What virtues fill your resume? While you may not have used the term, virtues, you know the likes of the answer: efficient, detail oriented, creative, great problem solver, powerful leader, visionary, quick learner. Depending on the job you desire, you carefully craft a resume which highlights the qualities you possess which are a great fit. You list accomplishments to prove it.
Recently, I heard a message from David Brooks in the New York Times (The Moral Bucket List) where he pointed out the obvious: when we die, those who speak at our eulogy never read from our resume. Rather, those “resume virtues” fall well below another set of qualities:
Eulogy Virtues
You know them:
- He was the most compassionate man I knew
- When she walked into the room, a light shone brightly
- He listened with his whole heart
- Her generosity was known throughout the community
- His kindness was felt by everyone who knew him
My questions for you are:
Which virtues do you focus on?
Which do you ignore in the process?
Which do you value in others?
Of course the resume virtues are needed! Strong, successful companies are built on the shoulders of great resume virtues. Yet, I believe that healthy, vibrant, joyful work environments, families and communities are built on deeply held and practiced eulogy virtues. A balance of the two seems needed.
If this rings true for you, ask yourself:
What eulogy virtue(s) can I expand on today?
What resume virtue(s) get in my way?
What imbalance am I ready to correct?