Don't Tell Them What You Can Do

Pretending To Be Happy About Being On The Roof With The HVAC

When you’re responsible for 9 distinct physical locations of a business, and those 9 locations are in Texas, you’re going to be dealing with HVAC issues. My boss, who had held my job before me, had somehow acquired comprehensive knowledge of all things HVAC. She had no trouble getting on the roof of a strip mall to have a look-see at what had been done and to question the tech about it. So, when I got promoted, she expected me to get up on the roof of the strip mall to confirm the work was legit and to question any inconsistencies. 

The only problem? I had no idea what any of it was. I could barely even remember how to program the different thermostats in all 9 locations. Even if I got past my fear of ladders and got on the roof, I couldn’t tell you the difference between a condenser coil and a compressor.

Here’s the thing. I am generally a curious person, and I like to learn how things work. I am usually a pretty quick study on the basics of most things. And yet?

I had zero interest in learning how the HVAC worked. Or the plumbing. Or the lighting. 

None. Zip. Zero. Zilch. 

At the time, my resume had some fancy lines about physical plant maintenance and facility performance yada yada yada. 

Why? Because I thought it made me look good. 

Tough. Capable. Responsible. Smart.

All the things. And maybe it did. 

It also made it appear that I knew how to navigate maintenance stuff, like HVAC, which 

A) was not really true and 

B) was not something I ever wanted to do again. 

Now, as a career coach, I see clients do the same thing all the time. They have something on their resume that they think makes them look really amazing. But when they tell me about it, I can hear the dread and misery. I can hear that they don’t really have a solid grasp of whatever it is. They want it there because they think it makes them look good. Or worse, because AI told them to put it there. 

So, dear job hunters, if you have something on your resume that you really didn't like doing, ask yourself these questions:

• If I were asked to do this exact thing at another job, would I be happy about it? 

• Why do I feel it’s important to put it on my resume? 

• Which aspects of this job skill/duty would I like/want to do again? 

• What transferable skills did I use to do this part of my job? 

And then? Rewrite the bullet using the skills you want to do/like to do. 

The old bullet, which focuses on maintenance and facility performance, which I don’t like:

Directed maintenance coordination across a portfolio of nine physical plant locations, partnering with third-party vendors to ensure timely repairs and consistent facility performance. 

Becomes one that focuses on communication and accountability, which I can do all day:

Fostered strong vendor partnerships through consistent communication, clear expectations, and follow-through, ensuring maintenance projects across nine locations were completed on schedule and within budget. 

If you’re not sure, take the first part of the bullet, and turn it into a "tell me how you..." interview question to see how prepared you feel to address it. 

Don’t let the resume show them what you can do. Let it show them what you want to do, so that you can land a job you actually enjoy having.