50 shades of resume

50 Shades Of Resume #22: The Retro Ad

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Resume 22

Chuck Lay’s resume looks like a set of retro ads from a magazine, newspaper, or comic book. The iconic art, the different fonts, the text blurbs, it’s all there. A quick glance at it and you might think for a moment someone was trying to do a retro ‘zine. Actually it was part of something similar that he created.

But it’s all there, a complete resume that just happens to look like it comes with X-ray specs. Let’s dive in and see what we can learn . . .

The high points of the resume:

  • He’s really captured the sense of the classic ads – while keeping them clear. it very quickly gets attention and shows talent and skill.
  • THis resume also shows a definite sense of humor. Not many resumes actually say “I have a sense of humor” effectively, so it communicates personality.
  • The use of the icons in the classic ad look really helps sell it – and breaks up the resume, since many can be rather dull.
  • The “want more” cut out at the bottom is a hilarious and witty addition – and reinforces his contact information.
  • He uses different font colors and sizes to call attention to different sections, as well as different section sizes. Thus, each section is unique and draws attention.
  • This basic idea would not be that difficult to maintain or modify if done right. It would also not be hard to make several versions.

A few issues I have with the resume:

  • The non-standard resume layout may not quite work here. The use of one column for skills (on the right) and the career history dominating 2/3 of the page provides some workflow, but I don’t think it works with the variable fonts and elements – a bit too chaotic. It might work on a different resume.
  • Some of the font sizes are a bit small.
  • I wouldn’t make the Designer Profile section quite as big – it over dominates.
  • I might put the education and affiliations lower on the page – but I say might. With this layout, oddly, it works.

This is a good example of making a resume that looks like something else – but also subtle in its own way. It walks a good line between “looks like this” and “is a resume” while maintaining it’s theme.

Steve’s Summary: Hand me this resume and I’m going to have a good laugh – and a series of ones. Backed up with a good portfolio (because I’d want to see more) and it’s pretty powerful.

[“50 Shades of Resume” is an analysis of various interesting resumes to celebrate the launch of the second edition of my book “Fan To Pro” and to give our readers inspiration for their own unique creations.]

– Steven Savage

50 Shades Of Resume #21: The Scrapbook

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Resume 21

Anna Yenina’s resume looks like it’s made from things lying around the house – a piece of paper, an old photo, pieced of paper, cloth doodads, and a post-it note. Sure, it’s a resume, but a resume meant to look like it’s made from other things. It’s a scrapbook in resume form.

She also disposes of the standard resume format, focusing on skills first, then an introduction, and finally providing more detailed information. The chaotic design is reflected in the arrangement as well – and actually seems to play off of it. The resume makes you pay attention with its unusual nature – and that helps draw you in.

The high points of this resume provide us some instructional lessons:

  • Like other, similar resumes the fact she can make the resume look like something else shows a level of artistic skill and creativity. That’s automatically a way to show talent.
  • The non-standard resume outline actually works here, because it plays into the chaos. That’s an interesting lesson in breaking form by breaking physical form.
  • She very cleverly calls out a basic personality statement with “highlighting” and an arrow at the top, and the green post-it-note is bright enough to call out her skills. That’s a clever way to use the metaphor to emphasize specific traits and keep the non-standard arrangement of the resume working.
  • The informal look of the resume is reinforced by the non formal writing style. That might not work for everyone, but it does maintain the spirit of the resume.
  • The little fine details really draw the eye and get attention. It makes the resume fun. For instance, the little exclamation point at the top is a cute touch.
  • As always, including a photo adds a human touch.
  • The resume itself, via its design, has a more personal feel.
  • The links to portfolios and examples are a good show of “putting your money where your mouth is.”

A few issues:

  • Some of the text seems to have been added via graphic tools and it shows. It could be messed with a bit, possibly to keep the informal feel.”
  • The non-standard arrangement is a bit of a gamble.
  • I think it could have used a career history in some area. It’s worked into the large descriptive paragraph, but it doesn’t give a “feel” of history.
  • There’s a slight glitch around the star on the hobbies page where the text overlaps it. Yes, I do fine detail.

My ultimate takeaway here is using the “chaotic” nature of the metaphor to both work with a non-standard layout and at the same time to highlight important points. There’s something very clever about both subverting the standard resume – and then making things stand out.

Steve’s Summary: If I got handed this resume I’d get a kick out of it – and enjoy the whimsy and the personal touch. It’s clear she’s imaginative and creative off the bat, but it’s almost a humble way of showing it.

[“50 Shades of Resume” is an analysis of various interesting resumes to celebrate the launch of the second edition of my book “Fan To Pro” and to give our readers inspiration for their own unique creations.]

– Steven Savage

50 Shades Of Resume #20: The Industry Pitch

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Resume 20

Michael Mahle knew what he wanted; a communications job in the wine world. So he made this resume, with a wineglass theme, and pitched hard to get what he wanted – and work with his metaphor.

What seems to be a simple conceit (put a big wine glass image) on the resume turns into far more, and he’s packed all the needed resume detail on here, and done it with a non-standard resume flow. Let’s take a look.

What can we learn:

  • First, as noted, this is a full resume, and he got that on top of working with his theme. That’s great – and shows his skills.
  • He has a concise summary of himself that works with the conciseness of the resume – normally I prefer a bit longer, but it works here.
  • The use of the wine glass image to “contain” his skills is a great way to play them up and use his metaphor – as well as draw the eye to what he has to offer. That’s a great use of space and imagery – and the big “Experience” calls attention as well.
  • He breaks up Experience and Skills. I’m not sure that always works, but in this case he’s trying to make some distinctions, and as he has a short self-description it provides detail.
  • Normally I don’t approve of education being listed too early, but as the “top” of the resume is skills and experience this actually works.
  • On that subject, he divides the resume well, with the “stem” of the wineglass being where he discusses his career. Another good use of the metaphor.
  • Those gold dividing lines are a good call, to ensure the different sections are separated and create some flow for the reader.
  • I like the overall choice of color scheme – rich, friendly, and different. Notice he doesn’t resort to plain black text at once.
  • The resume shows skilled design – and is a testimony to his abilities.
  • This is the rare resume that is both a kind of “stunt” resume and a traditional resume all in one.

Now there are a few issues I have.

  • Sadly, I doubt this is scannable – the use of the curving effects on the glass for instance may mess with OCR. But it could be tweaked.
  • He may have wanted a hobby section to not mix hobbies with skills.
  • The “second half” of the wine glass, with his career is clever, but I just don’t get a sense of career flow from it. I probably would have put the dates first, or above the locations, in a darker, smaller font.
  • I don’t know if he needs to mention the people he knows unless these are references – and then me may want to call them such. Though I imagine knowing Tim Zagat is pretty important.
  • Not sure if the various social media icons are needed unless the resume is web-active (which the original was), though it does show off what he knows.

I really like how this resume takes one element iconic to his search (the glass) and works it into his resume design and a semi-traditional one at that. It really gets your attention, speaks to his focus (wine), and shows skill. If you’re trying a highly industry-specific pitch, something like this might work for you.

Steve’s Summary: This resume gets my attention twice – first for the crafting, then the detail. It tells me he is a communications person.

[“50 Shades of Resume” is an analysis of various interesting resumes to celebrate the launch of the second edition of my book “Fan To Pro” and to give our readers inspiration for their own unique creations.]

– Steven Savage