The "Unsolicited Work" Playbook: AI Resume & Career Advice For Humans
AI-powered resume feedback and career advice for humans. We help you navigate a job search that feels like it's built for robots with vetted opportunities and practical playbooks.
Why this works: Most candidates talk about what they can do. You’re showing what you already did. It shifts the conversation from “Are you qualified?” to “When can you start?”
The 3 Rules of Unsolicited Work
- Keep it light. Don’t work for free for a week. Spend 2-3 hours max.
- Focus on the gap. Address the specific problem mentioned in the job description or news.
- Present it as a draft. “I sketched some initial thoughts” is safer than “Here is the answer.”
Templates by Role
Marketing / Growth
The Asset: One-Page Campaign Brief
- Objective: Increase signups for [Product X]
- Target Audience: [Segment identified from research]
- Channel Strategy: 3 bullet points (e.g., LinkedIn organic, partnership with X, email nurture)
- Draft Creative: 1 headline + 1 ad visual (can be a rough mock)
- Success Metric: “If we hit 2% conversion, that’s [Number] new leads.”
Operations / Project Management
The Asset: First 30 Days Onboarding Roadmap
- Week 1: Audit [System/Process], Interview key stakeholders: [List Roles]
- Week 2: Map current workflow gaps in [Tool/Area]
- Week 3: Deliver “Quick Wins” recommendations list
- Week 4: Present 90-day optimization plan
Sales / Account Management
The Asset: Prospect List & Outreach Script
- Target List: 5 real companies that fit their ICP
- Why Them: One sentence per company on why they need the product now
- Cold Email Draft: A 3-sentence hook tailored to one prospect
- The “Why Me” Angle: “I already have relationships at [Company A] and [Company B].”
Engineering / Product
The Asset: Feature Teardown or Mini-Audit
- The Friction: “I noticed it takes 5 clicks to [Action].”
- The Fix: “Here’s a wireframe of a 2-click flow.”
- The Impact: “Based on industry benchmarks, this could lift conversion by 10%.”
- Note: Don’t critique without offering a solution.
How to Present It
Don’t email it beforehand (it might get ignored). Wait for the interview.
The Script:
“I was doing some research on [Company Goal] and had some ideas on how I’d tackle it in my first month. I sketched out a rough [Campaign/Roadmap/Audit]. Do you mind if I share my screen for two minutes to walk you through it?”
Copy / Export
This page is the web version of the playbook.
- If you want a deck: copy the outline into your slide tool (Google Slides, Keynote, PowerPoint) and keep it to 3-5 slides.
- If you want a doc: copy the role-specific template section into your notes app and personalize it for the company.
- For the “resource detail” version used in learning paths, see:
/resources/detail/unsolicited-work-playbook/.