While I understand professionalism is obviously necessary when job (or client) hunting, I also think its absolutely critical to stand out from the masses, especially with the competition out there today.  Being unique is key to standing out in their inbox, or on top of a pile of resumes.  Gimmicky resumes may not work the majority of the time – but being original and finding ways to effectively showcase your genuine originality are critical.

If you’re actually physically mailing in a resume — what are some thoughts on how you can stand out?  Obviously, paper is key.  So many of your competitors will send in their resume and cover letter using plain old white paper.  How about a splash of color?  In the cover letter – get real, don’t drone on and sound like the rest of the letters they need to sort through.  Tell them specifically, “Here are 5 reasons why I’m perfect for this job.”  Show your personality, ingenuity and intelligence!  But – be authentic.  Enthusiastic, but authentic.  Don’t lay it on too thick and at the same time use that valuable space to highlight what is perfect about the position and what is perfect about you.

Have links to your social media profiles, like linkedin and twitter (if what you tweet about is related to the industry you’re applying for).

Definitely have an online presence.  Work at optimizing your name in search.  Write articles in your niche, blog, tweet, get on facebook — but do it smartly.  Always think about the client that will look you up, or stumble upon you.  How do you want to come across?  If I was looking for a partner in social media and seo, for example, I’d definitely be looking for someone who immersed themselves in the industry.  I’d be looking for the majority of their tweets to relate to our field interspersed with original thoughts, triumphs and general excitement about the work.

Have an online portfolio, or testimonials to direct them to.  Acquire your own domain name (johndoe.com) and build a website/blog that highlights your skills, portfolio, client testimonials and personality.  Check out some of these examples of fabulous resume/portfolio sites:

Cabedge – I love the landing page on their site which to me speaks of confidence.  The design is minimal, bold and pleasant without cramming showcasing all of their skills onto the homepage itself.  It’s also direct and concise, speaking immediately to their potential client.

Gwen Bell – When you visit Gwen’s website you immediately get the feeling that this person knows what they’re doing, is comfortable in their own skin and you’re intrigued.  She’s both professional and amiable – inviting you to get to know her while her call to action is immediately present for potential clients.

New Marketing Labs – It’s important to identify with your visitor immediately.  I love how New Marketing Labs achieves that right from the get go.  They talk to the clients needs and invite them to take action.  Tastefully, below the call to action they highlight the caliber of clients they have worked for – and that they want to attract.  It’s key to identify who it is that you want to work with, and what exactly it is you want to do for them.

We’ve all had the frustration of working for clients with whom we don’t resonate with creatively, so why not get to know them before a contract is signed and see of your ideas are going to be appreciated, or disregarded.  Always remember that you’re interviewing them, too!  The goal is to get your dream client, not the next client.  So the next time you’re approaching a prospective client — get creative and don’t be afraid to share ideas.  Get specific about the strengths and weaknesses you perceived to be in their business model (on the level in which it relates to the position at hand), and what steps you personally would take to bring their business to the next level.

Leverage your connections.  When attempting to land a client, check to see if you have any secondary connections to that client in LinkedIn that could send a recommendation or introduce you.

By far the most impressive, ludicrously simple experiment I’ve seen in attracting your dream job was Alex Brownstein’s ingenious ploy to attract the attention of key Google employees by optimizing landing pages with their names and running a google adwords campaign:

For more helpful tips to help you reveal your own inspiration to attract the perfect client check out these resources:

Job Search: Four Ways to Stand Out in Today’s Market – SEO Your Resume

Easy Ways to Stand Out when Applying for Internships

Making Your Mark: Five Unusual Ways to Impress Finance Recruiters

Please, tell me it’s not just about headstands and running

1. No commute! In 2007 the Energy and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Impact of Telecommuting and e-Commerce (PDF), conducted by TIAX estimated that telecommuters in the U.S. alone saved 840 million gallons of gas in a year.  That CO2 reduction is equal to removing 2 million vehicles from the road every year.

2. Turn off your monitor when you’re not at your desk.

One computer left on 24 hours a day will cost you $115 – 160 in electricity costs a
year and dump 1,500 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere.
A tree absorbs between 3-15 lbs of CO2 each year. That means that 100-500 trees
would be needed to offset the yearly emissions of one computer left on all the time! – Tufts Climate Initiative (PDF)

3. So for that matter – turn off the computer at night!

4. Use a laptop. Laptops only use 1/4 of the energy that a desktop does.

5. Get the flat screen already. If you’re still using the now ancient CRT — consider writing off a lovely LCD monitor on your taxes next year.  LCD monitors use 1/3 of the energy that a CRT does and your eyes will thank you as well!

6. Invoice electronically. Encourage your clients to accept your invoices electronically and let them know there is no need to print it out on their end to send back to you with the check.

7. Sign contracts digitally. These pesky contracts and proposals that go back and forth are generally quite a few pages.  Use .pdf’s and sign them electronically.  It’s legal and saves paper.

8. Reduce printing. If you absolutely must print (viewing pdf’s while on a conference call can be just as effective folks!) — use both sides of the paper and eliminate unnecessary images (or make them smaller).

• About 85 million tons of paper and paperboard.
• Each year, more than 2 billion books, 350 million magazines, and 24 billion newspapers are published.
• The average American uses approximately one 100-foot-tall Douglas fir tree in paper and wood products per year.  – epa.gov

9. Use an earth friendly signature. Add a line to your email sigs encouraging people not to print out your emails if it’s not absolutely necessary.

10. Recycle — and pass it on! Make sure you’re doing all that you can to reduce, reuse and then recycle.  I love the idea of making household recycling efforts part of our kids chores.  Kids love helping the Earth and it helps them to learn good habits right from the get go.

Some great Earth Day resources:

1. Earth Day 2010 Action Center
2. Pick 5 actions for the world
3. What’s Your Ecological Footprint?
4. What’s Your Transportation Footprint?
5. Earth Day Network

Do you have other ideas on how Freelancer’s can save the Earth?  Speak your mind!

Many employers will discover their employees are accomplishing more and better quality work. Employers can establish goals and benchmarks that employees must meet and there are also ways that employees can be monitored online to ensure they are working during agreed upon hours. Good managers can come up with excellent plans to measure employee performance.

2. Reduction of office rental and real estate expenses. The company needn’t maintain the overhead costs of offices and in many instances actual real estate. AT&T for example saved approximately $550 million dollars simply by eliminating or consolidating office space alone with their telecommuting program.

3. Minimize parking requirements. In addition to office space savings, companies also can reduce parking requirements.

4. Reduced benefits expenses. For companies that choose to work with independent contractors even more expenses such as benefits and social security may be eliminated. In fact, employers are likely to find that the majority of their employees would choose telecommuting over pay raises.

5. Easier, more effective recruitment. There is a much larger pool of applicants for jobs that human resources has to choose from. Many well qualified applicants won’t apply for a job simply based on location and companies have no choice but to hire applicants that aren’t the right fit for the job.

6. Better employee retention success. When a good employee needs to relocate due to personal circumstances, the company is much more likely to be able to retain their service.

7. Eliminate relocation costs. When you find the perfect candidate for a job, it won’t be necessary to require they relocate and you eliminate offer relocation expenses.

8. Less time off. Sick leave is less, and sick employees don’t get co-workers sick. Parents needn’t take personal days off to care for sick children.

9. Working from home reduces stress. Happy employees are naturally more motivated!

Let me know if you land one!

I think the most important thing mentioned is to make sure your performance is outstanding before you approach your employer about telecommuting. They need to be able to trust you and the integrity of your work ethic – and they also need to strongly value your work so that you can be certain they will consider your request favorably.

I also like that they ask you to honestly consider if you will be able to perform your job from home. Are you easily distracted? Do you have an office in your house or will you be stationed in the center of a chaotic household? You’ve got to prepare if you want to work from home. Make sure you approach the whole concept professionally. If you take professional steps before you approach your employer, they will be much more confident in making this leap with you.