Certify cards

How well do you adapt to new environments?

Flexibility

“It’s a funny thing coming home. Nothing changes. Everything looks the same, feels the same. Even smells the same. You realize what’s changed is you.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Flexibility competence is tested and developed when having to adapt to new environments. Especially if one moves abroad to study/work/live. Demonstrate your ability to adapt to new environments by answering the questions below 👇

Have you lived abroad? How did you adapt to new culture?
What have you learned from living abroad?
Do you like working/living/immersing yourself in multicultural environments? What do you like/don’t like about it?
How do you handle cultural differences?

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Strategic thinking

Creativity

“The most reliable way to predict the future is to create it.”

Abraham Lincoln

Creativity + planning = strategic thinking, and if you’re good at it, remember to mention this skill in your video CV!

What are your career goals? Are your ambitions reasonable and in line with the organisation’s/company's goals?
How and if you would change the company/organisation?
How would you contribute to its growth?
Can picture what the organisation could transform into with you?
You could possibly show your prospective employers what it would be like to work with you.

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Script writing and story boarding

Preparation

“To make a great film you need three things - the script, the script and the script.”

Alfred Hitchcock

So by now, you know already what you want to say, but here’s another question: how do you want to realise it in a video, with images and sound? This is the moment to imagine your story! Try to see and hear with your mind’s eyes and ears what you want the viewers to see and hear. Before getting cameras and phones out and recording your video CV, you better prepare. It’s good practice to write a script even if it’s just a simple outline. It will help you focus on what’s important and you won’t forget to mention anything. A script or storyboard should be clear to yourself, but also to the viewer. In fact, the viewer should be able to construct the video you have in mind on the basis of your script or storyboard.

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Filming

Execution

“Before you say ‘cut,’ wait five more seconds.”

Wim Wenders

Filming Checklist: audio

Film in a quiet place in order to avoid background noise and interruptions.
Make sure that you’re not talking too fast and that you’re making pauses after each sentence/section.
If you can, use an external microphone

Filming Checklist: video

Film in a bright room.
Avoid filming outdoors.
Put the camera between the source of light and the subject.
Place your subject in the center of the frame, looking directly into the camera, with the eyes on approximately ⅔ of the height of the image.
Leave a little bit of headroom above the top of the head but not too much.
Avoid cluttered backgrounds.
Place your camera at the eye level of the subject.
Use a tripod, or mount the camera to something stable.
Do NOT use the zoom of your mobile phone
Adjust resolution settings of your camera and record in Full HD (1080p)
Sit 0,6-1m away from the camera

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Tell us more about your passion project or a hobby!

Creativity

“I draw like other people bite their nails.”

Pablo Picasso

There is no better way to show your creativity than sharing your work and talking about your creative process… even if the creativity skill is not listed as one of the requirements for the position you’re applying for, it is a sought-after competence and could help you differentiate yourself from the competition. Remember you don’t have to be a professional painter, director, designer, photographer or artist to share the projects that you are passionate about with prospective employers. A Video CV is a great way to show off your personality and interests, and can be a great conversation starter. Wonder where to start?

Do you draw, paint, perform, play a musical instrument, take photographs, write … mime? How long have you been doing this?
Could you show some examples of your creative projects? (presentation, video tour, etc…)
What did you learn from arts & crafts?
Have you developed any transversal skills?
Do you consider yourself creative? What incident made you think that?

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Self-motivation

Self-management

“You can have all the tools in the world but if you don't genuinely believe in yourself, it's useless.”

Ken Jeong

The ability to stay motivated, even if something goes wrong, is an important and sought-after skill. Here’s a couple of examples that might help you demonstrate this ability:

How do you stay motivated? What inspires you to keep going?
Do you set yourself SMART goals?
Do you practice positive self-talk?
Do you try to surround yourself with positive people?
How do you reward yourself?

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Problem solving

Creativity

“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them”

Albert Einstein

Creativity is one of the competences essential to problem solving. Rules, guidelines and best practice manuals are helpful and can get you a result but they are not always available. Furthermore, in order to achieve extraordinary results, everyone needs to sometimes think “outside the box”. Demonstrate your problem-solving skills by answering the questions below 👇

What problem-solving event are you most proud of? Why and what happened?
How do you ensure that after having dealt with problems they do not repeat? Have you developed a method/technique to solve similar problems?
Tell us about a situation where you used creative thinking to eliminate frustration with a product/situation or a process.
Describe a situation where you had to think “outside the box” and how did you go about it?

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Don’t have professional equipment to film your video?

Execution

“I don't get tripped up in technology. I use technology as a tool.”

Spike Lee

Even if you do not own a camera and professional editing software, there’s plenty of resources that you consider. Here’s a couple of suggestions:

Visit your local library, Community center, youth center or contact NGOs that help people find employment
You can always rent or borrow equipment
Create a video using alternatives (ppt, online open-source tools, Blender, Google slides, iMovie ...)
Remember you do not have to use professional cameras to create a video, you can always record your video with your phone, tablet or your laptop.

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