YOUR CAREER:

Your career: Portfolio, resume, and personal branding refresher.

If you are actively looking for a new job or want to figure out to make the most out of your current career, then you need to listen to this episode. Too many great creative talents don’t have the careers they deserve and are struggling to find a new job because of a few simple, but huge problems are the reason why. In this episode, we will look how you can better understand employment process, as well as some of the basic do’s and don’ts so you can build a stronger brand and get better results in your next job search.

Listen now:

Over the past few days I’ve personally reviewed 300+ portfolios. Its been a reminder of how much amazing creative talent there is out there but also how most of them REALLY need rot spend some time getting some clarity around their brand and differentiators. You are competing against the best in the world so you need to give it your best effort to stand out.

Refresher episodes

I have done 4 epsiodes in the past on this topic so lets start with them.

EP 6: The power of personal branding
Listen to the episode here

EP 7: Bringing your personal brand to life
Listen to the episode here

EP 8: The lost art of the job interview
Listen to the episode here

EP 9: Design portfolio biggest opportunities, secrets and mistakes
Listen to the episode here

Do’s

DO put in some actual effort
If you are applying for a design position you need to put some design into your brand because what does it say about you when your resume is in 12pt Arial in Word? Take the time to do some real design and understand this is literally the first impression you are going to make.

DO have a web site no matter what creative field you are in
No matter what creative field you are in you need a web site. You need some place where you can show off your work, your style and your passion. It also shows that you care about your career. You send your resume in Word, your portfolio in a PDF, or don’t design any of it then I see someone who doesn’t care about their career.

DO fill out all fields in an application like portfolio and LinkedIn profile
There is a reason why recruiter ask for this information. If they ask for a portfolio then chances are the role needs someone who has a portfolio.

DO customize your theme if you use one
If you are going to use WordPress or another portfolio service make sure you take the time to customize it. The fifth time you see the same site it definitely loses its impact. Do the same with your PSD templates because again once you see the same app device mock up it loses its impact.

DO keep your information up to date
It sounds simple but keep everything up to date. Don’t apply if your website isn’t working or is down, etc.

DO make your portfolio and resume clear and concise
Back in episode 6 I talked about the importance of building your personal brand told you how to do it. A lot of you need to go listen to that episode.

Don’ts

DON’T list social media accounts you don’t use all the time
This is the part 2 of keep your information up to date. When you have a social media account on your resume or portfolio make sure it is one you actually use. It says something about your brand when you list something you haven’t used in three years.

DON’T do skill set list with percentages.
I have never understood the point of these. What are we rating against?

DON’T say ‘Dear Sir’
In episode 58 I talked about gender bias and when you are aware of the problem you see it expressed in many different ways. One of the ways os that I received emails from women and men that started with “Dear Sir”. It is an unconscious bias to think that only men are in charge. Even if you thought you were sending it to me then put ‘Dear Steve Gates’ or something so you don’t offend other people on my team. Use ‘Dear InVision’, ‘To whom it may concern’ etc. to start the email instead

DON’T lead with your education or skills
All it does is show that nothing you have done is your career you think is as valuable as where you went to school.

DON’T have your portfolio in a PDF if you are applying for a digital position
If you are going to apply for a position that needs digital expertise then you need to make sure that your work is presented in a way that shows off that digital expertise.