“And day came when risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than risk it took to blossom.” Anais Nin

The other day my sixteen-year-old daughter came home from school practically in tears. Sensing her distress I gently inquired as to how her day was. With animated emotion, she began to tell me about project she is working on in science class. She’s studying electricity and has to build an electric generator. She made it abundantly clear to me that she’s never felt “dumber “ in her whole life and she hates project.

My daughter, a bright young woman, has a fairly healthy sense of self and excels in school. She’s well rounded, is a wonderful writer and generally good at math and science. Her true passion, however, lies in creative art realm.

The challenge of building this electrical generator has pushed her to edge of her comfort zone and she’s not a happy girl.

My friend, a talented and promising business consultant is in middle of creating a new company for himself. He is full of inspiration and creative energy and has been gestating a very good idea for some months now. I’ve watched him approach his launch date several times only to see him go back to drawing board to further tweak and revise his presentation.

The challenge of putting himself “out there” in world is edge of his comfort zone.

I am not exempt from this challenge. I’m building a coaching practice. I’ve made bold decision to be self-employed, forgo security of a paycheck and benefits that go along with employment. I’d prefer to follow my dream and carve out a life that fulfills me at deepest level.

Even though I am pleased with my success, and feel good about taking a courageous stand for my life, there are also financial realities and challenges that I must face having my own business.

When I experience seasonal fluctuations of my client load, and find myself wondering how I am going to pay bills for month, I am at edge of my comfort zone.

Ah...the resume. If you've ever written one you know what a challenging task it can be.

The Gregg Reference Manual tells us some fundamental facts about resumes:

* The purpose of your resume is to get you an employment meeting. An interview. Your resume will not get you a job.

* Your resume is not a medium for telling prospective employers about your long-term goals and aspirations. It is where you appeal to their hiring motivations by demonstrating what you can do for them, communicating experience you have acquired and skills you have developed.

With these basic concepts in mind, let's summarize several other elements that your contemporary resume must include:

R = Review of your qualifications E = Essential information only S = Showcase your value U = You are Unique! M = Market yourself E = Effectively gets you noticed

-------------------------------------------- R = Review of your qualifications -------------------------------------------- What skills, education, or experience (paid or unpaid) do you have that make you ideal candidate for opportunity, industry, or career you are pursuing? These data bits are building blocks of any resume. They are absolute musts.

Most self-written resumes do a pretty decent job of listing skills and education, but fail miserably in Experience section. More on how to address this challenge when we get to "S" below.

---------------------------------------- E = Essential information only ---------------------------------------- Your resume should not be a voluminous listing of everything you have done, everywhere you have done it, and every club or association you've ever been affiliated with. Chisel your copy down to content that is relevant to your target job/career path.

Suppose you are a marketing professional. Your memberships in American Marketing Association, Direct Marketing Association, and Public Relations Society of America belong on your resume.

Your memberships in local dog trainers club and American Dog Owners Associaiton can clearly be left off (unless you are applying for a marketing position with Humane Society).