Sara Timm

If you’re targeting a role, don’t just skim the first few lines of the job description and assume you’re a match.

Too many people skim the top lines, think “I am perfect for this,” and hit apply, without ever checking the required or preferred qualifications.

But the real requirements are further down. Basic qualifications. Preferred experience. Certifications.

If you miss that section, you’re missing what matters.

Reading from the bottom up forces you to slow down and check the fit. Can you meet the requirements? Can you prove it in your résumé, LinkedIn, and outreach?

Sara Says: Targeting your resume? Read the job description from the bottom up.

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If your job search feels slow, it may not be about your experience. It may be how you’re showing it.

Recruiters and hiring managers are moving fast. If your resume or LinkedIn makes them work too hard to see where you fit, they move on.

That doesn’t mean you’re not qualified. It means the story is unclear.

I see it all the time, talented professionals burying the lede, listing everything they’ve done instead of showing what matters most right now.

Your background needs to speak to the role you want. Not eventually. Not halfway through the second page. Right away.

hashtag#SaraSays: Is your value showing up in the first few lines? Or getting lost in the details? If your message isn’t landing, let’s fix that.

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I see it all the time. Someone updates their résumé but forgets the rest.

LinkedIn still reads like a task list.

Their conversations sound reactive, not confident.

The résumé says they are ready for the next step, but the rest of their story is stuck in their last job.

That disconnect costs people interviews.

At the executive level, recruiters and decision-makers expect your résumé, LinkedIn, and how you talk about your value to line up.

If they do not see the same message everywhere, they move on to someone who made it easy to understand where they fit.

It is not about saying the same thing word for word. It is about making sure every part of your brand speaks to where you are headed, not just where you have been.

Sara Says: Take a look at your career story. Is it consistent everywhere or leaving gaps?

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Career gaps happen. Layoffs, restructuring, caregiving, health. Life does not follow a perfect timeline.

The gap is not what keeps you out of the running.

The silence around it is.

When I work with clients with a gap, we do not gloss over it. We do not over-explain it either.

We frame it for what it is. A pause, not a loss of value.

The right story shows how you stayed steady, stayed focused, or how you are ready to lead again.

It shows the gap and moves the conversation forward.

The goal is not to defend the gap.

It is to make sure your resume, LinkedIn, and conversations still position you for the room you want to be in.

If there is a gap in your career, does your story close it or leave questions behind?

Sara Says a gap on your résumé does not have to be a gap in your story.

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If a recruiter is excited about your resume but not your LinkedIn profile, there is a good chance you won’t be getting the interview.

Your competition? Their story lines up. Their resume, LinkedIn, and conversations all point in the same direction. Clear, consistent, ready for what is next.

A strong resume gets attention. But LinkedIn is where people look for the bigger picture. If that is missing, they move on.

It is worth checking. Does your profile tell the same story as your resume? If not, that is an easy place to start.

SaraSays: If your LinkedIn falls flat, so does your shot at the interview.

Let’s fix the disconnect. Book a LinkedIn review today.

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