Article

Differentiate
Yourself for Your
Career Success!

By Peter Fleming FCMA

Today, more than ever, it’s tougher to apply successfully for jobs, especially office or professional jobs that require a thorough application process, CV’s, interviews, salary negotiations and the like.

Not so long ago, many of us could pick and choose but since the fall of Lehman and its aftermath, the picture has changed quite a bit.

And if you are a job applicant, you need to change too … at least change your approach.

I tell my coaching clients that it is no longer “good enough to be good enough”. Plenty of people are good enough for many of the jobs out there and are still not getting them.

Why?

The World is Changing. Are you?

CORE^* trends around the world are changing the World at Work dramatically.

And the changes are happening at an ever accelerating pace.

Many people nowadays don’t get the results their experience and credentials deserve, not because they aren’t good enough at their job, but because their skills at managing the job application process are not good enough and they are especially not good enough in writing an effective CV. One that will not only get you to the interview but also set the agenda for it.

And it all starts with making sure you stand out from your competition.

Differentiate Yourself Favourably!

Now let me be clear, differentiating yourself favourably does NOT mean writing your CV using glow-in-the-dark silver ink on magenta paper. Or showing up to the interview in a rabbit suit. Unless of course the job requires those skills!

It means setting yourself apart in a professional and effective way to create a superior impact compared to your competitors. And in today’s market, you will have more competitors than ever before, including foreign talent and others.

In this Points Game, There are Many Ways to Score More & Win

The good news is that there are many ways to do this. What’s good for you might not be appropriate for someone else, and vice versa, but these might include:

Address your job application to a name rather than a position. Sending your application to “Ms Tan Ah Lien” will always get a better response than to “Head of Personnel”. Or worse, “To Whom It May Concern”. It is one of the ways for you to show that you care enough to have done some research and this will differentiate you positively from the 99% who wouldn’t have bothered to do so. However, make sure you spell the name correctly; otherwise it will have the opposite effect from the one you want. When people write to me as Mr Flemming (with the extra ‘m’), I am not very impressed.
Keep the content 100% positive. There is no room in a CV for words like ‘but’ or ‘although’. As in “although I don’t have the necessary qualifications, I feel I could do this job” (or worse, “I hope you would consider my application”). This smacks of low self-esteem and when compared to the other 99 (or 199) applicants, yours will most likely be filed in “the round file” … i.e. the bin.

It’s Not So Hard Really … but You Might Need Help

There are many other examples, some of which are very important do’s and don’ts, but in this points game (he/she who scores the most points wins) with no prize for 2nd place, every point counts and in the end, it can be just one small thing that you overlooked which your competitor didn’t, that makes the difference.

Engaging an experienced and successful career coach would of course be a step in the right direction.

Consider The Effective Use of Video

An increasingly popular way to differentiate yourself is by making use of video.

I am not talking about putting something up on You Tube or sending any old video from your bachelor night or something you recorded at a family gathering in 1994.

I believe strongly in personal branding and in differentiation. I do not believe in doing things which position you or your brand incorrectly. So if you think you can’t create a video which can serve your needs positively, then this idea might not be for you.

However, if you have a brand and are prepared to put some time and effort into making an effective video (it need not be done by a professional), you can create a very strong impression that will differentiate you FAVOURABLY.

Now, to reiterate, video is not for every person or every situation. However, this option shouldn’t be ignored just because you are not a model or actor or circus performer, or because your looks or voice might not be those of a movie star.

Almost all mobile phones and computers have video-recording capabilities these days and there are free video editing software options on the web and once you have your video, you can email it to your chosen recipient.

What a differentiator when the employer opens up the 87th (or 187th) email application on that day and they see yours … with an effective video and your high impact CV attached.

WOW! They will certainly remember you!

Your job therefore is to ensure that the content and presentation of the video and the CV are FAVOURABLE and POSITIVE and you are well on your way to scoring more points and achieving a more successful outcome.

Till next time, we wish you all the best in your job hunting …

Peter Fleming FCMA

Details of Peter’s CV writing and job-hunting services can be found here.
Details of the video email system that Peter recommend for his clients can be found here.
For any further information, you can contact Peter here.

About the Writer

Before becoming one of Asia’s top career coaches, Peter Fleming had a successful corporate career for 20 years with giants like Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, General Motors & Schlumberger, progressing to the very top of his profession.
He is the author of the best-selling “Do What You Love, Love What You Do” and the A2Z series of success books and is a regular speaker, trainer and consultant to businesses and individuals in Singapore & beyond.
He is a certified career coach and a certified NLP practitioner.
He conducts high-impact training sessions for companies and teams and provides career-enhancing tools online.
He has worked all his professional life in Asia and has been based in Singapore since 1986.
He can be contacted by email

* CORE trends are Consolidation, Outsourcing, Retrenchment and Early retirement, all of which are major business and demographic trends that are changing the world at an accelerating rate ... Please email Peter for a copy of a separate article on this