Paying someone to write my resume for me?
I have a serious block when it comes to writing my resume. I've always had trouble with it but it's to the point now where I'm having panic attacks just thinking about opening Word to start it. The furthest I've gotten in the last year and a half is part way through my address at the top.
I do just fine at every other part of the job-hunting and retention process, but I really need some help with the first hurdle. I would be able to come up with a detailed description of my responsibilities at my previous positions, I just need someone to condense it into resume form.
Has anyone ever paid someone to do this for them? How would I find such a service? I think I've seen offers of resume editing before but I really need someone to write it from scratch.
If you live in the UK, I'm sure someone at your local job centre will help. Maybe a disabilities employment adviser, maybe someone else. Actually, you probably don't live in the UK, cos you said resume and not CV. There must be unemployment offices in the US though, have you tried somewhere like that?
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Tangled up and Blue
I'm from the US but I'm currently in Australia and won't be home for a few more weeks. There are unemployment offices in the US but I think they're for people who are receiving benefits, which I am not. I suppose I could try them anyway when I get back home. I'd rather handle this by email if possible.
Years ago I got a book which teachs you to write your own. I sincerely hope that you will not be offended if I not not post my CV here. But this is how I would do one. It would help if you say how old you are, your educational background and what type of job are you trying to get.
Feel free to use the following as a template. For goodness sake do not use the spoof details I have put into this example one.
Name Dr Ivan Nottelling
Date of birth 1 April 1970
Address 1 Neurodiversity Drive
Aspietown
Autcounty
Postcode
Country
Telephone number +38(0)123 314314
Email address [email protected]
Education
PhD in drilling holes in trees, bird university
BSc in sitting on branchs, feather university
Name school and give dates you attended
A-levels blagh blagh blagh (list them)
GCSEs blagh blagh blagh (list them)
Employment
Drain cleaner, Wrong planet management company, 1 April 2008 to 1 April 2010
Window washer, Paris Zoo, 1 April 2007 to 1 April 2008
Lion tamer, Berlin Zoo, 1 April 2005 to 1 April 2007
Snake Charmer, Deli Zoo, 1 April 2000 to 1 April 2005
Continue with your job list
Skills
Typing nonsense, pecking trees, unblocking drains, washing windows, running fast away from the lions, playing the flute, snake handling etc etc
Interests
Looking out the window, peering down the well, staring at the moon
Referees (never give family, try to use your last boss)
Alex Plank
Give his address
Give his phone number
Give his email address
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Health is a state of physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity I am not a jigsaw, I am a free man !
Diagnosed under the DSM5 rules with autism spectrum disorder, under DSM4 psychologist said would have been AS (299.80) but I suspect that I am somewhere between 299.80 and 299.00 (Autism) under DSM4.
I've tried books, software, and copying others' resumes. It's not that I don't know how to write one, it's that I'm physically incapable of doing it. I'm sure that seems strange if you haven't had a similar problem, but that's where I'm at right now.
I just need to find someone who is good at writing these things and pay them to do it for me.
cvtemplate - Write a CV in minutes
I used this site. It is very good and easy to use. It's formatted in a description with bullet points style for each element of which you have a choice of e.g Education, Previous Experience, Volunteering, Interests, References etc. etc. Because I didn't want to pay, I had to screen print the preview page so it's too large to send in to online application sites, but it's under £20 for a years full usage.
I took help from site cvtemplatedotnet, this site contains lots of cvs, and its easy to download from number of different types of cv categories, i am sure cv for any type of job can be found on this site. Also it has tips on writing our own cv, it has MS word editable option too. So, i dont think so, when we have these many free stuffs available online why do we need to pay.[
Someone already mentioned the UK, but if you're in the US, your county might have a job-seeking center where you can get free help with resumes. Some of them are called "One-Stop Centers". Here's a web site about them:
http://www.careeronestop.org/
Also, if you want to post here what you have so far, I'm sure people will give you feedback.
I started a business to help ASD folk with their Job finding & retention issues (see sig line for address) that includes resume writing because of this very issues... some of us get caught up on one aspect of the job search whether it be the cover letter, resume, phone screen, interview, workspace, etc. There is at least one other regular poster on the forum that does resume writing and our business are doing well enough so you are certainly not alone... even among the NT population these are common services.
Since this is a near shameless plug I am certainly willing to help you out but also encourage you to post for the other individual too (cannot recal her handle at the moment).
IMHO CV writing services take advantage of desperate unemployed people, under the misconception that there is some magic formula which will get you a job. No CV writing service I have seen offers a job or your money back guarantee. It is far better to write a CV yourself, try tailoring it to each individual job you apply for. No CV service writes CV's customised to specific jobs either, unless you have a bottomless wallet. Just look at example CV's on the internet and use the resources freely available, and that should help remove the block. Once you get going you'll be fine. Make sure you highlight your skills and abilities (these will be among the things you modify for different jobs - e.g. computer skills might not be relevant to all jobs), without waffling, and keep to either one or two sides of A4. It also helps if you avoid using the templates everyone else uses, to try keep yours looking different and unique to everyone else's. Those are the main golden rules really. Oh, and the other is to ensure your spelling and grammar are impeccable (this makes applying for jobs difficult for people with other neurodiverse conditions such as Dyslexia.)
I'll do your resume for free right now if you PM me. I can do your cover letters and thank you letters too. I can research companies for you and so on. I can help you with interviews. I can give you personal references. I've never charged anyone for doing it. In these tough times we need to help one another.
I have paid a company to do mine, I think if you struggle with doing it you should get a professional to help. I used CV-Shop, you can find them online and they were really helpful. I wasn’t very good at putting my experience and achievements etc down on paper. So I went to that company and they really helped me.
I would definitely try and get it done professionally.
I have had to work through large stacks of CVs, and believe me, when you have several hundred applicants per job, you simply cannot read them all. Rather like working through the slush pile, I had simple rules that enabled me to trim to a manageable number. All the following were binned, usually unread:
Cheap photocopying of poor legibility and/or slanted across the paper
Coloured paper
'look at me' tricks like word art, clip art and fancy borders
Photographs (unless specifically requested)
Illegible or coloured fonts
Bound resumes
Family as referees (unless working for a family company)
Religious imagery, references or quotes
A CV should be simple, clearly printed in a standard font, properly spaced on decent weight white, or light cream, paper. In many cases that alone will see you through the first cull.
Give me something that hands me the information I need quickly and without fuss!
I haven't researched these companies, so I'll put in that qualifier, but knowing one's own limitations, and how to get past them, is by itself a job skill. Meaning that if someone knows they cannot write a resume they will be happy with, they should find someone, paid or not paid, to do it for them. I remember interviewing someone with very limited English who had turned in a perfect resume ... We were more willing than usual to overlook the lack of skill simply because she had taken the initiative to go around it. While I don't think paying someone to take you from an acceptable resume to a better one is worthwhile, paying someone to do something that you can't or don't want to do yourself can be.
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Mom to an amazing young adult AS son, plus an also amazing non-AS daughter. Most likely part of the "Broader Autism Phenotype" (some traits).