Why do we always say, “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it”? Seems like that statement sets us up for mediocrity, settling for something that might not be quite as good as it could be.
My guess is that we sometimes follow this path because it’s easy. Change is hard, man! It takes work and effort and time. Not to mention the frustration we all feel during the “improvement” process.
We might not have this old saying if it was easy to come up with something new. Usually there are multiple iterations involved. If we are developing something new at work, then there are meetings and committees and disagreements and setbacks and more meetings.
Fixing something is a pain.
Despite the pain or frustration of making improvements to something that already works, there comes a time when we must realize that adjustments need to be made.
Take our resumes. Many of us – myself included – work diligently to get our resumes to a good point. The format is good, the wording is good, and we are comfortable with the result. The resume has received good reviews from others and we’ve even secured interviews –and jobs – using this version.
It’s tried and true. Why would we want to change something that’s worked so well for us?
Because even tried and true solutions can get stale.
As a career coach and mentor I’m constantly looking at resumes. I find inspiration in some of them, particularly in formatting. Many are in dire need of improvement, particularly the wording or the type of information included. All of them serve as a reminder that while mine is good, it could always be better.
There is always room for improvement. Yet it’s hard to get started making a change because it’s not easy.
And this may come as a shock to some, but it’s important that we tailor our resume to each job application using key words that may help secure an interview. That’s right; a different version each time we apply.
If one version is difficult, multiple versions may seem like a nightmare.
In reality it’s not. We develop a “base” resume with our information and then create separate versions that focus on different accomplishments.
For example, I have a version that better highlights my marketing skills and experience, and another version that focuses on my PR experience. The differences are subtle but they are important.
Word of caution: be careful about getting too caught up in the minutiae. The goal is to develop an improved resume quickly so we can use it for interviews, our LinkedIn profile, etc. It’s easy to get so obsessed with making improvements that we never arrive at a usable version.
Trust me; I know this all too well. As a writer I’m never quite satisfied with my work and if given the opportunity I will always be editing. There came a point when I was writing my book, Tales of the Terminated, that I finally had to stop editing and start publishing. Otherwise I would never have finished the book!
I challenge all of us to take a hard look our resumes and if it’s broken, fix it. For some, this may be as simple as changing the font and/or format. For others it means letting go of some information that is no longer necessary.
The important thing is that we acknowledge that change is scary, frustrating, time-consuming and a pain. But it’s worth it in the end.
Like Tami, I was terminated once (By my best friend, BTW – he is now on the board of the agency I lead, so I got him back – ha!), but you don’t have to be unemployed to learn something from this book. 
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