One Simple Secret to Impress Government Employers

Are you looking for a job affiliated with the government and finding it difficult to stand out from the uniform crowd? There is one simple secret that will wow military officials, civilian contractors and non-profit organization boards alike. It’s so easy you will shake your head wondering why you didn’t think of it first.

For the past 5 years I have been working with NGOs and DOD contractors as a web developer. I have made multiple presentations in person and online in order to advance current projects and attain new clients. Everyone I meet with works closely with the government despite the different roles of their organizations. They are all extremely powerful, professional and successful so trying to persuade them that I am the best at what I do can be a little intimidating to say the least.

That was before I noticed something funny. Despite their super status in government work, each and every one of my clients has the same weakness. If I employ one simple trick I am almost assured that my  point of view will be heard and well received.

Don’t tell them I told you but my secret is simply PowerPoint. Anything presented in a half way decent PowerPoint is lauded as amazing work. Think of what you can do with this information as a job seeker.

Convert your experience into a conversational piece by placing it in a PowerPoint slide show. Turn it to a disc, attach a file to accompany your resume or use it as an oral presentation in an interview and watch the results.

For the most polished and professional PowerPoints keep basic graphic design guidelines in mind, like:

•       It’s best to build your own but in this case it’s ok to use a prefabricated template, just don’t pick a cheesey one they’ve seen a million times.
•       Use two fonts at the most, one for headers the other for bulk text, but make sure both are clear and easy to read.
•       Resist the urge to use every transition in the animation library. Stick to one or two from the subtle category and use them uniformly throughout the presentation.

To really show off, add images from your past or graphics you’ve found online to support the content you’ve included.

Even if you know how to make a more elaborate presentation in a more sophisticated program, don’t. I have tried it with other formats and there’s just something about government bosses and PowerPoint that I can’t explain, I can only cash in on it.

Try it and let me know if adding a PowerPoint to your professional packet makes a difference.