I've always wondered what people mean when they use those spiffy adjectives like "dynamic", "self-motivated", or "team player" on their résumés to explain why a potential employer should hire them. So, here are a few spiffy, résumé-type adjectives to explain why you should hire me along with a few words describing what I mean.

The Top 10 reasons why you should hire me:

"Reliable, Hard Working, and Dedicated" -- This is the standard, cliché description of a prospective employee. That doesn't, however, render it meaningless. In my case, you can rely on me to work hard until I've finished the task that I've dedicated myself to. Once I've started a job, there is no stopping until it's done.


"Works and Plays Well with Others" -- The modern workplace is a team environment. No matter how good an employee is, he's worthless if he can't work with other people. I make it a point to get along with my coworkers both professionally and personally. Key elements of this include knowledge sharing and not acting like a jerk.


"Self-Motivated and Self-Starting" -- I don't like sitting on my hands doing nothing. If my workload slows down, I immediately start looking for new tasks to keep myself productively occupied.


"Organized and Detail Oriented" -- Too many perfectly good projects have gone down in flames, because the people responsible for them weren't able to maintain control of the work. I don't let that happen to my projects. The two cardinal rules by which I live my professional life are "Plan your Work, and Work your Plan" and "Documentation, Documentation, Documentation!"


"High Quality, High Quantity, High Speed" -- I think the Ford Motor Company put it best when they declared that "Quality is Job 1." Substandard products are always more trouble than they're worth. Once the product is done, though, one must move on. There are always other projects that need to be completed. Meeting deadlines is also of prime importance. Late deliveries cost money. "A day late and a dollar short" is simply not allowed in my book.


"Skilled and Experienced" -- The long and short of it is that I've spent more than a decade and an half in the computer consulting industry. I've worked for everything from small, one-man shops to giant, multi-national corporations. I've worked on everything from desktop support, to multi-million-dollar database applications, to client relations, to contracts and budgets. Over the years, I've gained a very broad view of virtually all aspects of IT operations.


"Highly Adaptable" -- I've never been a U.S. Marine, but I like one of their mottoes: "Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome." I enjoy learning new skill sets, and I learn them very fast. Challenges are things to be met; obstacles are things to be surmounted; horizons are things to be expanded. Over the course of my career, I've successfully met many challenges, surmounted many obstacles, and expanded my horizons as far as possible. Breaking new ground is one of the things I do best.


"Extremely Analytical" -- The first step in solving any problem is analyzing the situation. I have a very hierarchical mode of thinking that lends itself well to assessing a new project and breaking it down into manageable component tasks.


"Goal Directed" -- To be truly productive, work must have a purpose - an end product that improves or enhances the conduct of business. I believe that it's very important to clearly define the desired results of a project up front, remain focused on the end goal, and always keep working toward it. Distractions and diversions are counter-productive.


"Problem Solver" -- Even the best laid plans are subject to unexpected difficulties. A large percentage of successful project management consists of simply "putting out fires." I make it a point in my work to solve problems, not cause them. That's one of the things that has made me successful over the years.