This week I called for “pet peeves” from job search consultants and received some interesting responses. In the effort to broker improved jobseeker/consultant relations, I’ll share them with you now.

Telephone Stalking. Says one consultant, “Too many calls to check status” can be embarrassing and annoying. “If I have news, I’ll be calling you and if I do not have news, then ‘phone stalking’ doesn’t help either of us!”

Prolonged Telephone Calls: A close cousin to telephone stalking, “The prolonged telephone calls where the jobseeker thinks that the longer he keeps you on the telephone the more inclined you are to be won over is just an exercise in futility”. Recruiters know what they are looking for, whether it is a certain industry background, job title or skill set and are not going to advance a jobseeker’s candidacy for a role for which he’s unqualified. Keeping consultants on the telephone fishing for information and desperately attempting to draw a tenuous line between the job and your skill set fails to win over anyone.

Unsuccessful Candidates Requesting “Why”? Jobseekers who fail to get a job are often confused and angry, particularly when they believe they ticked all the boxes for the job (at least in their own minds). It’s not surprising that they’d like to know why. As much as the Job Search Consultant would love to give that feedback, it is not possible. The fact is the employer is their client and is entitled to give and receive information with the expectation of privacy. Pushing the consultant further just becomes a frustrating and embarrassing interaction.

Resume Edits: Surprisingly, resumes didn’t rate all that highly on the list of recruiters’ pet peeves, but failing to remove mark-ups from the resume is cited as “terrible” by one consultant. “There is nothing worse than looking at red and blue edits and cross-outs and even worse, comments from friends who have reviewed or proofed your resume” one said. Jobseekers, take note! Turn off tracked-edits, click on “Accept all Changes” on the review toolbar and then save the document before emailing.

It’s all in the attitude: “I’ve had jobseekers give me attitude, such as rolling their eyes at the mention of pre-employment testing” says one consultant. Jobseekers, while this may be of immense annoyance to you, try to keep your poker face. The consultant is the conduit by which the employer communicates. If pre-employment testing has been offered, you are one step further in the process. Remember, decision makers are watching! (This also goes for those who state “I don’t fill in forms… those are for lower level positions”).

Academic Entitlement: Jobseekers with an air of superiority surrounding their academic background, add fuel to the fire of condemnation for many consultants. “You do know I have an MBA don’t you?” is not a interview-winning statement or a compelling business case. Having a Ph.D or an MBA makes you no more qualified than any other candidate as you will not be chosen solely on the basis of having these qualifications. It is how you apply what you know, the results you achieve and your leadership capabilities that will lead to your ultimate success in scoring a job offer. Demonstrating an air of entitlement and superiority means you failed the core part of leadership: communicating effectively.

Location Differences: No Explanations “If there is one thing that grates”, says one recruiter, “Is when out-of-state applicants don’t address the issue of location in their cover letters. “I want to know why someone in one state, has applied for a job in another. Telecommuting? Relocating? What’s the plan?” If you make job search consultants decide, they may come up with the wrong scenario and you may be discounted from the race for the job.

Jobseekers and recruiters. It’s a relationship where one can’t survive without the other and while it may not be a love match, professionalism and courtesy for each other is the very least each party can bring to the table.

Did I say “gap”? The more you look at it you see a great yawning chasm with nothing to link the dates before “the event” and after.

“The Event” of which I speak can be any extended leave of absence that you feel uncomfortable in explaining and of which you would prefer, if you were less ethical, to fudge with a made-up job or a reference to the delightfully vague: Working Holiday. (An idea you dismiss reluctantly knowing that you’ll be found out one way or another).

There are many reasons for an extended absence from the world of work and frankly most of these reasons are for a pretty noble cause of which you should be justifiably proud: the birth and rearing of young children or the care of elderly or infirm parents (being just a couple).

So how do you explain “The Event” so that your resume isn’t filled with soppy personal information, nor does it look like you’ve been a couch potato staring at Days of Our Lives every day losing your entire skill base while Stefano DiMera single-handedly destroys Salem?

For stay-at-home mums and dads, there are a lot of opportunities to position your skills through your involvement in committees, parent/teacher associations, new mother’s groups, event planning, charity fundraising and the like.

What to do:

First, change the experience section heading of your resume from “Career Summary” or “Professional Experience” and instead call it: Experience, Initiatives and Results.

On top of the last job you held to cover the gap, place a heading (like a company name) that provides an overview of the type of job you are going to describe:

Here are two ideas:

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

or

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Type your dates to cover the date of your absence from the workforce. For example, 2005 to Present

Next comes your position title. Consider terms such as: Fundraiser, Club Treasurer, Teacher’s Assistant, or Event Planner.

Then you could provide a brief description underneath the title:

• Joined fundraising club and volunteered to assume Events Planner role. Gained distinction for innovative ideas, powerful advertising on a shoestring budget and uniting a team of 20 volunteer fundraisers to scout and source locations for the best collection tin points. Four events held annually were considered an outstanding success raising $10,000 to purchase play equipment for the local school.

You could even place a few bullet points underneath that to highlight different skills such as financial management, team leadership and more.

This approach could also apply if you have been advocating for elderly or sick parents; frequently people acquire a lot of knowledge about government services, care centres, finances, pensions and healthcare—probably more than they ever wanted to know, but skills and knowledge are a gift, and not always a gift we can pick and choose. Many people find themselves wanting a change of career after such experiences, as they have found new skills by gaining exposure to a whole new world.

In times of sadness, being an executor of a family member’s Will provides you with a wealth of knowledge—from financial management, through disbursement of an estate, real-estate sales, government services, genealogy research and more. Again, these experiences can provide a very compelling case for the breadth and depth of your experience when positioned strategically and confidently on your resume.

It just needs thought. Everything we embark upon, in some way or another, provides us with knowledge.

How can you turn that knowledge around to build your case for employment?

I am thrilled to that Ken has chosen us at Top Margin to bring this groundbreaking tool to Australia. For almost 20 years, Top Margin has been a leader and innovator in matching top quality services to the needs of jobseekers. This service, providing Top Margin’s clients with a true competitive edge, is yet another company first. I look forward to a long association with Ken and to start ramping up our clients’ interview successes in this increasingly competitive environment.