Resume Cakes and Other Attention-Getters

Every couple of years an attention-getting resume goes viral, and students might wonder what they could do to get eyes on their job application. This time, we see a cake with a resume screen printed in the icing, sent to Nike headquarters.

The lesson for students is the same: creative approaches for creative jobs might work but are probably not appropriate for more conversative positions or industries. I also wonder, despite the reports on programs like Good Morning America, how often these ideas turn into job offers. A couple have, but I imagine that companies don’t want to encourage a lot of cakes, which, because of safety concerns, are probably discarded.

This story doesn’t have a happy job ending but became about the Instacart driver who carried the cake—and her 8-month-old son—around Nike’s campus to hand deliver the cake. It’s inspiring to see the lengths people will go for their dream job and how determined people can be. But I would encourage students to find other ways to differentiate themselves in the job market.