The next alternative will be to check if the candidate fits into the kind of system built in the company and so on. But how does one differentiate the candidates skill-wise further? One might wish to look at their experience and the kind of projects one has done. But that will also be similar. The resume is a leveller, that way.
A Resume of Failures
I have an alternative hypothesis. The idea is unconventional. Instead of one page glorified mediocrity, companies should request the candidates for a resume that only contains failures. No top rank achievements. Just the failures.
Sounds strange? Let me put this another way.
Would you like to choose someone who has never failed at anything or who has failed several times before succeeding? Because the probability of people who have never failed at anything is too low, regular resumes are nothing but the glorified mediocrities. Someone who has failed at multiple things has taken risks many times, still embraced the failures and moved forward. On the contrary, someone who has never failed anytime will be too afraid to risk at all.
I know that the idea is ridiculously over-idealistic. What are the chances that one gets shortlisted if there are only failures on the resume? It’s close to zero unless the one who shortlists understands the philosophy of resume of failures. I thought extensively of this idea and imagined how I’d impress the interviewer with my out of the box concept. But, I still went ahead with a conventional resume - achievement decked, bold-lettered resume, an "I’m so awesome" variant of one page which would decide my fate in summer internship placement, containing a series of achievements, keywords carefully picked and highlighted with bold letters.
And guess what was the first question in my SIP interview - Tell me something apart from your resume?
*****
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