the next generation of job matching
Hey y’all!
Mariam from Forward here 👋
In today’s edition:
Apply to be our Texas Campus Ambassador + 3 early career sales jobs!
What not to write in your professional summary
Hiring for attitude over credentials (and what that means for you)
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This week’s curated job postings
Early career jobs in Sales: remote or Austin with $60K+ salary
Check out all live early career job openings on Forward’s job board, updated weekly.
Career Tip of the Week
You know this thing some people write at the top of their resume? I have mixed feeling on it. And I’m not the only one.
No one is in agreement on the value of a professional summary. My advice is that if you are going to include one it should be a professional summary that no one else could write.
Too often, I see extremely generic professional summaries with a lot of buzzwords that don’t paint a unique or compelling picture of what you have done or what you have to offer.
Every corner of your resume counts, so be sure to ask yourself with every sentence: could anyone else say this?? If the answer is yes, you need to go a little deeper.
Here are some things to consider:
You can have a few different versions based on the types of jobs you are applying to (e.g. if you are applying to a marketing job, the professional summary could highlight big name brands you have created content for. If applying for a sales job, it could speak to how much revenue you have generated)
It should highlight specific headlines from your career so far, rather than restating everything listed on the rest of the resume
This is a good place to name drop and use numbers
Here’s another “before and after” moment. For more examples check out our resume best practices linked below!
BEFORE: Sales master known for my ability to close deals and provide excellent customer service. Hire me to boost your revenue strategy!
AFTER: Sales leader with 3+ years experience of driving revenue for companies like Buzzfeed and Bloomberg. Used AI sales automation tools to increase revenue by 10% in 2024, and launched CPG sales strategy to land clients like Impossible Foods and La Croix.
Overheard from a recruiter
I’m having conversations with recruiters, hiring managers, and other talent decision-makers weekly, and want to share tidbits of what I’m learning with y’all here too!
When you are hiring for junior talent, you’re hiring for attitude and work ethic. It’s hard to communicate to your recruiter how that manifests itself in successful candidates, and I often get burnt out by dozen of lackluster interviews.
This is (mostly) good news!!! It isn’t about the perfect credentials or coming from a name-brand company. Your success early on is more about how you show up and your willingness to put in the work.
What does this mean?
Storytelling is critical. Because you are early in your career, you have to really paint the picture of when you have been scrappy, resourceful, and worked hard to get the results.
The little ways you show up matter in a big way. Being on time, prompt with your email communication, asking thoughtful questions, etc. are all signals to a hiring manager of how you would approach of the job.
Because it’s about “vibes”, networking is even more important. I have seen so many examples of people with “nontraditional resumes” but a lot of hustle , land amazing jobs because someone with decision-making power met them, and was like, “hell yes, I want to work with this person.”
Don’t worry about checking every box. If you know you have what it takes to do the job, then apply. But really focus on items 1-3 above to land the plane.
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Take a break
Job searching is hard work. You deserve a break. Here’s how I took time to rest and recharge this week!
Is there any better break during a cross-state roadtrip than stopping at a Buc-ee’s for a beaver-branded snack??? My recent favs are these Hot and Spicy Beef Jerky.
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Thanks for showing up this week! We appreciate you. See y’all same time next week!
Mariam Matin
Connect with me on LinkedIn!