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There will be hard days.

evolutionyou.net | as it should

A Little Note to My Friends Who Need It,

There might will be hard days in your life. And hard weeks. And hard months. And hard years. Hard times will rise up from the depths and try hard to drag you back down there with them. But don’t go. Fight them with all of the might inside of you. Call on the deep reserves of strength that lie in the pools within you. Have faith that—right now—you are exactly where you are meant to be. Because you are.

God long ago drew a circle in the sand exactly around the spot where you are standing right now. You were never not coming here. —Sufi poem

These hard times will pass, I promise. And it will be beautiful on the other side.

With all of my love & all of my light,
Dena

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    Is Your Resume a Hallmark Card?

    This is a guest post by David Pinkley, The Resume Sage.

    How do you describe yourself in your resume: team player?…quick learner?…detailed oriented? Do you really believe those self-proclaimed descriptions? Consider this: so does everyone else. That’s the problem. When it comes to describing ourselves we use the same words as everyone else. I know this because in 15 years working as a professional resume writer and executive recruiter I’ve seen nearly 40,000 resumes. Virtually all of them used works like: high energy, results oriented, uniquely qualified, detailed oriented, out-of-the-box thinker…and the list goes on. I call these Hallmark words.

    What is a Hallmark word? Example: You go to the store to buy a greeting card for your Sweetie whose birthday is approaching. You are overwhelmed because there are so many cards to choose from. You select your first one and it says something like: “May you experience all things bright and beautiful on your special day. Happy Birthday.” It’s a nice try but the message is contrived so we put the card back and pick another. The second one says: “Here’s a card just for you. You’ve always been tried and true. Happy Birthday.” Again, nice words but the message isn’t meaningful. (Who writes this stuff!?) You repeat this process numerous times until you find one with a message that resonates: “It just always felt right…and it always will. Happy Birthday.” Found it. You’re done.

    Hallmark words are words that look great on paper but don’t have any real meaning. It’s the same with resumes. Certain words look great on resumes but they are meaningless. If everyone says they’re a quick learner those words become diluted. (Whether it’s true or not is irrelevant.) Using Hallmark words on your resume will make it seem just as contrived as most greeting cards. The reader (i.e. hiring manager) won’t believe your message and will continue reading other resumes in search of one that resonates.

    The reality is we really don’t know how to describe ourselves. So we borrow words from other resumes and convince ourselves that these words really describe us. We don’t realize they have no meaning. Great resumes find authentic ways to communicate familiar themes. How do you do that?

    If you are really honest with yourself – you probably don’t know what you really do anyway. The only way to discover exactly what makes you unique is to look closely at your job. This takes introspection and self examination; a process most people dread because it seems like hard work – hence why most resumes are homogeneous. This is difficult to do for yourself. Self examination is much easier if you do it with someone else. But that’s another post.

    Blow the dust off your resume and take a look at the words you’ve used to describe yourself. Are they Hallmark words? If they are, you need to recognize that you are not saying anything unique. And no matter how true they are, they are not as meaningful or impactful as you think.

    Have questions? Contact David Pinkley at (704) 358-6000 or david@theresumesage.com. To learn more visit: www.TheResumeSage.com

    David Pinkley is the founder of The Resume Sage, a custom resume writing service. The Resume Sage critiques and writes resumes for accomplished professionals and executives. Those who work with The Resume Sage are purposeful about navigating their careers. They need more than just strong writing skills; they are seeking insights about how to differentiate themselves from their peers/competitors.

    David is a sought-after public speaker and has been featured on local news and NBC’s national news. He earned a B.S. degree from the University of Michigan and started his career in Chicago as a CPA at Ernst & Young and at Bank of America. He has lived and worked as an executive recruiter for 15 years in Charlotte, Raleigh, New York and Hong Kong.

  • Carousel — 03.26.10

    Every Friday, I post my favourite links, posts, & resources from around the Web. Expect to learn, grow, & be inspired.

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    1. burning questions with Patti Digh: poetic choices: If you read nothing else from this week’s Carousel, read this post. This is honestly one of the most moving & profound interviews that I’ve ever read.

    2. UPDATE ON THE JOURNEY TO EVERY COUNTRY: Incredible! Talk about an incredible journey…

    3. Why I Quit My Job to Travel Around the World: This seems to be “the dream” of so many in my generation. I love to read the stories of those who go out & make it happen.

    4. Be Your Own Guru: Because, in the end, no one else can stand in my shoes. No one else can live my fears, dreams, love, relationships, desires, intellect, challenges, life and lifestyle. No one else can enjoy or suffer the outcome of my decisions or actions. No one else is better equipped to know me. No one else can act but me.

    5. Staying out of Starvation Mode….: Crucial information if you are trying to maintain a healthy body weight & optimal fitness.

    6. Paying it WAY Forward: I discovered Colin and his blog a couple of weeks ago when he did an interview at Untemplater. I developed an e-crush on him & his lifestyle immediately thereafter. I really like this post that he wrote about paying it forward & the idea of “karma.” Great stuff.

    7. How To Find Balls: Hehe… I’ll let this post’s title speak for itself. 😉

    8. what i learned at couples counseling: I love this post—not just because I think counseling is always a good idea—but also because the advice contained within is so fantastic.

    9. The Mindfulist: The Concept—Each day, meditate or think on a new topic. Slow down and focus! How to participate—1. Meditate or create with each daily prompt 2. The prompts come in two flavors. Work/tech-related, found here at The Mindfulist. 3. If you’re public and want to be social, tag what you create #mindfulist

    I like it.

    10. How to Master the Art of Mindful Eating: Fantastic advice about how to eat, the way that food is meant to be eaten. (Bonus = a delicious recipe!)

    ———————–

    Happy Spring, my loves! ♥♥

11 Comments

  1. Keep an even keel and even when times are difficult, be positive and things will eventually turn for the better. Reach out to friends and family, trust yourself and try to do a little good each day.

  2. Wow, very good stuff. Life can be such an adventure. That adventure is not always fun. I have heard that those things that do not kill you make you stronger. If that is the case my wife and I are giants in the land. We have had our fair share of ugly stuff. Through it all we have clung to God and one another for the strength, love and guidance to get us through. One day at a time, that is all that we can do. None of us are promised a tomorrow so the best we can do, is to do the best we can with what we have today.

    1. I’ve heard that, too. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Although–during the dark times–it can be difficult to accept, I do believe that it is the truth. Thank you so much for your presence here, friend. <3

  3. As I submit my novel and listen to the crickets chirping, I can say with certainty that I am in the midst of one of those valleys of life. It is the loneliest place I’ve ever been, to have created something, to keep putting it out there, and to get………..nothing. I heard so many horror stories about rejection letters, and I cannot even get one.

    In our darkest places, we still have to believe in ourselves, to pull from the buried reserves of inner strength that will move us forward. Heck, some days I have to pour figurative gasoline on the cold embers that remain in the dirt at the very bottom of that pit of buried reserve. It isn’t easy, but it’s all part of growing. When we stop growing, we die.

    1. Just reading your comment gives me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I haven’t written about it, but in my past life I was a poet. That’s what I went to school for. It is “what” I was, and more importantly “who” I was. I defined myself by that word and by my ability to succeed at being that word.

      I remember the cold, nauseating impact of rejection.. after rejection… after rejection. It was so incredibly hard. I had to learn two things and I hope that these things will help you, too (even if in the smallest of ways):

      1. A word (poet, novelist, writer, accountant, coach, speaker) can never define us. It’s a simple sentiment but gaze at it, it’s quite powerful.

      2. A thousand horrible rejections will be washed away with one simple acceptance. It took years for me and then one day I was published in the Columbia Review. I know that it will happen for you, too. Don’t give up.

      Best of luck wading through these dark moments, my dear friend. I am thinking of you & sending you bunches of love & light. xo

  4. Hey Dena, I loved this article. I really needed to be uplifted. I am definitely going through some hard times in my life right now. Being unemployed and having a hard time finding employment, not know how I am going to pay my bills, but I realize I am not the only one who is going through what I am. I will keep taking it one day at a time, continue to look, and know that there is something out there for me, but that God has not led me to it yet, or it is not the time right now. I have to remember that I have a great family, and a Masters Degree in Social Work that I am almost done with that no one can take away from me. Thank you for the great message.

  5. Dena…. I love you!! You are the best and this makes my Friday. I am going through a transition at work where I am being pulled in a thousand different directions. Hard times….yes. But could it be worse. Of course. So I read your post and I smile becasue you remind me that life is life, and what happens- happens. I need to stop worrying about how it could be simpler and focus on what I can do now. Thanks Again.

    1. You are so welcome, Meg! I am so happy to hear that this resonated with you. Best of luck through the transition. XO

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