The Great Change: Turning Cathy into a Lawyer

The job hunt has begun, and the first step has been to update my resume. I've gotten conflicting advice (actually, every bit of resume advice inevitably conflicts with someone else's) about whether it was ok to be on two pages, but the most recent has been that it should only be on one. It was a little traumatic to make it fit on one because about a half-page of information had to get cut, but for the first time I felt able to do that. I'm much more focused now on who I am and what I want to do. Not perfectly focused, but I feel less desperate to show lots of people that I have lots of diverse background just in case that happens to be what they need. There's still a little of that kind of thinking, but much less so. My resume now should indicate experience with writing, moot courts, internationality, technology, and management. The more of those aspects I can get into a job, the better the fit.

There's still some tension with edits the career counselor wants me to make and what I feel comfortable making. It took a huge psychic leap to even make the changes I have, but I'm at a place in my life now where I can finally release my obstinate grip on some previous sacred cows and rethink just how sacred they need to be. Still, the game now is one of self-esteem. The reason I do not have a job is not because people don't like my resume, but because people haven't seen it. The challenge now is to feel good enough about who I am and what I can do to get it out there. So while I feel a little bad because I appreciate the help, other than small nits here and there I don't think I'll be taking the rest of the counselor's advice. When I read through her suggestions I see myself getting completely lost in them. Who I am, what I've done, and why I think it's all important is important to convey if I want people to see it as important to them. I can't read a million employers' minds, but I can understand mine and then use cover letters and interviews to explain why it's one they want working for them.