As busy working gals/dudes/parents (or whatever other hats you may be wearing), it’s so easy to fall into a day in-day out routine when it comes to our work. Wake up, get ready, get the kids ready, swallow the breakfast, get stuck in traffic, plop our busy selves in the cubicle chair and start hustling away—that’s what we do! After a few months/years/decades, it almost becomes like second nature. Before we know it, we’re operating like clockwork, doing the same thing we’ve been doing forever.
BUT—here comes Spring, and with it the urge to dust off and clean out those dark corners of our lives we’ve been running on cruise control. Ok, maybe not the darkest ones, but at least the ones we’re exposed to the most often and which have been kinda dormant for quite some time. And very often, it begins with our careers.
Listen, if there ever were an area in our lives we should devote to scrubbing off, re-engineering and oiling up every now and then, it’s our careers. We spend most of our lives at work, and we could afford to spare some time every now and again to clean up and start fresh in the work department.
So for all of you busy bees out there who may be wondering how to bring Spring into your career without losing your mind and having to overhaul what you’ve been working so hard for for months/years/decades, here are some easy, tried-and-true tips:
Dust off your resume
Your resume is like your career ID card. Just as you renew your ID every few years, you should also polish up your resume every so often. This means updating it even when you’re not looking for a job. Some quick and easy changes you could start making include:
- Improving the looks of it by reducing the number of fonts you’re using, using more bullets to highlight your accomplishments, and making use of white space to separate your resume’s sections;
- Getting rid of the excess resume weight by keeping it more concise, staying away from being overly autobiographical, and showcasing your qualifications at the top of your resume;
- Keeping it more current by updating the terminology used and adding terms employers may be searching for.
Polish your LinkedIn profile
One of the major steps in spring cleaning your career is to update your LinkedIn profile. Start by scrubbing off your old experiences; anything over 10 years old should go! Dust off your skills section by hanging on to those skills that have been endorsed by others. Lastly, focus on your best accomplishments and ditch any outdated recommendations.
Scrub your social media platforms
Most recruiters and companies nowadays scour candidates’ social media profiles as part of the selection and hiring process. So take the time to re-assess your social media presence with these simple tips:
- Let go of any outdated or unused social media channels and only keep two to three platforms you’ll commit to being active on;
- Come up with a strategy for each social media platform you’re using;
- Remove any compromising information that may push recruiters or companies away (think about your last Spring Break questionable pictures);
What other tips would you add to this list?
To Your Success,
I like the fact that you’ve included social media platforms in your career Spring clean. It’s true that they’re an important part of people’s image and one of the first things that future employers check!
Social media cleanups are so important, especially in today’s digital world where privacy is questionable and people seem to take offense at anything and everything. LinkedIn has also been wonderful for me as employers will actually seek you out without you having to do anything!