Resume Writers Digest Im Obsessed With Accomplishments

Resume Writers' Digest Im Obsessed With Accomplishments Im working to put together a new training focused on gathering client accomplishments. I happened to be thumbing through (electronically, of course), a back issue of the Resume Writers Digest newsletter (the July/August 2001 to be exact), and I came across this From from the Editor column. Even now, 18 years later, its still timely, so Im reprinting it here. (I typed the text in below because I didnt think youd be able to read the screen shot.) Its All About Value What makes you worth the money people pay you? I was recently working with a client who was developing a proposal for a promotion. She was looking to add additional responsibilitiesand receive additional paybut was struggling to put a dollar value on the work. Specifically, she was worried about asking for more money than the other people with her job title were making. So I asked her if anyone else with her job title had the same qualifications. No, she answered. Were any of them looking to take on the kind of extra duties her promotion proposal entailed? No again. Then stop worrying, I told her. She was trying to compare apples and oranges. Her value to the company was greater than those with equal titles, but not equal responsibilities and ambition. Heres another way of thinking about it. Ask your clients this question: Would employers be willing to pay you more if you didmoreof one part of your job, or did itbetter? For salespeople, the answer is easy.If I sold more widgets than the other salespeople, my employer would be willing to pay me more.In fact, thats what a commission isextra payment for extra work. These are the achievements we try to draw out for our clients resumes. But think about this in relation to your own business. Which resumewriters make the most money? Usually, those who charge the higher rates. What enables them to charge higher rates? The value their clients pay is less than the value they receivein other words, those that can deliver for their clients what the clients want and cant get themselves. Want to make more money? Ask yourself what part of what you doif you did it betterwould clients be willing to pay you more to do? Then figure out a way to do it...and find out just howvalue-ableyour talents are. Think about it. ___________________________ By the way, there is a TON of golden information in the back issues of the Resume Writers Digest newsletter, which was published bimonthly from July 1999 through March 2005 and intermittently since then. If you are a Bronze member of BeAResumeWriter.com, you have access to the Archive of Back Issues. Its just ONE of the many benefits of membership for just $13/month! Join here.