Step 9: Choosing References Who Can Verify Your Key P.E.A.K.S.
You do not have to list in your resume the names of people who will
serve as references for you. You can simply put “References furnished
upon request”at the end of your resume. Or you can just ignore this
topic.
What you can’t ignore is that if someone is interested in possibly
hiring you, this person is likely to ask you for references. And so, you
will want to have at least a mental list of several people who will serve
as your references.
One rule you must follow is to never say someone is a reference
without first checking with this person to see if he or she would be will-
ing to provide this service for you. It’s just plain good manners to do so,
and furthermore, you’re likely to get a good read on just how favorable
a reference this person is likely to be when you ask this person if he or
she will serve as your reference.
We would strongly encourage you to choose as references people
who can verify that you have the particular P.E.A.K.S. that the recipi-
ents of your resume are likely to believe are highly desirable. And when
people agree to be one of your references, give them a copy of your re-
sume and brief them on the particular P.E.A.K.S. that you would like
them to verify that you have.Step 10: Preparing Cover Letters That Refer to Key P.E.A.K.S.
It is beyond the scope of this book to discuss in any detail the many fac-
tors to consider when composing cover letters that accompany the mail-
ing of a resume. There are, in fact, many good books available on this
topic.
The one point we would like to make here is that a cover letter
gives you an opportunity to quickly mention one or two P.E.A.K.S. you
have that the recipient of your resume is likely to find particularly im-
pressive. Your goal is to get them to look at your resume.
You don’t have to go on and on about your P.E.A.K.S. in your cover
letter. If you have followed the above guidelines for preparing a target-
ed resume, your resume will give a strong synopsis of the key
P.E.A.K.S. you would bring to a job, without your having to say or write
another word.FINAL THOUGHTS
As we mentioned up front, the resume you use in conjunction with your
portfolio does not have to have a P.E.A.K.S. format. But if you do make
the extra effort to feature your desired P.E.A.K.S. in your resume, we
believe you will discover, as our clients have, that you will get more job
interviews and have more opportunities during these interviews to
show key items from your portfolio.
If you have prepared a targeted portfolio that you are hoping to
show, you might put the following statement at the bottom of your re-
sume:Portfolio available upon request.Chapter 5: Creating Resumes That Work with Your Portfolio 77