Beware the business of job searching

I recently had my resume professionally re-written. When I told friends and colleagues I was going to “have my resume done,” I heard mixed reviews. Some saw it as an expensive and unnecessary measure. Still, when it came to marketing myself to potential employers, it was the one area where I felt slightly under confident. Interviewing and networking come naturally to me, but whenever someone asked for my resume I felt myself stiffen slightly. I’d written my own resume in the past and never felt it was what you’d call “stellar,” much less really tout my skills with any kind of real splash.

With my mind set, I went looking for a qualified expert. I started asking for referrals and a friend of a friend knew a professional resume writer she called “amazing.” That’s actually how I met Deb Wheatman (if this part sounds like a shameless plug for my friend, I’m willing to live with it. Deb actually IS amazing. You can find her at http://resumesdonewrite.blogspot.com/). When all was said and done, I was thrilled with the results. There they were on the pages—all my skills and experiences. But they were presented in such a way that I now wanted everyone to have this description of me. It was like when someone takes your picture and you look so good you can hardly believe it’s you. I felt like it should have come with a cape and tights; with this resume, I was Super Candidate! I took my snazzy new CV and I hit the streets. I applied for jobs on-line, posted it on networking web sites and sent it off to valuable contacts.

A few days ago I signed up for a popular job searching web site; one that promises $100k jobs. I followed all the necessary protocols to open an account and uploaded my masterpiece. I was surprised to find there was a small fee involved, unlike some of the other career sites, but decided to sign up anyway. Not long after, I was contacted by the “staff” at that same site with an offer to “critique” my resume to ensure I would get the most out of their services. “Ha!” I thought “bring it on” and agreed to the challenge. Naturally, I expected to receive a response that sounded a lot like “Congratulations! Your resume is perfect! It needs nothing!”

Instead, I was sent a long reply detailing how my resume was “weak” and how I wouldn’t get interviews because of it. Lucky for me they’d be happy to “fix it” for the bargain price of $695 and if I acted now they’d throw in a cover letter for no additional charge (a $135 value!). The message went on and on and was totally clear: My wonderful resume (the one written by a recommended, certified professional) wasn’t good enough.

Then it hit me and I was furious. This was a commercial. One with an ominous warning: make this additional “investment” and have a bright future or decline their offer and perish in unemployment.

This is the business end of job searching and just as in fashion, cosmetics, fitness or whatever, there’s money to be made in convincing you that you’re not good enough. When looking for a new job, especially if you don’t currently have one, it’s natural to have anxieties around who will or won’t like you and what you should do to up your chances. From that angle, it’s easy to take job searchers for a ride. Do you need a professional resume that represents you well in the job market? Absolutely. Should you have your resume professionally written? At least once in your career, yes you probably should. Do you need to complete that exercise over and over to fulfill a revenue opportunity for those who see you as easy prey? No.

While there are certainly qualified experts who can offer you valuable information and services, there are just as many people ready and willing to profit from your vulnerability. It’s up to you to choose wisely. Be an educated consumer in this arena as in all others. Get referrals. Ask around. Do your homework. Because in a recession, the job market is a “market” in more ways than one.