What Happens After You Get A Professionally Written CV?

I got a Slack message from a job seeker (let’s call her Emma) updating me after we’d organised a professionally written CV for her.

So I decided to take punt and resend my CV having made the Tasha-recommended changes. Lo and behold, I’ve just got an interview for the exact same job I was previously rejected for (don’t tell them.. maybe they think I’m a completely different person)!

Emma wanted me to know it had given her the confidence to reapply for a job she’d been rejected from already. It was one which she really REALLY like the sound of and had been so disappointed to be rejected off the bat. No interview. Nothing. Guess what? Having resubmitted her professionally written CV, they invited her to interview! Just goes to show how a professionally written CV can open that door to a job interview invite!

Prior to this Emma had been in active job search mode as a result of an imminent redundancy. She had been becoming increasingly frustrated by the job search. Making lots of job applications and not hearing anything back. And when she did get a reply, more often than not it was a rejection. She knew this wasn’t right. She had enough experience behind her to know she has talent, that she really should be landing the opportunity to interview for these jobs. 

Don’t Get Ghosted

When pursuing career progression, a professionally written CV is everything! It can open the door to your next employer. It enables the opportunity to demonstrate in person how good you actually are. It acts as the shop window, showing off your skills and experience. And it can set you apart from all the other applicants applying for the same job. Or if poorly written you’ll just get the void of silence. Not interview invites. Nothing.

Getting ghosted (empty inbox on a mobile)

Thinking About Your CV Differently

Upon a colleague’s recommendation, Emma got in touch and we had a long discussion about her experience, her career progression and ambitions. After some time, I asked her where all of this was in her CV. It was so interesting that her original CV read like a job description. It was a dry read of what she’d been responsible for. All of the passion, excitement and knowledge that came across during our discussion was missing. It was very apparent changes needed to be made. Applying our basic tips on how to write a CV was essential but also bringing some of her personality into the CV was important. 

Having got Emma to tell me about her achievements, her career highlights and what she’d been proud of making happen, we agreed these were what really should be in the CV, rather than her responsibilities. Employers will know the fundamentals of Emma’s basic job responsibilities but what they don’t know is how great she did. Or what she’d actually made happen. We took an abundance of what we discussed and brought them into the CV, turning those results into achievements for her CV. Future readers of her new professionally written CV will get a much better impression of her. Not only is the CV more impactful but it really showcases what she is capable of. A reader’s thought process is more likely to be “She’s made “x” happen for that company, she could make “x” happen for us too!”. The result? It suggests she’s bringing the skills and experience and can make thing happen. She delivers. The culmination of these drive the reader to wanting to meet her (the applicant). More often than not it means an interview invitation is on it’s way!

crowd surfing (standing out from the crowd)

Standing Out From Everyone Else!

That’s exactly what we did here. The original CV when compared to the professionally written CV were so different. The new one elevated her candidature, and it reflected her so much better.  Nothing is fabricated but it gives the reader a much better impression of who she is rather than just anyone doing the same job. Ultimately it sets her apart from everyone else in a similar role, and ensures the reader quickly recognises her abilities.

Once we agreed on a final version of her professionally written CV, we discussed the job market. We bounced ideas around on how to approach her job search. We talked about dream jobs, what’s important to Emma and what she was prepared to compromise on. I think it really helped Emma to have an independent but informed sounding board that could prompt her sometimes to think a little out the box.  The frustration of a challenging job search, especially with a poorly presented CV can be hugely demoralising. It can escalate what was a smidgen of self-doubt into a full-blown imposter syndrome catastrophe. Fortunately being able to talk it through with someone who is (more than) experienced in the world of hiring and job seeking, we were able to reinvigorate the passion and energy to re-approach her job search with the new CV.

Like Emma, people say our CV critique makes them look at CV writing very differently. We use our consultation time to gain personal insights to tailor a professionally written CV to you as an individual.  It will be impactful and improve the success of your job search. 

A recent update from Emma shared

By the way – the interview that this story is about went really well and I’m through to the next round!

Such a lovely update, and it just goes to show if we hadn’t helped Emma craft a professionally written CV, she never would have got the chance to show them how good she is! Go show them how good you are, Emma!!

We Can Help Craft You A Professionally Written CV

With over 25 years in recruitment, we offer a paid-for career coaching, CV writing and interview preparation service. It supports your job search, steering you in the best direction with a CV you can be proud of. Use the button below to share your current CV with us. The next step is that we’ll book a video call with you to help us craft your professionally written CV.

Pink button to order "199 CV critique

If you’re looking for additional expert guidance on your job search like Emma was, we’ve got plenty of tips some of which are below:

💡 How to List Achievements on Your CV
💡 Tips On How To Write A Great CV
💡 Think You’re Under-Qualified, So What?

If you prefer to initially speak with us, do call 0203 7514108 to book yourself a career coach or CV critique session. You can also email careercoach@clockworktalent.com and we’ll contact you to book your initial video call with our expert. 

Natasha