content to know what is and what is not important. At Robin’s Resumes®, we know what to include and what to delete. Let us help you choose relevant information for a comprehensive application.

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