WEEKLY UPDATE: Interview Coaching for Every Brain Type

Summary: As a Communications Coach, one of the things I most love to do is to provide my resumé clients with interviewing tips, based on their personal needs. If you have a "challenged brain," you can benefit from some of my most commonly given advice below.

This week, I got one of those e-mail messages that really makes you glow: A satisfied resumé client wrote to tell me how helpful all of the "extras" I provided him were—extras like interview coaching, which is my favorite part of creating resumés for people. This work is best done one-on-one, but can also be successful when conducted over the telephone. In my client's case, we were able to meet in person and expedite the process.

Resumés are an integral part of the work world—even for blue collar positions nowadays.

This fact has surprised a number of my clients in recent months. I've helped people who have never created resumés (in one case, a retiree who had over 30 years of experience as a steel millwright in Gary, Indiana) pare down lifetimes of experience into concise, accurate, one-page sales pitches of their work history.

This can be a daunting process! Most clients come to me because they are completely overwhelmed by figuring out how to do this properly—and because so much depends on their getting the right employment right now.

Because of my expertise as a Communications Coach, it's far easier for me to do this on their behalf, simply by asking them a few questions and working off of a template that I've designed to cover all the bases. And because so many of my clients have what I call "challenged brains," I'm able to coach all personality types through unique and specific challenges. Examples include clients with ADD who have difficulty focusing (my biggest piece of advice is to practice deep breathing before, after, and especially during the interview); those with autism who may be particularly challenged by eye contact (making direct eye contact during a handshake and at the start of the interview is important, however a trick that can help for the remainder of any interview session is to look at the speaker's eyebrows or eyelashes); and clients who've struggled with depression, addiction or other illnesses that interrupted their work lives (there are a number of ways to address resumé holes or gaps in employment, and it's best to discuss these to determine what's right for each individual).

I love to see people grow and succeed. And I also love getting e-mails from those people that read, "I feel more confident thanks to you. ... I know who to come to with any questions in the future"!

© KiKi Productions, Inc. 2010

WEEKLY UPDATE: Sweet Treats for Job-Hunters

Summary: I'm posting late today after a yummy afternoon of tasting chocolate in downtown Chicago. It was a sweet ending to a wonderful week where I also received a call from a client whose résumé I created—a first for this blue collar retiree. Do you need help with a résumé or with interview skills? KiKi Productions, Inc. (my communications company) can help!

I'm posting late today, because I spent the afternoon belatedly treating my husband to a birthday surprise: A private tour for two, courtesy of Chicago Chocolate Tours. Mmmmm! Our tour guide, Kelly, did a wonderful job of communicating the history of chocolate in general, some specifics about the chocolatiers we visited, and even some chocolate-related tie-ins to famous historic architecture and artwork around the city as we tromped through the wet weather to sample treats at five different establishments. It was well worth it!

Another topic that came up regularly in the casual conversation throughout the day was career choices. And that makes me want to share with you another experience I had this week:

I received a phone call from a client whose résumé I recently created. Newly retired, he's been looking for a blue collar-level job in his previous field—a field that used to accept applications for new hires, but like most industries in this millennium, is now insisting on résumés from every job applicant. After 30-plus years at the same job, a brand new résumé and some fresh interviewing skills were just what my client needed. It was my pleasure to help out, and I was thrilled when he called me this week to say that he'd just had a successful interview—and that some of the feedback he'd gotten was that his résumé was "one of the best they'd ever seen."

So many Americans are in this same job-hunting pattern today. If you or someone you know is looking for a little assistance in this area, consider using a professional to give you that extra edge. KiKi Productions, Inc. (my own communications company) is just one of the many communications professionals available nationwide. I work with clients both in-person, where possible, and over the phone to address chronic communication issues.

Whether you're looking to improve your résumé, build your curriculum vitae, or craft your very first résumé after a career of working without one, I'm here—and happy—to help!

© KiKi Productions, Inc. 2009