The pain of CV writing

Why is writing a CV so god damned hard?! At the end of the day, you know what qualifications you have and you know what work you've done. Though, I guess, that is the easy part. The hard part is trying to work out what skills they want and then basically lying and making up anecdotal shite which makes things you have done in the past somehow relevant to the job you are applying for.

I have come to the conclusion that there are two groups of people for whom a CV is an easy task. Firstly, the school/university leaver. They aren't expected to have experience of any sort, though it is preferable, and as long as they weren't complete spanners at school, all is well. The second group of people who have it easy is those people who are very industry focused, for example a photographer, or a web designer among others. They have their college course, they have a series of highly specific jobs and expertise. Hell, examples of their work alone could secure them many jobs in their chosen fields.

It is the rest of us who must struggle. Those of us who for whatever reason, don't have the specific qualification required, or the 10 years of specialised experience in the correct field. Some of us just want a job. We are looking in several fields and coming up short in most of them. Yes, we have experience, a proven track record of being punctual, polite and committed, just in a different job. One not relevant to what is available. It doesn't mean we are incapable, it certainly doesn't mean we aren't good enough! It just means we have to work harder making a CV that stands out from the rest of the pile but, isn't that what everyone is doing? Using the same catch words, and format. Telling the same lies. I for one am lost in this limbo of having a wide and varied skill set and employment history, and writing my CV is damn near soul destroying!