How to Pitch Yourself So Opportunities Find You

Using the Translation Framework to Reframe your Work History

The job market is wild right now. AI is eating jobs, whole teams are disappearing, and “qualified” means something different than it did even two years ago. In a market like this, you’re often not looking for a job title – you’re looking for work. The kind of work you can do well, contribute to, and get paid for.

That means you can’t make people work to see your value. If you want people to say yes faster, you have to make your value easy to spot.

The Invisible Language Barrier

Here’s the thing: You’re probably speaking in a language that opportunities don’t recognize.

You say you “managed social media accounts.” But opportunities are looking for someone who “drove brand engagement and built community loyalty.”

You say you “handled customer complaints.” The market wants someone who “turned frustrated customers into brand advocates.”

You say you “organized events.” But hiring managers need someone who “created memorable experiences that strengthened client relationships.”

This isn’t about inflating your resume with buzzwords. It’s about translating what you actually did into the language that buyers, hiring managers, and even AI systems use when they’re looking for solutions. 

Basically, translating what you did through your actions into the value you actually delivered for organizations.

The Translation Layer: The Work-to-Worth Shift

Most of us are used to thinking about work in terms of what we did. The problem is hiring managers, clients, and even AI-driven resume scanners are looking for what that work was worth – how it added value to the organization.

Nobody’s hiring you just to mow grass, answer phones, or file expense reports. They’re hiring you because those tasks lead to something bigger – happy customers, more sales, smoother operations, stronger brand reputation.

That gap between what you do and the value it delivers is what you have to fill. And that gap is what I call the translation layer. 

Think of it like this: You have an internal language – the way you talk about your work in your head, with your teammates, in casual conversation. But there’s also an external language – the way the market talks about the problems you solve and the value you create.

If you want people to be clear on why to hire you, you have to get good at translating what you do into why it matters for the organization. 

The lawn care example tells the whole story:

Same work. Completely different positioning.

Why This Matters in 2025

The job market is competitive. But consider how linguistically competitive it is. AI systems are scanning for value indicators. Hiring managers are pattern-matching for impact statements. Clients are googling for solutions, not task-doers. In volatile markets, adaptability wins.

The lawn care example works because it shows someone who is reliable, teachable, good with customers, protective of brand reputation, and tuned in to quality standards. Who also happened to be great at mowing grass. 

The Translation Layer in Practice

So, let’s come up with a game plan to help you rebuild your resume and your online presence with the right words to make you linguistically competitive. That way whether you’re looking to work with a local small business or work remotely, you have a competitive advantage.

Step 1: Audit Your Current Language: Write down how you currently describe what you do. Chances are, it’s mostly tasks and responsibilities.

Step 2: Map to Pain Points: For each task, ask: “What problem does this solve? What value does this create? What would happen if this wasn’t done well?”

Step 3: Translate to Impact: Rewrite each description to focus on outcomes, not activities. Use the language that hiring managers, clients, and buyers use when they’re looking for solutions.

Step 4: Test and Refine: Pay attention to response rates. Which language gets callbacks? Which descriptions generate interest? Which positioning attracts the right opportunities?

The Compound Effect

Here’s what happens when you get this right: Opportunities start finding you.

Instead of applying to hundreds of jobs, you become the person people recommend when they need something done. Instead of competing on price, you compete on value. Instead of explaining why you’re qualified, your positioning makes it obvious.

This isn’t magic. It’s strategy. It’s understanding that in a world flooded with options, clarity wins. And clarity comes from speaking the language that opportunities recognize.

The Bottom Line

Here’s the question that changes everything:

“If I had to hire me tomorrow, what would make me the obvious choice?”

Don’t answer with what you’ve done. Answer with what that work was worth. What problems you solved. What value you created. What outcomes you delivered.

If you can answer that in a way that shows worth, not just work, you stop competing for titles and start competing for opportunities.

And that’s how you stay in the game.

You’re welcome. Now, go watch a Chadwick Boseman movie. And be inspired.

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The Translation Layer Framework™ helps individuals and organizations bridge the gap between internal language and market language, ensuring your value is visible to both human decision-makers and AI systems. Because when you speak the language of solutions, opportunities find you.

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