In both California and the United States as a whole, new emphasis is being placed on greater accountability for all educators. Educators find that they are facing too many sets of standards, making it difficult to focus on priorities. This paper provides five essential tools to demonstrate teaching competence. These tools can be the ways and means for each prospective teacher to prepare for school employment, education career advancement, and performance assessments based on standards. The five essential tools are: (1) the resume; (2) academic subject matter preparation; (3) letters of reference; (4) a career portfolio; and (5) a cover letter. Process guidelines are presented to help teachers assemble and use these tools. Attachments include the "California Standards for the Teaching Profession" and a sample teacher assessment form. (Contains 1 figure and 28 references.) (SLD)