How to get a job: tell the truth
Eric Dann hates writing resumes. In fact, he says it’s what he’s loathed most since crafting his first one in junior high.
But the Victoria-based Sixth Nations Mohawk man is turning more than a few heads with the resume he crafted just one month ago when his job search took him to his wits end.
“I was so frustrated by seeing my resume get thrown into a pile of others, and so one night I just decided to sit down and write a resume for myself,” Dann, 29, says. “I just sat there and laughed for, like, 15 minutes.”
Dann never planned on submitting his resume, which starts by announcing his objective is, “To claw my way to the top using any means necessary, but then be a fair and just ruler, and bring your company to new heights, or whatever.” But when a handful of friends saw what he’d written, they encouraged him to actually put it out there.
Casting aside interview attire, Dann walked up in sweatpants to a man who ran a sprinkler firm and tossed him his resume. He was hired on the spot. Dann then submitted his resume — which lists his personal attributes as “possible ESP,” “emits pleasant aroma(s)” and “proficient in MarioKart for Super Nintendo” — to a number of restaurants and started getting calls back. One person, so impressed, even posted Dann’s resume on Reddit.com, which was quickly drawn to its front-page content and has since received nearly 700,000 hits and was reposted on Funnyordie.com and Buzzfeed.com. Word got all the way to someone in a Chicago advertising firm, who contacted Dann to start contract work for convincing advertising.
“There are jobs out there, but there are one million people going for every job, and you have to find a way to stand out,” Dann says. “The funny thing is, everything on there is actually true.”
Aside from his sense of humour, Dann also has a slew of experience working in the Victoria area, specifically in youth and social service work. He has a diploma in communications from Camosun, and has done radio and graphic design work. He says he’s still looking for that perfect opportunity.
“My perfect job would be one that encourages me to use my creativity to its best potential,” Dann says. “My real passion is helping people. And laughing.”
To see Dann’s full resume, visit http://bit.ly/eW5xBS. To hire Dann, email: r.ericdann@gmail.com.
Throw on those helmets
It’s time to rev up those peddling legs and hop on the old bike saddle — Bike to Work Week, May 30 to June 5, is urging cyclists (and those less inclined) to lose the gas and work out your, er, glutes, to support a greener way of living in the province.
This year, the provincial government is committing $178,000 to the cause, to encourage commuters to cycle to work. This investment is aimed towards new cycling trails, bike lanes, bike lockers and more efforts around the province.
City councillor Philippe Lucas says that he’ll be joining in the cycle-happy week, and points out that this is a good time to consider how well the current system is working for the city.
“Bike to Work Week is a great effort and certainly, at a time when regional transportation is on everyone’s minds, this is a good time to stop and think about the methods we’re using and how we’re getting around town and to work every day,” Lucas says.
While it’s easy enough to consider the sun a good reason to get out and bike, Lucas encourages people to consider what is holding people back from making environmentally friendlier choices.
“Certainly we have a lot of things going right, but there are always ways to improve,” he says. “We should be doing more to create safe biking opportunities for cyclists, especially if the implementation of sharrows are any indication.”
No word yet on whether or not Victoria’s Other Urban Repair Squad (O.U.R.S.) will be throwing down some classic guerilla sharrows for the event, but the forced bike lanes have tread strong routes for busy commuter routes all over the city.
A historical retirement
Royal news this past week, but not the William and Kate kind. Royal B.C. Museum CEO Pauline Rafferty has announced she’ll retire as head of the Victoria favourite, but only once a successor has been selected by the museum’s board of directors.
“I have one of the best jobs in British Columbia,” Rafferty told media. “Every day brings new discoveries.”
Rafferty has been heading the museum for 10 years, and is the seventh person to lead the museum in its 125-year history.
She is the first person and the first woman to head the Royal B.C. Museum Crown Corporation and one of only a few women to head a Crown Corporation in B.C. M
