There are lots of ways for you to stand out during your dental hygiene job search. But I’m guessing this will be a new one for you.
I call it a CAR Sheet. This has nothing to do with transportation, although it could help you speed up the processing of landing a job.
CAR stands for Challenge – Action – Resolution and it’s a way for you tell more of your story, getting potential employers a little closer to the know-, like-, trust-stage – a major part of landing interviews and jobs.
Dental employers assume because you have a license in dental hygiene that you know how to do dental hygiene – that’s great. But the bigger question is how well you do it.
Accompanied with a dental hygiene resume, cover letter, and testimonial sheet, a CAR Sheet helps employers see how awesome you are before you get to the interview stage. Like a Testimonial Sheet, it validates that you are the real deal.
So let’s create your CAR Sheet. This is a one-page document designed with the same font and overall look of your resume. But for the content, you will share 3-5 experiences you’ve had as a hygienist in very simple, succinct writing. I’m talking about something like five short sentences in one paragraph.
Here’s a one paragraph example broken up:
[Challenge]
At All Smiles Dental, I serviced a patient that had an intense fear of dental offices. She had been to several different practices in the last five years and kept changing because she didn’t feel comfortable.
[Action]
I could sense her apprehension and decided to give her a little extra attention – more empathy and compassion – and tried to connect on things we had in common to help distract her.
[Resolution]
It worked! She became one of my best, most consistent patients (and a great friend). She thanked me profusely when we were done and would only reschedule on days when I was working.
Here’s the paragraph all together:
At All Smiles Dental, I serviced a patient that had an intense fear of dental offices. She had been to several different practices in the last five years and kept changing because she didn’t feel comfortable. I could sense her apprehension and decided to give her a little extra attention – more empathy and compassion – and tried to connect on things we had in common to help distract her. It worked! She became one of my best, most consistent patients (and a great friend). She thanked me profusely when we were done and would only reschedule on days when I was working.
Again, brevity is important so that you don’t overwhelm the receiver. Just get straight to those three things and move on to the next example – no more than one page in total. Save extended details for the interview.
These are your top experiences – your best examples of how you shine as a dental hygienist. And the best part is, the story isn’t finished yet – keep recording these experiences through out your career. I promise you, they will make a difference in your job search.
Most hygienists won’t go to this length to share information. The ones who do, have an advantage so take it seriously and grab the keys to your CAR and take off!
