The worst disservice you can do to yourself is to undermine your own capabilities in the name of modesty. The best product any man has to sell is himself and if you cannot sell You, then I doubt if you can ever sell any other thing. Branding, packaging must start with the product called “YOU”. You are a brand. Sell it.

I worry when at the recruitment table I come across young graduates who when asked about their experience respond with a “no experience” kind of comments. Guys, you cannot be a graduate without experience. Well, maybe not on the current role but you certainly have had some form of experiences leading teams, birthing ideas, innovating changes, organizing meetings etc. You just must be able to think.

Let me wrap this up with two real life examples. At a table leading a recruiting team I came across a young lady who from her introduction seemed smart but claimed to be lacking any form of experience. After series of probing, ( I kind of liked her and wanted to be able to justify her recruitment). She confessed to running a small business of selling yam pottage in her estate. She explained how she would wake up early, cook the stuff, take it round the estate before they leave for work. This to me was a bunch of selling skills, innovative and creative ideas helped her to know when and where to sell.

Conclusion: She is an experienced sales person, a marketer and is leading a team of food supply enterprise. How does this look on the CV?

Another example is Hassan, a graduate of Economics. Hassan has been home for two years post-graduation yet he claimed to have no experience. After a lot of prodding, he explained that he ran evening Arabic classes organized in the neighborhood for children. He also taught them other subjects like English and mathematics. However, because he was doing pro bono, he didn’t consider it as an experience. This, to a recruiter is a teaching experience and a bunch of soft skills that recruiters are looking for embedded in that simple volunteering activity. You need skills to get children organized, come regularly for lessons, get their parents to trust you with their kid etc.

In summary, as a job applicant, you must learn to identify your experience mostly from several positions you must have held at different times in your academic career. Those experiences will certainly help you to be properly positioned at interviews. When it come to experience, never ever go blank again. Do you know being a school prefect, Class captain, head of football or basketball teams are relevant experiences?

We can all do better selling this unique product