 |
“Mona Lisa.” “The Last Supper.” “Vitruvian Man.” The résumé. One of these things is not like the other. Yet all can be attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. Even someone of Leonardo’s caliber needed a written collection of his background when, in 1482, he dashed off a summary of his skills to the Duke of Milan in hopes of securing an armament position. Eighteen years later a traveling English lord carried a handwritten letter of introduction, which he presented to acquaintances and called a résumé. Written summations of work experience have persisted and evolved ever since, but you don’t have to go back to Leonardo’s time to unearth dramatic changes to curriculum vitae arrangement and presentation. It was a whole different ballgame as recently as 20 years ago. |
