The hard part isn't doing the job, it's getting the job.

A few years ago, I started my own company, an electrical contracting firm, and one of the many lessons I’ve learned is that people (black folk in particular) do not know how to write a résumé or conduct an interview. Is this a personal failing or a failing on the part of our community? Yes on both counts. Part of the reason we, as a people, struggle in the work place, corporate America is because we’re not aware of the invisible set of rules that, only through trial and error, do most of us discover. When we do manage to navigate the minefield of being young black and professional we forget to leave a few breadcrumbs and share the knowledge gained. We spend at least four years in undergrad learning the skills associated with our chosen field but without learning how to get the job. Its like knowing all about fish but not knowing how to use a fishing rod. Providing our voice of reason tonight will be Akil Bello, Vice President of Educational Development for Bell Curves. Look for him between the asterisks.

Now if you're like me and most of your previous work experience was mall retail, fast food, or hunched over a computer trying to get the degree to put on the résumé then you’ll think “What the hell do I put on there?” . Which leads me to résumé/interview tip one.

1.BE HONEST

The idea is to sell yourself, don't come off cocky or arrogant but don't be afraid to make your qualifications known. So, you’ve artfully fabricated a few details on your résumé. A little more work experience here, a bit of incorrect pay info there, and a few fraudulent references for good measure. With your masterpiece complete you fax or email it in. If your lucky you fool them into giving you an interview. So now you have to make up lies to complement the ones on paper and in a thorough interview you will get caught. They will call previous employers whether they’re referenced or not. Know your worth: you can't expect high pay with low experience. Lets be honest $40/hr is a bit much. However, you should go in knowing the average salary (in your state) of someone in the position your applying for. If you have no work references, use professors or mentors; anyone but your family. The idea is to use someone who can verify your work ethic. Your mother is usually not a good reference.

*Speak to your skills and accomplishment not tasks
"Answered phones" should never be on a resume.. the skill is "Provided superior customer service" answered phones is simply the task that allowed you to demonstrate the skill.*

2. Be Succinct

Make sure you spell check, grammar check, and proof read your resume. In the interview, answer questions fully but do not be talkative. In my experience the more I run my mouth the more likely I am to find my foot in it in the near future.

*Don't fill [your resume] with crap.. it should probably be 1 page; it certainly shouldn't be two pages because you listed skills, references, awards activities, favorite tv shows etc.*

3. Be Aware

Be aware of your online footprint. Social media is here to stay and potential employers have no qualms about putting your name into Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google, Myspaceor even Youtube. So if you’ve got some photos up that would not be work apropriate, you're having a Facebook beef on your timeline, or a video of last Saturday made it to YouTube, you might want to clean that up. The easy solution is to either make your page(s) private or be strict about what lands on your profile. 

*Very common interview enders: Knowing nothing about the company you are interviewing for and not being engaging (no eye contact, no ability to expound on your skill set)*

These are not set in stone but these are some things that could help you snag that ever elusive job in your studied field for which you've spent a decent chunk of your life preparing. Résumés, at their core, are attempts to consolidate who we are and what we can do into a single piece of paper. Interviews, at their heart, try to use a small sample size to gauge who you are as a worker and an individual. Both, however, are necessary evils. A good résumé gets you in the door, a good interview gets you the job. Special thanks to Akil Bello for his help. Happy hunting!