Find a Short-Term Adventure Job
New college graduates, retirees and those looking to make a career transition often find short-term adventure jobs as a way to explore the world, meet people, develop interests and find meaningful opportunities to share their skills. You can find a job strumming a guitar under the stars as a camp counselor, harvesting pineapples in paradise or helping others through humanitarian projects in every corner of the globe. However, applying for one of these non-traditional jobs still requires a resume that focuses on why your experience and skills make you suited for the job.
If you are still in school and don’t have much work background, use every piece of relevant experience in your past. Being a leader of a study group at school shows that you are able to teach others skills and perhaps you would be good as a tutor. Working with children at church could translate into a job as a camp counselor. Volunteer work within the community shows that you have a heart for helping others -and there are many opportunities for that! So, don’t discount your past experiences, even if they haven’t been on the usual career track.
Create a functional resume that lists your skills by category rather than by chronological history. This takes the focus off the amount of time you’ve been working and onto what you can do. Categories can be anything that you think is relevant to the potential employer; “Communication Skills” could list how you’ve submitted material to the school newspaper or given speeches at political campaigns. “Outdoor Achievements” is an important category if you are seeking an adventure position in the wilderness. List your history with outdoor activities such as camps attended (such as Boy Scouts), outdoor skills acquired, and other accomplishments that show you are at home in your chosen outdoor discipline.
At the top of your resume, (more…)