When students move on into adult life, they enter into a world of applications and interviews. We live in a competitive, high-tech, capitalistic society and both schools and employers are looking for the best candidates they can find.
Many students accomplish little due to time wasted on social media, idle activities, video games, etc., and make excuses for doing so day by day. There’s always an excuse for this and a reason for that. They tell themselves that they are smart and good and know what they’re doing. As long as they are able to be the only judges in their lives, they can go on pretending all is well. This is one of the dangers of childhood, but Proverbs warns us:
“Let another praise thee, and not thy own mouth.”
Proverbs 27:2
When these children reach adulthood, they learn the hard way that no one cares what they think of themselves. Rather, they are asked for hard evidence of their actual achievements:
- work experiences
- diplomas
- degrees
- certificates
- references
- activities
- projects
- awards
- skills
- memberships
No one asks for opinions. No one asks about social media followers. No one asks about intentions. No one asks for excuses. They ask for a resume, or summary, of deeds not words (facta non verba).
Normally, the resume starts the application process and an interview is only offered after an individual has distinguished himself by its contents. So, an applicant with nothing on his resume won’t even get the chance to start explaining away his lack of achievements. Childhood is over and there’s no more childish talking.
It is recommended, therefore, that students begin thinking about the content of their resume as they make decisions in their lives.
- What should I study?
- What work should I do?
- What activities should I participate in?
- Who will my references be?
- What skills do I have?
- What awards have I earned?
Students should begin developing a resume and think about what their resume should look like in light of what they’d like to do when they are older. They should use tomorrow’s resume to decide what today’s activities need to be. Students can start with a resume template here:
- Resume template (Google Docs)
Your resume, after all, is going to be what commends you to a future employer. It contains a summary of all that you have done, leaving you with the important question: What have you done?
It’s time to build your resume.
God bless your studies,
Mr. William C. Michael, O.P.
Classical Liberal Arts Academy
mail@classicalliberalarts.com
