Personality In The Hiring ProcessDon’t delude yourself. No one is going to hire you based on your Executive Resume no matter how good it is! You will get hired because someone – or should we say, some people – like you, believe you have what it takes to solve their problems and think you will be a good addition to the team. But what if you’re not likeable? Well, there are people out there who don’t respond to “personality.” They might even think of themselves as cantankerous or curmudgeon-like. Yes, one of them may feel a kinship with you. But, it’s probably a better plan to figure out what there is about you to like and build on that. Hiring Decisions Are Made Emotionally.
Let’s step back and look at how “buying decisions” are really made. Let’s use automobiles as an example. People walk into a showroom and pick out an automobile that fits their personality. It’s an emotional decision. Maybe the car is sleek and powerful. Maybe it’s cute and unimposing. Whatever the image, it’s one that the buyer can reconcile with his or her own self image. The purchase is purely an emotional decision.
But, when speaking with friends, colleagues and neighbors, new car owners will immediately “justify” the purchase by pointing to gas mileage, endurance, how well the car holds its trade-in value, its safety record, etc. They rationalize their emotional decision. Don’t think the decision to hire you is a rational one. In most cases, it’s a gut decision made by the hiring manager who makes the decision based on personality, then uses your credentials and your resume to justify his or her decision. People Who Screen Applicants are “Protecting” The Boss . . . or Themselves.Often the people who do screening know this and they do the best they can to “protect” their boss (and cover their rear) by getting rid of the people they think wouldn’t fit in or would be problems for the company . . . eliminating them before they get to the executive-level interviews. They use your resume to justify this decision.Their judgment of your personality may or may not be accurate. It may be clouded by theirown personal agendas or any of a dozen other factors. But if they have the authority, they make the decision. Withhold Your Resume Until You Reach The Right Audience.OK, if your Executive Resume in all its exquisite detail isn’t going to get you the job, why go to so much trouble to create and disseminate it? Good question.The resume has a purpose – but it’s not going to serve its purpose if you get it out there too widely or too early. We recommend that you keep your powder dry and wait until you have a willing audience to expose your resume to. In other words, wait until you have identified people who are interested in you, who have read your intriguing Cover Letter -- sprinkled with choice Accomplishments -- and who believe that you have the potential for solving their problems. These are people who are ready to give your Executive Resume a reasonable reading. If you haven’t already, go back to the Start Here button to review the entire step-by-step job search process.
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