Targeting Your Resume is So Important For Your Career

Targeting your portfolio, (resume and cover letter) can get you any job you desire! The purpose of targeting is so you can find your perfect match, your dream job!


To target successfully, you need to calculate the position, do this and you will be sure to hit the mark.

When targeting the job you wish to apply for, ask yourself,“ Am I responding to this position because I really want to do this job, or am I merely responding because the position is available?” Remember, there are always vacant positions to fill, but finding an open position that you truly want to perform every day, is going to take a more committed search. If you are just responding to classified ads just because they are there, you will never find a job in which you do not have to work. It is like the old adage, “Find a job you love and you will never 'work' another day in your life.”

It is also important when targeting your desired employment opportunity that you take some time to build a reputation within the particular field you want to work. You do this by getting to know the 'players'. Let's use this example: Say you want to manage the Italian restaurant down town. Would it be better if you knew the owner? Would your dream of managing this restaurant have a better chance of coming true, if you had eaten at this restaurant several times before and have made yourself known as a friendly, professional and familiar face?

If you have taken the time to talk to the proprietor and you've gotten to know the staff, then you have built a reputation. Now, if an opening for a manager at this same restaurant comes up, you will have a much better chance of getting the position than the applicant whose resume does not bring a personality to heart and a face to mind.

Remember that the longer you've been in the same field, the more likely you are to be well known. Also, the more you network with professionals from your field, the more opportunities you will have to climb the ladder of success.

Once you have fully targeted your position, and began to build a solid reputation it is time to calculate the position you are targeting. Calculating the position means that you must figure out exactly what the employer is looking for in her ideal job candidate. You must take your time to research the specific aspects that the job entails.

Now that you have calculated your position, it is time to hit your mark. You do this with your cover letter and resume. Knowing what the person looking at your resume wants to read will help you to get an interview.

When you are granted an interview, you again have to do research before presenting yourself. Figure out exactly what the employer not only wants, but, actually expects from his perfect employee.

Just as you wrote the words that would appeal to the reader of your resume, you will want to think of the words that the person interviewing you needs to hear. It is so important to communicate through your words. Hit the mark by saying the words the employer wants to hear from a perspective employee.

Skill in the art of communication is crucial to a leader's success. He can accomplish nothing unless he can communicate effectively.” Norman Allen.

By doing your research (targeting), building your reputation, and calculating your position, you will hit the mark and land your perfect job!