Last week I told you about the celebrations for the tenth anniversary of my first album, including a new single release, Jules & Jim and live congratulations on the date and very kind words from the host of my favourite radio show called Jazz Livre (“Free Jazz”).

The host, Sidney Ferreira, described me as “a tremendously jazzy singer and songwriter”. Is not it beautiful? I was so happy! It meant the world to me, beacuse the curation of the Jazz Livre is simply amazing. This compliment, along with homemade popcorn and a glass of champagne, and wow, what a Tuesday night!

The thrill do not stop there, oh no! The next task I took on, also brought tears to my eyes.

In order to apply for a scholarship, I needed to update my CV. By the way, how long has it been, since you updated yours? In my case, I would say it has been ages and the reason is simple: I do not tend to think about those lines that are supposed to chronologically order the highlights of my existence.

I am not bragging about it at all. In fact, I really admire people who can keep their resumes updated. It is quite a healthy practice and can teach you valuable lessons, if you think about it. Certainly, a few pages are not capable of defining a person, but if your resume cannot be seen as the complete script of your life, it can at least have the importance of, say, a well-written movie synopsis.

After all, those few lines are the first, quicker impression you can get from the oeuvre, and in a world where the average attention span hovers around three seconds, a well-written resume may be the tie-breaker between grabbing the attention of your reader or being left out.

Therefore, I would like to invite you to think about how your synopsis is going. Is it fun? Dramatic? Affirmative? Does it point in any direction or is it more like a set of intertwined experiences forming a circular pattern? What would you change about it, and what information would gain more prominence in a new edition of it?

After tackling the long-postponed task and finally updating my resume, I can say that the payoff is immense. You realize that you have done much more interesting things than you recall, and surprising yourself is an incredible feeling.

So, if you, like me, are a little slow when it comes to updating your CV, maybe this is a good time to roll up your sleeves and get yourself prepared for future harvests.

Be seeing you,

G. F.