3 Ways Storytelling Can Help Explain Career Pivots on Your Resume

Up until rapid digitization, a career change was unheard of. Most people were satisfied with a linear career trajectory that involved little to no changes. Today, the table is turned upside down as professionals are taking major leaps. 

Younger demographics like Gen-Z and millennials are paving the way to what is known as a career pivot. It refers to a thoughtful shift toward roles or industries that better align with one’s goals and values. A recent study even found that over 50% of job seekers were eager to switch industries and functions. 

Moreover, the top industries people are leaving include hospitality and tourism, arts and entertainment, and logistics support. The reasons may include burnout, changing values/interests, or a desire for advancement. 

If you’re also at such a point in your professional life, you must design your resume a bit differently. It’s time to fill the gap between previous experience and a new direction thoughtfully. 

Storytelling is the best way to make this happen. Not sure how? Fret not! This article will share three strategies borrowed from storytelling to frame your career pivot in a way that makes sense to hiring managers. 

Create a Clear Narrative Arc 

Typically, a resume lists all that the applicant has done, right? Ideally, it should convey a story as to why one did what they did and where all of it is leading them. 

Think of it like a gripping biography or short story. It tends to follow a clear narrative arc: beginning (setup), middle (development), and end (resolution). Your resume must also mirror this arc, especially if you’re navigating a career pivot. In other words, you need to present your past roles as steps in a cohesive journey, not isolated jobs. 

The aim is to show hiring managers that you know your professional identity, and you’re progressing with purpose. Take the example of someone with five years of experience as a graphic designer. Now, they want to transition into UX research. 

It might appear to be a drastic shift, from visual design to data analysis. However, framing it as a narrative will make the connection clear, as follows: 

• Beginning – Started as a graphic designer focused on crafting visually compelling experiences for users across web and mobile platforms. 
• Middle – Intrigued by user behaviors, gradually took up side projects analyzing interaction patterns and soliciting feedback for better design. 
• End (pivot point) – Pursued a UX research certification and led design research case studies. Now focused on gathering user insights to drive product decisions with evidence-based findings. 

The above example shows a natural progression from visual design to user behavior analysis. It frames the design experience as a strength, not a detour. The landing point is solid and confident: the applicant knows who they are now and where they’re headed. 

Why does this technique work? Because hiring managers do read resumes. A recent survey discovered that 78% of them spend over one minute on each resume they receive. You have time to let your story unfold, but you must frame it cohesively. 

Lead With Transferable Themes 

Does your career span across different industries or job titles? If yes, then simply mentioning your previous work experiences will not suffice. Your resume superpower lies in how well you use transferable themes to weave your story together. 

Such themes may include empathy, leadership, problem-solving, or crisis management. They will essentially become threads that tie your past roles to your future goals. 

What you need to do is shift your focus a bit. Instead of being fixated on whether your past job titles match your target role, ask what you’ve always brought to the table. 

Let’s consider the example of someone planning to shift from emergency services to registered nursing. The EMT vs. RN debate often centers on the scope of practice and workplace setting. In that sense, the leap seems significant. 

However, when viewed from the lens of transferable skills, the connection becomes clear. As Saint Joseph’s College of Maine notes, despite the differences, emergency medical technicians and paramedics share similarities with nursing and other healthcare professions. Simply put, shared responsibilities like patient assessment and operating under pressure can bridge two distinct roles. 

To highlight the career pivot effectively, the resume should frame past EMT experience with nursing-aligned language and themes. For instance, just mentioning that one has responded to 911 calls and transported patients will not make the cut. 

The candidate needs to highlight that they participated in patient care and collaborated with medical teams to ensure continuity. Based on the example, here are general tips to stress transferable themes in a career pivot: 

• Focus on foundational skills valued in both past and target roles. 
• Use language that matches your target industry. 
• Consider functional or hybrid resume formats that draw attention to skills and achievements first. 
• Quantify achievements with numbers or scenarios to emphasize impact. 
• Include your transferable strengths in the professional summary. 

Highlight Defining Moments of Change 

One of the major benefits of a storytelling resume strategy is the fact that it acts as a strategic filter. You don’t need to include every single project or outcome. Just like a story, focus on a pivotal point or event, and take it from there. 

First, let’s understand this aspect a bit. In storytelling, the main character’s journey generally shifts from a specific turning point. They may face a crisis, have an epiphany, or make a bold decision. The same principles of literary plot twist, when applied to your resume, would highlight an experience, challenge, or moment that reshaped your path. 

Essentially, the pivotal point would justify your desire to switch careers. Moments of realignment are not uncommon, as 69% of American employees stated in a survey. They had changed or were considering a change in their career field. Your pivotal point may come from sources like: 

• A meaningful project that inspired you
• A personal or professional challenge that changed your values 
• Frustration with a limitation in your current career path or role 
• A mentor or event that opened your eyes to a new path 
• A hidden passion discovered through volunteering or side projects 

Without turning your resume into a memoir, you can weave in the pivotal moment strategically. Let’s say someone worked for 5+ years as a high-end corporate event planner. Now, they want to move into digital marketing. 

Such an applicant can mention a corporate retreat they organized on digital engagement. Captivated by audience analytics, they moved on to pursue a certification course in digital marketing. If the same person wants to become a clinical counselor, they can mention a wellness retreat that made them more drawn to a therapist’s impact than event logistics. 

If someone is planning a completely 180-degree career change, the pivotal point becomes the highlight of the resume. It also makes the transition seem less abrupt and more value-driven. Just don’t make it too dramatic; a concise and vivid account should be enough. 

Lastly, remember that the ending matters as much as the beginning. Just like a story, you want to resolve the climax of your resume by emphasizing where you’re headed. 

For instance, if you’re switching from healthcare to tech, end your summary with how passionate you are about user-centric problem-solving. As you close your resume story with intention, it communicates to hiring managers that you’re confident about stepping into the direction you’ve chosen.