3 quick tips to land that day job
(image from Sonic Bids Bog)
As painful as it sounds to go from Instagram to LinkedIn, it doesn’t have to be and many day jobs can still have the creative nature you excel in. Or, if your soul feels like its drowning in conference calls and emails chains, you’ll have inspiration for your series on purgatory. But here are a few tips to help you transition into that job:
(image from The Balance)
1) Have a résumé. A serious one. And short one. Keep it to one page no matter how much experience you have. This is good for two reasons: 1) recruiters don’t like having multiple pages to keep together and 2) unless asked for a CV (which is all your life experiences since montessori school), there’s no reason to go over a page. A résumé is supposed to be a snapshot of your experience or skills relevant to the open position. Always better to stick to a readable size font than to cram in more information.
(image from Feng Shui and Beyond)
2) Lie. Not really, but phrase and explain in a way that makes it sound like you’ve had a natural course in your work experience instead of a bunch of different jobs. Highlight the tasks or responsibilities that speak to your strengths. Instead of just listing you were a cashier at Banana Republic and then a waiter at Cheesecake Factory, focus on your strength of creativity. Maybe you were in charge of the window display at your retail job and maybe you presented those god-awful plastic models of desserts in a way that was more appetizing. This way instead of what may seem like an unrelated string of positions, you’re “someone who brings creative thought to solve problems, uphold brand expectation, or increase the bottom line through innovative in diverse fields.” Prove what you’re capable of with concrete examples---think of it as storytelling.
(image from Small Business)
3) Don’t hide that you’re an artist. Is this more a gig to you than your life’s passion? Yep, it is. Don’t come off disingenuous by making it seem like you really do want to spend your life administering payroll. But also don’t come off ungrateful or condescending because art is more important to you. Be realistic. “As an artist and as my résumé shows, I have brought creativity and innovative thinking to any position I have been responsible for and this has resulted in the company gaining a valuable skill set in presenting their overall vision on a tangible level.”
No matter what, honor your true vocation---being an artist, but be sure to show the company you’re interviewing with how they can benefit from having one join their team.