Welcome to Surpass Your Dreams. The goal of the monthly newsletters is to help you recognize your potential and surpass your dreams. Included are tips for either transitioning into a career you love, excelling in the career you have now, or loving what you do for a living everyday.

If you are thinking about making these changes in your career, (and your life), Deborah Brown-Volkman offers 30-minute complimentary calls to those who want to experience coaching, to see if it is the right tool to help them move forward. To find out more, please visit http://www.surpassyourdreams.com

1. Showcase Your Transferable Skills
2. Four Ways To Showcase Your Skills Successfully
3. Great Resources

I. SHOWCASE YOUR TRANSFERABLE SKILLS

Part I.

The concept of transferable skills is important for job seekers in today’s economy. In your resume, cover letter, and during the interview process, you need to prove that you have the experience, knowledge, passion, and drive to get the job done.

If you have been doing the same job for years, and plan to stay in a similar position, or identical industry, your present skills are what you showcase to employers. If you are looking to switch industries or take a different position than the one you have now, you will have to show potential employers why you are the best candidate and the best match for the position.

What are transferable skills? They are the skills you have acquired up to this point in your life that can help you do something else in your career.

See Part II continued below...

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II. FOUR WAYS TO SHOWCASE YOUR SKILLS SUCCESSFULLY

Part II.

Here's how:

I. Stop Telling Yourself That The Only Job You Can Get Is The Same Job You Have Now.

Many people tell me that a job in a different industry would not be available to them because they don’t have experience in that industry.

It is true that people do look to what you have done in the past as an indicator of what you can do in the future. And yes, people can write you off quickly if they scan your resume and see that you have not worked in their industry or held the same title before.

You can overcome screening techniques that might eliminate you. It’s your job to tell people why you are a match for a position. Use facts and examples that support your case. Show them that you not only understand the responsibilities of the position, but how your skills are transferrable. In addition, your background has given you insight that will help you perform that role exceptionally well. They may or may not accept your background, but at least you tried. But, the people you speak to won’t believe you if you don’t believe in you first.

Tell yourself that you won’t get a job for whatever reason, and you won’t. Tell yourself that you will and you just might surprise yourself. .

II. Start To Research Where Your Present Skills Can Fit Somewhere Else.

Begin with job descriptions you believe you would be interested in. Go online and do a search on your present title. What jobs do you see?

As you search for jobs, it doesn’t matter where the jobs are located yet. You just want to get a sense of what the job market is asking for. Five to ten job descriptions is a good number to look at initially.

Then, take out a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle of a page. On the left hand side, make a list of the requirements for the jobs you want, and on the right hand side next to each item on the list, do the following:

1. If you have done the same tasks, but in a different industry, write down what you did.
2. If you have done something similar, write down how it was similar or close to what they are looking for.
3. If you have not done a task before, write down how in the past you did not know how to do something, and how you got up to speed quickly. Detail the process. This will be your plan for showing how you can acquire new skills.

Take out that piece of paper again.

Write down all of your skills, talents, and abilities. Compare them to the job descriptions you have been looking at. Can something from your life outside of work help you get a job you want? Write down how.

IV. Re-Write Your Resume.

If your resume is filled with words and initials that only the people in your industry understand, and you want a job outside of your industry, then this has to come off.

Create a new version of your resume that details what you did regardless of what industry you worked in.

For example.

• 16 years experience in marketing financial services becomes 16 years marketing experience.
• Worked closely in team approach with Department Heads in Programming, Research, Marketing, Business Development and Finance becomes worked closely in team approach with Department Heads.
• Conducted market/competitive analysis for the financial analysts and prepared business plans for venture capitalists become conducted market/competitive analysis and prepared business plans.
• Ran reports for the XYZ team becomes ran reports for the team.

I would rather have someone wonder what industry you worked for, and then have TO ASK YOU, rather than write you off because they believe that for the 3 seconds they spent reading your resume that you are not right for the job.

So, what do you say? You only have one life to live, so it might as well be a life you love.

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