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The best jobs rarely come from applying. They come from a recruiter finding you first.

Most job seekers rewrite their profile every time they apply for something new. Recruiters see a different person every week and move on.

This week JT O’Donnell is teaching the plan we build for our Work It DAILY members so recruiters can find them on LinkedIn. You’ll learn:

Don’t forget to bring your questions!

Join us Wednesday, October 21st at 2 pm ET

This week I want to tell a story about how I once caused a room of 30 high-powered recruiting executives to start a pretty big argument. The story isn’t all that interesting, but the lesson I took from it is one of the most important things you can learn if you want your next job, raise, or promotion.

The Setup

Early in my career, I was working for the third largest staffing company in the world. They asked me to give a presentation on value. So I had 30 executives sitting in a big rectangle, and I walked right into the middle of it.

I split the room down the center. Team A on one side, Team B on the other. They were going to compete against each other. And if you know anything about executives, you know they’re already competitive. You don’t have to try very hard.

I handed each team a nail. Identical nails. Same metal, same length, same age. Then I gave each team a sheet of paper with information about the nail and told them to huddle up. They had five minutes to decide what the nail was worth and how they’d sell it.

The Fight

They came back fired up. I asked Team A what they were charging. “Five cents.”

Team B burst out laughing. Executives laughing at executives. “No way,” they said. “This thing is worth fifteen dollars.”

And then it was on. I didn’t say a word. They started talking over each other, arguing about the metal and the length and why the other side was crazy. People were practically climbing over the tables. I sat there with my arms crossed, leaning back, smiling.

About five minutes in, one of them finally looked at me and got it.

The Trick

The two sheets of paper were not the same. The features of the nail were identical, and those were the facts nobody could argue with. But I had written the benefits of those features in two completely different ways. On Team A’s paper, I made the nail sound cheap and forgettable. On Team B’s paper, I made it sound valuable.

Language is everything.

What This Means for You

Think about your resume, your LinkedIn profile, and your interview answers. You are the nail. Your job titles, your years of experience, and your degrees are the features. Everybody has features. What decides whether an employer sees you as a five-cent hire or a fifteen-dollar hire is how you describe the benefits of those features.

Now, I’m not telling you to become a narcissist and talk crazy about yourself. Please don’t do that. What I am telling you is that you have to choose the right language when you talk about your work history and your accomplishments. Do that, and you convey the right value. Skip it, and you’re leaving it up to the other person to guess. And from my experience, most of the time, they guess low.

This matters when you’re hunting for a new job, asking for a raise, or going after a promotion. If you can’t explain what you bring to the table, don’t expect anyone to hand you what you’re worth.

So How Do You Find the Right Words?

This is where I can help, and it’s free.

Years ago, I built a 38-question quiz that unlocks something I call your UVA, your unique value add. It’s based on your workplace personas and your communication styles. You have three top personas and one top communication style, and when you put them together, they create your UVA.

When you finish, you get a detailed report that explains what all of it means, what your value is, and exactly which words and language to use so employers can see it. Thousands of people have taken it already, and most people agree it’s deadly accurate.

And because so many people are struggling right now, I want you to have it again for free.

Take the UVA Quiz

Take the quiz HERE. You’ll pop in your email address so we know where to send your report, and it will land in your inbox.

I promise you’re going to be blown away by what it teaches you and by the language it gives you to use.

Stop being the five-cent nail. Go find out what you’re worth, and then learn how to say it.

Go get ‘em!

J.T. O’Donnell

If you're a professional who's tired of feeling invisible or undervalued, J.T. O’Donnell’s new book PRO VOICE: Turn What You Know Into What You Earn is for you!

It’s time to stop relying on resumes and start building real visibility, credibility, and income.

Inside, J.T. shares her G.L.O.W. Method™ for showcasing your expertise online, building a trusted personal brand, and monetizing your knowledge through content, coaching, speaking, and more.

This isn’t about going viral—it’s about getting visible to the people who matter most. If you're ready to future-proof your career and finally earn what you’re worth, this book is your roadmap.