LAHORE – A Pakistani photographer and game artist is gaining online fame after his prolific, magazine-style resume went viral.
Muhammad Saleem, 27, from Lahore, has certainly set himself apart in the job market – so much so that when a recruiter spotted his resume online, they immediately felt the need to share it with the world.
The PDF magazine includes several images of the young man posing for the camera along with articles about his experience and pull quotes.
The reader of Bar Stool Sports sent in Muhammad’s whopping 28-page CV into the publication, after spotting it on LinkedIn, calling it: ‘The greatest piece of literature ever created.’
And it is, indeed, impressive. The PDF resume is made to look like a complete magazine, including a cover featuring the applicant himself posing for the camera in a leather jacket and immaculately coiffed hair.
In an interview with BuzzFeed, Muhammad explained that he had been through 20 resumes before deciding on the unique format. “I planned to merge all of my details in a single magazine-type resume,” he said, adding that his goal was to stand out as he applied to US and Canadian companies.
“To get attention in a pool of candidates where there’s tough competition to get the job, you must be unique and creative in your way of expressing yourself,” he said.
The cover of the ‘magazine’ bears the simple title of ‘Resume’ and includes preview titles such as ‘six years experienced supply chain professional’, asks the question ‘Will his hard work pay off’ and declares him to be ‘the outlier’.
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But it is inside the pages of the resume where things get really interesting.
Packed with pictures of Muhammad posing for the camera in a variety of outfits, the pages are decked with inspiring quotes attributed to the jobseeker such as: ‘Just keep moving forward and don’t give a s*** about what anybody thinks. Do what you have to do, for you.’
Another page features a dramatic passage directed at the brand he is applying to be a part of, saying that he gets ‘an adrenaline rush’ at the mere mention of its name – though declines to actually mention the name of the company.
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There is also plenty of far more standard resume fare in the booklet, detailing his past working at various Pakistani companies and his own photography brand.
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Elsewhere, he includes pictures detailing his methods of ‘body management’, such as swimming, basketball and body building.
There is even a version of a subscription advertisement offering ‘more than your average employee’ and an inexplicable 70 per cent off to ‘solve problems’.
Sources: Bar Stool Sports, BuzzFeed, Mail Online
