At what point do you just kind of give up?

Thacker

Hammer80 wrote: »

Not sure where you live int the South but the main tech hubs in the South are:

1. Austin (also known as the Baby Silicon Valley of the South)
2. Atlanta
3. Dallas

Stay away from Florida they have been absolutely flooded with H-1B visa IT workers, you will not stand a chance.

In those three cities you will not have problem finding a job with your qualifications.

I am located in Atlanta.



Here's a copy of my resume.

I am 90% sure the reason for my troubles is a shaky employment history. I was at my last position only three months because the schedule and pay did not match up with what was initially offered. The past 6 months I've been learning programming, along with updating some of my outdated certs and applying for jobs. After having 3 souring experiences with MSP's I am done with that sector and refuse to seek employment with one in the future. This limits my possibilities some, but I'd literally rather not work than deal with the MSP lifestyle and abuse.

Previously I went a year without formal employment due to an illness in my immediate family in which I took over and managed that persons business. I was paid under the table and did not file taxes so it wasn't considered formal employment. I would list it on a resume but I am afraid that it would not show up on a background check and I'd rather my stuff all sync up.

Early in my career I had a criminal misdemeanor conviction which prevented me from securing any position so I was forced to start my own business. I then relocated and played poker professionally for almost 3 years while doing side IT work with people I met around the area. I've since had the conviction reevaluated and had it stricken from my record.

Here is my resume with some of the personal information redacted.

Danielm7

It might sound crazy but I'd probably start my resume at your 2nd to last job, in 2013. Everything else just makes me question what was going on, too many questions makes it easy to skip and go to the next resume. Did you do any IT side work between 2011 and 2013?

soccarplayer29

I see a few issues with the resume/experience:

1) The half page of certs right off the bat is overwhelming
2) Seems to jump jobs frequently (be well prepared as you just did to explain why)
3) The professional poker player is probably a negative for most employers (Afraid you'll do that on the job or have a gambling problem). Maybe change that to just self employed doing various IT support projects and such but leave out all poker activities as that's not relevant to the jobs you're applying to.
4) lack of a bachelor's degree (but you're working on that so shouldn't be a big deal)

Thacker

@=Danielm7
I've done side work my whole professional career. Most of my family and extended family are small business owners and I've always supported all of them plus other contacts.

As the other person said, I don't feel comfortable removing poker because it's who I was for those years. I made a profit not only playing, but also coaching / training. I feel at this point removing it was be disingenuous... but who knows... employers lie plenty themselves.

markulous

@=soccarplayer29

I agree with all of this. Try to trim down the number of certs as some of those just say redundant info. E.g. CCENT is on there, no need to have N+, MCDST can go away since you have MCSA Windows 7, etc.

Also, agreed that the pro poker player should just go away. I've done it myself and I personally know that there's nothing wrong with that and it's anything but gambling, but most people aren't going to have that viewpoint.

The job jumping is okay if there's good reason for it.

Thacker

@=markulous

That's enough. I am removing poker.

I am not removing any certs from my resume though. I understand some are redundant but the fact is much of the screening software is keyword based for larger companies and I like having the keywords.

EDIT: I cleaned up some of the redundancies, removed poker.

E Double U

@Thacker

I don't think you should remove (certs) them, but change the layout. I have my certifications listed on one line (CISSP, CCNP Security, etc, etc). Also, I have experience above education and certifications.

markulous

@Thacker

Maybe if the layout just changed, but based on your experience and certs, I'd assume a lot of those entry-level certs aren't going to even be looked at since you're not applying for entry-level positions.

Thacker

I just can't express how uncomfortable this really makes me. I HATE lying... and hiding anything. However, with removing poker... now 300 places have my resume around Atlanta that states poker so if I ever apply to them again and they cross reference I feel that might cause an issue.

Either way, thanks for the advice.

NetworkNewb

I see you're removing that professional poker section, which I couldn't agree more. It probably looked a little shady to a lot of employers. I think you'll get a lot better response from just removing that.

And would put experience infront of education as well. It will just make your front page of your resume look better when someone first looks at it. I even think it would be alright to list them how they are as long as they are on the end of resume.

N2IT

The poker player job gave me a weird vibe to be honest.

markulous

@=Thacker

How much do they really need to know though? Do you tell them what you eat on a daily basis or that you like women with big jugs? I know that's a bit extreme, but there's no shame in tailoring your resume and omitting some things. As long as you aren't lying about your certs/education, where you worked, or the technologies you're able to support, I don't see any issue.

Thacker

@=NetworkNewb

I just moved it to the end of the resume.

cyberguypr

My biggest issue with this resume is that is tells me NOTHING about how your contributions added value to the business. You need to add tangible achievements that will show how you are different from the thousands of "install, configure, maintain" techs out there.

Thacker

But I'm not any different. I am a good, competent worker with a decent education. The hoops and formalities behind getting a job.... smh.

cyberguypr

Just my opinion: wrong mindset.

fredrikjj

For what it's worth (not a lot, heh), I'd have no problem with the poker thing, or running your own business when you couldn't get a regular job. In fact, I'd probably look at those things as a positive since poker is pretty damn hard if you take it seriously. Those two things would lead me to believe that you're probably smarter than the average IT drone that is your competition. However, what those average IT drones have going for them is that they're known commodity and people won't get fired after hiring one, even if they turn out to be disappointing.

Any kind of deviation from the standard expected career path is dangerous to someone hiring because you're now perceived as higher risk, and the potential reward just isn't there even if you're better than the person they could have hired otherwise. If you turn out to be a complete disaster, someone will review the hiring process and whoever hired you could potentially get in trouble for hiring someone that used to be a pro poker player for a few years when they instead could have hired someone that sat in a chair and pressed a couple of buttons at a simple IT job somewhere during that same period.

scaredoftests

Include software used, versions of servers used, any training of fellow employees....Get rid of 'self'

kurosaki00

2 interviews out of 300 applications?
The issue is your resume. Resume lands you interview/call, you land job.
If you're not even getting the interview, the issue is pretty clear.

Plantwiz

@Thacker,

No offense, but the lack of time at any job is a red flag for me. I see you already agreed to drop the poker career and I agree with this drop too. Omitting items or providing more detail to areas you excel at is not lying in resumes it is part of tailoring your resume to meet the job you are applying for. And I think your resume is too long for the lack of information on it.

Plenty of folks here are fans of the two page resume, but I see no reason why yours could not be made to fit on a single page and highlight your strengths.

My first glance, I see, no stamina to stay at a job and unfinished education without being currently employed. You are not in an impossible position, but you were not dealt a winning hand this round. Get a job, continue with that education and keep trying. Join local networking groups (people that is not IT stuff), volunteer and maybe even try to job shadow just to get some contacts in play. Set a goal of eight months possibly twenty four to be in a better job position. You are not out of the game, just need better cards (or worse competitors)

exspiravit

Sorry to hear about the unemployment, I've been there, DOT.com bust of early 2000's.

Any ways, with someone who has prior-military service, a BS in Telecommunications Engineering Technology, and a MS in Information Assurance, it took a year for me to transition over to IA and that's with knowing people. My suggestion for you is to have resume like this:

1) Pahe header (like the actual header in word and not in the body of text, with your name and contact info. Feel free to list several relevant certs here. For me its: Electron Bee, MSIA, CISSP
2) A few sentances up front which detail what you bring to the table AND why they should hire you versus the other guy. It's assumed that you are a competent and diligent worker, etc. Keep it short, 3-7, sentences. No run-ons.
3) List experience only relevant to the job, my resume has it titled as, wait for it: Relevant Experience. I drop everything else even if it leaves gaps in employment. If they want to talk to me about it they will, and if they have concerns.
4) Education and Certs is last, list whats relevant. I have my MSIA listed and then the next line I have all my certs as a continous line. I don't put them in columnar format. I did not even care about the BS as it's not what I want them to think about. If they want to know, they'll ask.

Looking at your resume real quick, the stuff that is common amongst your past jobs, such as traits of being effecient, etc. Would be some good stuff for the intro sentences. Then, you can drop that from the experience blocks and make them nice and tight. The goal here is to go into the folder for a follow-up. That's the goal of the resume, that call-back, not to be an interview.

JoJoCal19

IMO, having dealt with a lot of HR types, knowing some current HR folks and hiring managers, and being involved in discussions currently for filling some positions on our team, the poker thing was probably the nail in your coffin as soon as it was seen and that's why you have such an insanely low interview rate. Especially in Atlanta. The poker job, especially the part about online, is going to be an instant red flag and will immediately get HR and hiring managers wondering whether you'd be doing that at work. Good to see you've dropped that, but like you said, your resume is already out there with it on there so it's not like you can immediately just reapply.

I agree with some of the other folks that your job history is not good, and you should nix everything after the most two recent MSP jobs. You will have to explain it away, but it's better to limit what they see up front and land an interview.

scaredoftests

Plantwiz:The lack of time in one job could be layoffs that occurred or a contract got modified (like in my case..). Around the DC metro area it is a given for these things to occur. Some employers understand that and of course, some don't.

phalx

cshkuru wrote: »

Where are you at. If you are anywhere near the Pacific Northwest I know BPA is hiring contractors. It's federal governement so they use some weird rules but the wage is pretty much above average.

Hey cshkuru, good to see someone else from the Couve here, small world!

Cyberscum

@OP

Resume is why your not landing interviews.

-What did you accomplish other than just work? List achievements that stand out.
-Online gambling on a resume? Never seen that before; remove or do not pass HR.
-Follow the countless resume threads of what works and what does not.

Other than that I would say look for 5-10 jobs you REALLY like. Go down to the actual facility and ask to speak to a manager or HR and bring your resume in hand. I would not normally do this, but if I was unemployed I would be creating my own destiny. Gotta grind sometimes...

and above all keep your head up. You WILL find something if you stay positive.

GL

Plantwiz

@scared,

It is possible that is the case, nevertheless, it does not look like there is any commitment, if it happened once, or twice after a period of years, even a decade, it would be easier to look at and consider a candidate who appears to be job hoping. That said, if I have a sizable pile of resumes and one with six different jobs in six or seven years, I will probably pass on that candidate unless something AWESOME were to be outstanding. The unfinished schooling is a problem as well....good that it is being worked on, but unless the company has room to grow a candidate into the job, for many, that is a deal breaker. Also, I would note if jobs were contracts rather than making it appear that it was a start and quit/fired position.

A reworked resume will definitely put this OP in a better light for most interviews, he/she may explain the why during the interview, the first and major step is landing the interview though.

cshkuru

yeah. IT seems to be expanding in this area so there will be more of us I am sure.

Thacker - You seem to be getting a little defensive so I hate to pile on, but I will anyway.

1. Everyone else is right. That professional poker player entry in your jobs is a death knell. Get rid of it. (I know you said you were going to but just make sure you do)

2. Education and Certifications -

2a. List college first. On mine I put the course of study under the college name like so:

Western Governor's University
Bachelor of Science Information Technology
Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Language and Communication, Reasoning and Critical Thinking, Quantitative Literacy, Organizational Behavior and Management Principles, IT Fundamentals, Web Development and Design, Client/Server Operating System Fundamentals, Networking Fundamentals, Project Management, Information Security Fundamentals, Database Fundamentals, Technical Writing, Linux

People may disagree but when I learned to write resumes back in the dark ages it was expected to show what you were studying and I have just kept on doing it.

2b. Condense that list of certifications. I list mine in a similar fashion but Microsoft gets one line (ex. Microsoft - MCSE (NT4.0) ) you don't need to spell out what the MCSE stands for.

2c. Languages: Change to Programming Languages remove the most experience / some experience verbage. Find something more active to describe your experience level. Take out anything that you can't truly sit down and do some productive work in. NOt senior level work but productive.

2d. Remove the edX courses. They are great for improving your professional knowledge but employers attach little to know value.

3. Experience -

3a. Someone up above said they didn't see where you added any value to the companies bottom line. In my opinion that is a fallacy. If you were a manager or something, yeah having some metrics like that saved the company $250,000 by eliminating hookers and beer at executive retreats, or something similar would be nice but it doesn't look like you were so explain what you were doing. Be active in your description. Example - Served as escalation point for helpdesk and network support issues. Resolved XXX number of tickets per day with an average resolution time of XX minutes. THATS your metric because that's the type of job you were in.

3b. I don't see a lot of problems with the length of time at each job but I would combine the two jobs from 05/2008 to 12/2012 into one self employed job, and as mentioned get rid of the poker player stuff.

3c. Your last two jobs both look like contract positions put (contract) on them. That help explains short durations.

Take it for what its work but again lose the poker player stuff and clean up that wall of text around certificates. Most HR professionals say you get 10 seconds to make an impression with your resume - use it wisely.

OH ONE LAST THING - You want to be a developer, you have a github account, get active in some open source projects and list them under a misc section. (i.e. MISC - Active in the OpenStack development community. Currently contributing to XXXXXXXXX -link to your repository.

Cyberscum

cshkuru wrote: »

3a. Someone up above said they didn't see where you added any value to the companies bottom line. In my opinion that is a fallacy. If you were a manager or something, yeah having some metrics like that saved the company $250,000 by eliminating hookers and beer at executive retreats, or something similar would be nice but it doesn't look like you were so explain what you were doing. Be active in your description. Example - Served as escalation point for helpdesk and network support issues. Resolved XXX number of tickets per day with an average resolution time of XX minutes. THATS your metric because that's the type of job you were in.

resolved XXX (number of tickets) per day with an average resolution time of XXX minutes.

can be worded

Surpassed quarterly ticket resolution goals by over 35% through resolving XXX (number of tickets) per day with an average resolution time of XXX minutes.

See the diff

cshkuru

I said be active in the descriptions. My point was (and remains) that he is not in a position to break it out in a dollars and cents figure, which is what most people mean when they say show how you added value. At least that is my experience.

krucial85

@Thacker,
I recently found out that if you submit your resume online in a PDF format some applicant screening softwares won't read the resume properly. Additionally if you have bullets, or any fancy font, pictures, formating, etc, the screening software will not read the resume correctly. This was happening to me and when I submitted my resume in Word format I started recieving calls.