After long-term employment with one company, how do I combat perceptions that I am inflexible, set in my ways, or unable to adapt to new work environments—both on my resume and in an interview?

QUESTION: After long-term employment with one company, how do I combat perceptions that I am inflexible, set in my ways, or unable to adapt to new work environments—both on my resume and in an interview?

 

Donna Tucker, CareerPRO Resume Center

When developing your resume, write about transferrable skills diverse roles in your summary and experience sections. In both the resume and the interview, you might highlight projects or interdisciplinary collaborations where you adapted to change or learned new skills, showing your growth mindset and genuine interest in tackling new challenges.

Mary Jo King, Alliance Résumé & Writing Service

Highlight the ways you have brought change and innovation to your long-time employer, which can be documented not only in your résumé, but also in your cover letter and LinkedIn profile. Thinking and writing about problems you have solved, projects you have managed, relationships you have built, and technologies you have learned/used will help you articulate them in more detail during interviews.

Robert Rosales, EZ Resume Services

Highlight examples of continuous learning, adaptability, and contributions to change initiatives on your resume. Use phrases like “spearheaded sales process improvement” or “embraced Salesforce upgrades.” To prepare for interviews, use the CAR interview framework to share success stories of how you’ve adapted to new challenges, emphasizing your flexibility and eagerness to learn and grow.

Brenda Mariah, Push Career Management, LLC

Showcase continuous education, increasingly complex work responsibilities, and involvements beyond the workplace. Even if your employer doesn’t invest in you. Invest in yourself. Then feature these elements on your resume and when you’re asked to “tell me about yourself” in interviews.

Cathy Lanzalaco, Inspire Careers

Keeping a focus on continuous learning and being coachable will break down the perceptions that you are stuck in your ways or unable to adapt. Don’t just say it though, demonstrate it by taking new courses or certifications and volunteering for new assignments and showcase them on your resume and talk about them in an interview.

Ask a Question

Ask us your question and it may be selected as the topic of our next blog post, with answers compiled from the advice of NRWA members.

7 + 8 =

Work with the Best

Find a Resume Expert

If you’re looking for more information on how to write a great resume – or get an expert to help you with yours – you’ve come to the right place! This site was created by the National Resume Writers’ Association (NRWA), a US-based non-profit association with members from around the world who are dedicated to learning about and providing expertise in resume writing to all job seekers.

The National Résumé Writers’ Association

12110 N. Pecos Street, Suite 220
Westminster, CO 80234

Thanks for checking out ResumeExperts.theNRWA.com! For more on our association and certification, see www.thenrwa.org