How to Translate Your Experience So Hiring Managers Actually Understand It

They Don’t Know What Your Job Actually Meant — And It’s Your Job to Tell Them

This might be hard to hear, but it’s true:

The hiring manager reading your resume?
The person interviewing you?

They probably have no real idea what your past job actually involved.

Not because they’re careless. Not because they’re unqualified.
But because they haven’t lived your world.

Maybe you worked in government, the military, a technical field, or a completely different industry. Maybe your title never reflected the weight of what you actually did. Maybe your day-to-day was more complex than any bullet point could capture.

Whatever the case, your experience doesn’t automatically translate. People assume they understand… but they don’t.

They don’t realize that “oversaw supply chain operations” meant you were juggling vendors across three time zones and preventing a $2M delay.
They don’t see that “supported operations” meant you were handling budgets, planning movements, managing a team, and making decisions under pressure.

And if you’re a veteran? The gap gets even wider.

I’ve worked with vets whose real job involved logistics, planning, analysis, leadership, and problem-solving — and yet the interviewer still imagines they spent their days doing “military stuff.” The reality? Most service members spend far more time solving complex operational problems than anything Hollywood has ever shown.

You walk in thinking, “My work speaks for itself.”
But it doesn’t.

It needs a translator.
And that translator is you.

Your Job Is to Make Your Experience Make Sense

So no, the hiring manager isn’t going to “get it” just because you list your title and responsibilities.

The fix is simple, but powerful:

Don’t just say what you did — explain why it mattered.

Ask yourself:

• What problem was I solving?

• What result did it produce?

• Who did it impact?

• Why did it matter to the organization?

You’re not dumbing anything down.
You’re helping them understand.

And once they do? They’re often blown away by what you actually accomplished.

The Secret: Build a Theme, Not a Timeline

Whether you’re changing industries, careers, or countries, the person across from you probably has no idea what your world looked like. And they’ll assume, just like you are now, that even if you tried to explain it, it wouldn’t land.

So give them something they can understand:

Make a theme. Create a thread. Translate your experience, not your job title.

When you structure your background around themes — like “operations improvement,” “customer experience,” or “building clarity in chaos” — the other person naturally fills in the gaps.

Suddenly they’re saying:

“You know, that reminds me — we’ve been having a similar issue here…”
“That’s exactly what we’re struggling with.”
“How did you fix that? We could use that.”

That’s the shift.
You’re no longer defending your past.
You’re connecting it to their present.

Because they’re not hiring your history.
They’re hiring your ability to solve their current and future problems.

So Don’t Show Up as a Buzzword Robot

And don’t show up as a walking resume, either.

Show up as a person — one who:

• knows how to tell their story

• simplifies complex experiences

• connects their work to real problems

• makes their value easy to understand

People don’t hire bullet points.
They hire clarity.
They hire confidence.
They hire someone they can picture doing the job.

So help them picture it.

Translate your world into theirs.
Tell your story with purpose.
And make it impossible for them to misunderstand who you are and what you bring.