Career advice
Guidance you can act on, not filler.
Short, practical pieces on the things that actually decide applications: how an ATS reads your CV, turning responsibilities into achievements, how long a CV should be, and what changes when you apply abroad.
How to write a professional CV: a step-by-step guide
Most CVs are written top to bottom, in one sitting, from memory. That is why most CVs read the same. Here is the order that actually produces a strong one, step by step.
Read the article →CV vs resume: what the difference really is, market by market
In London a CV is two pages. In Boston a CV is a thirty-page academic record. The word matters less than the market, and getting the market wrong is the real mistake.
Read →How to list skills on a CV so they actually count
A list of twenty skills proves nothing on its own. Skills count when they are specific, grouped, and backed by the experience below them. Here is how to list them properly.
Read →How to explain employment gaps on a CV
A gap on its own rarely costs an interview. An unexplained one sometimes does. Here is how to show the time honestly, briefly, and in a way that keeps the reader moving.
Read →ATS friendly CV format: the layout rules that matter
An ATS friendly CV is not a plain, ugly CV. It is a clean one with a small number of specific layout choices made correctly. Here is the checklist, and how to test yours.
Read →How to find the right ATS keywords for your CV
The keywords that matter are already written down for you, in the job posting. The skill is knowing which ones carry weight, and where on the CV to put them.
Read →How to write a LinkedIn headline that gets you found
Your headline travels further than any other part of your profile. It appears in search, in comments and in every invitation you send. Here is how to make it work.
Read →How to write a LinkedIn About section people read to the end
Your About section is the only part of LinkedIn written in your own voice. Most people fill it with a CV profile. Here is how to write one that sounds like a person and reads like proof.
Read →Using LinkedIn to find a job in another country
Recruiters abroad search LinkedIn by location, and most overseas candidates never show up. Here is how to set up your profile so the right people in your target country can find you.
Read →How to write a cover letter that gets read
A cover letter is not a summary of your CV. It is the argument for why this job, this employer and you fit together. Here is how to write one in under a page.
Read →Do you still need a cover letter?
Some recruiters never open them. Some hiring managers shortlist because of them. Both are true, and the difference tells you exactly when a cover letter is worth writing.
Read →How to tailor a CV to a job description
Tailoring does not mean rewriting your CV for every application. It means changing a few high-impact places so the reader sees the match in seconds. Here is exactly where.
Read →How to follow up after a job application
A good follow-up is short, well timed and sent to the right person. A bad one is sent too soon, too often, to an inbox that cannot help. Here is how to do the first.
Read →The STAR method: how to structure interview answers
STAR is simple to describe and surprisingly easy to get wrong. Most weak answers spend too long on the situation and too little on what you actually did. Here is the fix.
Read →How to answer "tell me about yourself"
It sounds like small talk, but it is the question that frames the rest of the interview. Here is a structure that keeps it short, relevant and genuinely yours.
Read →Writing a career change CV around transferable skills
A career change CV fails when it tells the reader where you have been before it tells them where you are going. Here is how to reverse that, with evidence rather than claims.
Read →The executive CV: a guide for senior leaders
At executive level the CV stops being a record of jobs and becomes a statement of the value you create at scale. Here is how to position it for boards, chairs and search firms.
Read →How to choose a CV writer
CV writing is an unregulated market, and quality ranges from excellent to template filling. Here is how to tell the difference before you pay, not after.
Read →How to write a graduate CV with no experience
"No experience" usually means no full-time job in the field. It rarely means nothing to show. Here is how to find your evidence and build a graduate CV around it.
Read →Using AI to write your CV: what works and what does not
AI tools are genuinely useful for parts of CV writing and genuinely risky for others. The difference is whether you treat them as an editor or as the author.
Read →How an ATS actually reads your CV
An ATS is not the villain it is made out to be, but it is unforgiving about a handful of specific things. Here is what it actually does, and what quietly gets a good CV filtered.
Read →Turning responsibilities into achievements
Most CVs describe the job. The ones that get interviews describe the person doing it. Here is how to make the switch, with the exact shape a strong bullet takes.
Read →How long should a CV be?
Two pages is the default advice, and it is wrong as often as it is right. Length depends on your market and your stage. Here is how to decide, and how to cut.
Read →Writing a CV for a market you have never worked in
Applying to a country you have never worked in is not about a better CV. It is about a differently built one. Here is what changes, and what employers there quietly screen for.
Read →What a recruiter sees in the first seven seconds
The first pass over a CV is a scan, not a read, and it decides whether there is a second pass at all. Here is what the eye lands on, and how to win those seconds.
Read →Rather have it done properly?
The guidance here is free. If you would rather have the CV, cover letter or LinkedIn profile written for you, build your package and see the price before you commit.