Praxis Resume Advice

Yesterday I had a great conversation with one of our business partners who has taken multiple Praxis apprentices. He regularly looks through the Talent Profile and he made note of several things he sees that a lot of people could improve on. Since this is great advice and it’s coming direct from a business partner, I’m just going to pass on exactly what he said to me!

My career coach for Praxis had posted some great advice from one of their business partners. This business partner regularly looks through everyone’s talent profile, which is like a resume for each Praxis student. And he noticed several things that we all should improve on. This is what he had to say.

– If you have listed ways of getting in touch, such as email, LinkedIn, etc., you should note how often you check each one so people that contact you that way have a time frame. Don’t list a contact method that you only check once a week or less. And if you have a chatbot on your personal website, make SURE it gets monitored or gives good instructions!

– Don’t get overly granular with your “About Me” videos. Don’t treat it like a resume and list jobs you’ve had or try to tell your life story in under a minute. Instead, this should be a VERY broad overview of you as a person and a professional. A few career highlights are fine, but only if they tie in to a broad theme. And quality matters! Lighting, sound quality, and even a little post-production work go a long way. Simplify and tell a story.

– Don’t wear your beliefs on your sleeve. This has nothing to do with whether a particular religious, political, or other deeply-held belief is unpopular or not. But rather, you should keep professional communications to the realm of the services you’re selling. I’ve turned people away for pushing too hard on a particular belief, even if it was one I shared, because it’s not in line with solid professional behavior. For your first impression, keep it to your skills and abilities. As people get to know you there’s plenty of time to be proud of the other aspects of yourself, but the first virtual handshake isn’t the time.

Pretty insightful advice and this applies to every young professional, not just Praxis students. I’d recommend updating your LinkedIn every time you gain a new skill, a new job, or a publication.