Monthly Challenge for February, 2023: Get job ready! Resumes, Cover Letters, and Elevator Pitch

There's never a bad time to update your job application materials, and this month, we're here to support you!

During this month, we'll work on creating, revising, or updating your job packet materials and that elevator pitch that might get you in the door. Each week, we'll work on a new piece, starting with the resume.

This monthly challenge is sponsored by:

Joe Masilotti, founder of RailsDevs, the reverse job board for Ruby on Rails developers

Theme

Get job ready! Resumes, Cover Letters, and Elevator Pitch

Goals

To end the month with:

A complete and updated resume tailored to your job search or position
A complete and updated Cover Letter that creates a personal connection
A captivating elevator pitch

Who can participate?

Virtual Coffee's goal is to support all developers, no matter where they are in their coding journey. We encourage all members to participate.

How it works

We're focusing on creating job application materials. Whether you're actively looking, getting ready to look, or just want to update your materials in case that dream job comes along, this is a great time to do it with the community and to get some feedback.
We encourage you to post your ideas, questions, and even your fears in `#monthly-challenge` channel in Slack. We're all learning and growing together!
Each week, we'll do a slack check-in to brainstorm, support, and learn from each other.
Keep in mind that different experiences will have different approaches to the materials, but we can all provide positive feedback.

We're breaking this challenge into two parts, but feel free to focus on what's most important to you.

Weeks one and two: Resume and Cover Letter

Resume

Step one: Find a job post.
Step two: Match your skills to the post.
Step three: Make your resume standout.

Cover Letter

Step one: Do some research. Learn about a company and make a connection.
Step two: Do some storytelling. A CL isn't a written resume. It's an opportunity to go deeper.
Step three: Connect your experience to the position.

Week three: Elevator Pitch

An elevator pitch is a short speech introducing yourself, what you do or your experience, and why you would be a good person to have on the team. The idea is to confidently convey information about yourself in a short amount of time and to leave an impression on the mind of the person who hears it.

Week four: Tying it Together

Your resume, cover letter, and elevator pitch should work together to tell your story and represent where you are on your career journey. Each piece should complement the others. This week, take time to make sure they work together or get some extra feedback on what you've worked on.

At the end of the month, we'll post a form in our #monthly-challenge slack channel to submit your resume, cover letter, and elevator pitch if you choose-this isn't required. Links to resumes and cover letters will appear on this page, and elevator pitches will go onto our YouTube channel in a playlist.

Each week, our monthly-challenge team will start us off with some questions and resources. For this challenge to be fruitful, make sure you're sharing, providing feedback, and asking for help when you need it.

Events that will help you with this Challenge

Get Job Ready Kickoff! | A Members-Only Event - 12p ET, Friday, February 3, 2023

Job application materials and resources

What if I need help?

You can ask a question in the #help-and-pairing VC channel, get 1:1 help during Office Hours (you can find the doc for office hours at the top of the #help-and-pairing channel.), join the VC co-working room, or ask at a coffee! Asking for help is part of the process.

And remember, we're always here to help ❤️