Why You Should Create Video Cover Letters and Resumes in 2020 and beyond.
They’ll decide at some point but will more than likely reject you via email without having seen your beautiful essence. Let’s change that!
I had this crazy idea in 2016 to create a video that would depict my personality and share it with employers. At the time, I was incredibly insecure, full of self-doubt, and felt my skills were inadequate. “It won’t work. It’s unprofessional. It’ll create biases. You don’t have good ideas.” So naturally, I trashed the idea.
Fast forward to March of 2020; I decide to pivot from an administrative role to a more creative human-centric opportunity. COVID-19 happens! Everything comes to a screeching halt! I was determined to make things work, so I applied to every marketing role I found on LinkedIn. To this day, I have over 20 rejection letters flagged in my email to remind myself that N.O. means the next opportunity. Months have passed since I’ve submitted my letter of resignation on March 27. I’ve driven Uber, Instacart, and I’ve even tried being a server (lasted for a week). I’ve had creative freelance opportunities that helped me learn about my skills, but still no callbacks. Here I am thinking to myself, “This sucks! I know I’m not lazy; I’m a go-getter! I haven’t found the right creative opportunity. I haven’t found the right people.” At the time, I didn’t know what creative opportunity I was referring too. I became weary.
I was trying so hard to land a position in UX that I honestly wasn’t ready to forgo. That was a hard pill to swallow!
Fast forward to June of 2020, I put together a career board on my Pinterest account to look at every morning to condition my mind. That’s when UX began appearing everywhere! My mother told me about this career back in 2015, but when I saw the word “Designer,” it spooked me! I enroll in the Interactive Design Foundation after watching a YouTube video and feeling inspired! I take a few classes; I tell a few friends, I reword my Twitter bio, and join a few Facebook groups. Still, nothing. I’m very self-aware and often will pause to do some emotional self-inventory. I was trying so hard to land a position in UX that I honestly wasn’t ready to forgo. That was a hard pill to swallow! After recognizing that truth and admitting that, the way I approached everything changed. I began sharing that I needed help in navigating my learning of user experience (UX) on Facebook and received various people willing to help me gain more experience.
After meeting and learning all these beautiful people, I had an idea to make a video cover letter (or resume) to show everyone else who I am. It was an impromptu video, and I had so much fun creating! I shared it on Facebook groups, my Twitter, and my website, and since doing so, I’ve had positive responses and opportunities.
And here’s the thing, cater your video towards your ideal company, supervisor, or business partner!
The “standard” way of a cover letter and resume submission is stifling. We’ve seen it with statics all over social media. I think we should do more video resumes moving forward, especially with the given circumstances. Yes, hold on to the paper document with the color, ink, and format. But, I will advocate for you to create a video resume! It shows people you! Your personality in which a piece of paper can’t articulate. They can see how passionate you get when you talk about your creative process or why you love storytelling. And here’s the thing, cater your video towards your ideal company, supervisor, or business partner! What do I mean? If you want to work with a company that is passionate about animals and global warming, share your similar values. Think of it like this; you go on YouTube for a specific need, often to be entertained or educated. You either know who or what you’re looking for based on how they depict themselves and how they resonate with you. And you click on their video; you became their “employer” to be educated or entertained.
In my final words, I’m excited for you and your next opportunity. And remember, they have your resume in a pile (going through an automated system). They’ll decide at some point but will more than likely reject you via email without having seen your beautiful essence. Let’s change that.
My video resume:
