You never know when opportunity will come knocking and you need to be ready when it does. Your resume, career goals, portfolio and references need to be ready to be delivered on very short notice. Unfortunately most individuals have to go through a missed opportunity to realize this. I have two stories from recent clients that illustrate the point:

Panicked call from a Sr. Level Executive

Will you be ready if you meet the President of a great organization, especially when they have an opening that would be a perfect match for your skills and abilities? 80% of all jobs come through networking and sometimes random events. Here’s what happened- A high-level Sr. Executive who I had known from the past called me late one night in a panic. She needed a resume by midday tomorrow and could I create one that highlighted all her talents?

Months before we had talked about the need for Deb to get her resume ready. She was unhappy with her current role and really wanted to seek out a new opportunity. Lack of time and a lack of dedication to her own career meant that the development of her resume was pushed off time and time again. She’d always say, “I know, I know I need to get it done but I just can’t, I don’t have the time”.

As often happens, Deb was attending a networking event and bumped into a colleague who introduced her to the President of a large organization. During the discussion Deb found out the President had the perfect position currently open and she knew she was a natural fit for the role. The President explained he’d love to get her resume by the middle the next day. They were in the final stages of interviewing and he needed to make a decision quickly to fill the pivotal role. A panicked call came from Deb at 10:15pm that night with a plea for a “great” resume.

Resumes take time and information is needed to create the perfect resume. It’s even more important to craft a resume to meet the specific requirements of a desired job. Unfortunately, Deb was booked for the whole next day in meetings and had little availability to give information. We did create an appropriate resume but it could have been so much more effective. To date Deb’s had the chance to interview but has not been brought in for a final face to face.

A client we’ll call Bill had been to one of my Managing Your Career courses and knew he needed to get his resume and portfolio up to speed. He had set goals, determined what he wanted and just never got the resume and portfolio ready. He just didn’t have the time available and competing priorities kept pushing off what he knew he needed to do.

In this market the type of role Bill was looking for was more difficult to find and competition for positions was high. A role that fit Bill perfectly came available and I forwarded on the opportunity for Bill to explore. Bill’s resume and portfolio was not ready and he knew time running short. He sent in his resume and mentioned a portfolio would be available upon request. That was the first moment of revelation but still work and other things prevailed.

The following week a friend called to ask if he could come in and look at potentially taking on a large project. Bill agreed and went to the meeting still not ready for opportunity when it came. As Bill entered the meeting his friend was there with none other than the CEO of the company Bill wanted to work for. Providence had provided an opportunity for Bill to make a great impression, for him to showcase his work and his abilities. Unfortunately Bill wasn’t ready when opportunity came knocking but he has vowed he will be next time!