It’s a job interview, not a confessional

So don’t bring up the less than amazing stuff from your career. Definitely be prepared to defend it, but don’t spotlight it.

This is sales & marketing 101. Sales and marketing can have a bit of a dodgy reputation if we’re honest. Some companies I worked for early in my career were absolutely guilty of over-promising and under-delivering. Frequently. 

But even the most ethical sales and marketing people follow these guidelines 

 1. Promote the benefits of the solution, not its features

 2. Promote the strength of the solution, not its weaknesses

 3. Position your solution to try and knock out the competition

And you should follow those principles too when you’re job seeking. So in your resume and interviews

💡 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗱, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗶𝗱. I see many resumes that are a list of bullets that basically document the responsibilities of a job. A little of that is OK for context. But what will get you interviews is showing what you achieved and the impact you had

💡 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗼𝗳𝗳𝘀. Don’t try and hide them or cover them up on your resume, but don’t offer them up during the interview. I’ve heard people mention layoffs in their “Tell me about yourself” response. It’s not a good look. Instead, have an exit statement ready which makes your layoff sound reasonable and due to factors you couldn’t control. Use it only when you have to. Honestly, I’ve been through a few layoffs, but I didn’t get asked about them during interviews all that often.

💡 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. You don’t have to be totally unique, but at least have a point of differentiation. For example, “As a product manager I bring a unique combination of experience working the sale channels with deep expertise in the maritime shipping industry.” Plug your differentiator into your personal positioning statement as the last words you say.