2. Create a professional email address (using your name - no nicknames) to include with your contact information.
3. Use past tense - even when describing your current job.
4. If youre posting your resume online, dont encourage identity theft by including too much personal information.
5. Gear you resume towards the job you want, not the one you have now.
6. List your most recent job first.
7. Check spelling and grammar - dont depend on your spelling errors being caught by spell check.
Your resume should not include every task youve performed in every position; instead it should only include your strongest accomplishments. Though its tempting to add all the details about every job youve had, your resume is only a starting point. Use it to get your foot in the door so that you can get an interview. Once you have an opportunity to speak with the hiring manager, then you can go into more detail.
Since you have to catch the attention of the reader right away, stay away from passive-sounding words when describing your accomplishments and responsibilities. Passive sentences are indirect and dont make much of an impression.
Look at this example of a passive sentence: Participated on product development team. Compare that with this example of an active sentence: Created scripts and tested new product.
In addition to using active words and sentences in your descriptions, you also have to show results. Which description would appeal to you as a hiring manager?
Arranged new product development meetings, or Facilitated meetings for new product development team which led to cost savings due to reduced miscommunication between departments.
If you are a freelancer or temp worker, youll probably work for various companies and hold different positions. Even if you had different titles, the skills and accomplishments will show your versatility in different industries and company cultures.
Keep track of the projects youve worked on, articles and documentation youve written, etc. Set aside samples of your work so that you can include them with your resume, if requested.
When youre changing careers playing up your skills is very important. You may not have direct experience in the area youre changing to, but you can show how the skills youve acquired in the old career can be carried over to the new one. Pick accomplishments that show that you are versatile and can think out of the box. Play up training and learning experiences to show that you can adapt to new environments. The person reading your resume is focused on finding the right person for the job. They wont have the time to think about how to fit your skills into their requirements.
Not sure how to show that your skills can be transferred to a new profession? For instance, if youre a project manager and you want to become an event planner, you could play up your organization skills or your communications skills. You could also play up your ability to simultaneously manage different tasks. Look at the work youve done, then find ways to highlight your strongest accomplishments. The person reading your resume should see right away that you can perform the duties the position requires.
Of course if you know what type of job you want, itll be easier to create your resume. However, if youre not sure what you want to do next - or how to update your resume to reflect your varied skills - consider hiring a professional to help. These days you cant take a chance that your resume will be overlooked. If you present yourself to your best advantage, youll have a better chance of being hired for the job you want.
Make Your Resume Stand
They surround you each and every day from the back of your Corn Flakes box
in the morning to the merchandising displays at the local store. Marketing is
about creating a need, making customers realize that they want to purchase
the products or services on offer. Job-hunting is about the same thing.
Candidates must make employers want to hire them. The reality is that
employers do not enjoy recruitment. It is a costly and time consuming
business and they would rather manage with the resources they have than
continuously add to their workforce. Adding to the workforce means extra
wages, increased management costs and additional benefits. If a manager
could use one employee to fulfill two roles they would happily do so.
Therefore, when forced into a recruitment situation employers want to feel
confident that they are securing the services of individuals who can grow and
add value to the organization.
As a job seeking hopeful, it is your job to create a need in your prospective
employer. You must make them feel that they cannot actually manage
without securing your services. It is far more important to create a need than
simply be hired to a role. Being hired means that you go into your new role on
an employer??s terms. Creating a need means you can set your own. The
greater the need, the greater the rewards for you to benefit from. By
convincing a hiring manager that you will prove a valuable asset you can
significantly increase your worth and secure a higher salary and benefits than
you dreamed possible.
It is at this point that marketing principles come into play. Creating a resume is
one of the most important tasks any job seeker has to complete. Quantifying
accomplishments and demonstrating achievements is not something that
comes naturally to most people. As with most people, candidates feel
reluctant to brag or boast and downplay their successes. A serious candidate
who wants to achieve a successful outcome in their job search is all too aware
of an employer??s requirements. Serious candidates understand and
acknowledge that employers want to hire highly motivated employees who
can work on their own initiative and deliver successful results time and again.
In actual fact it is this consistency that proves the key when forcing an
employer to make a decision.
Candidates who use their resume as a forum to demonstrate a consistent
record of success and achievement understand the principles of marketing. A
candidate who can make an employer sit up and take note of their abilities
and make them want to meet them is firmly on the road to success. There is
little point in relaying trivial information or detailing the aspects of a role that an
employer assumes the candidate is capable of in any case. Employers and
hiring managers want to see candidates at a level above that. They need
employees who can work at the next level and deliver results time and again.
Before creating a resume, it is vital that candidates take their time to review
their careers in depth. Think about every role, focus on specific challenges or
objectives that were set and achieved. Focus on targets that were beaten and
acknowledge personal accolades, honors and awards that sets the candidate
apart from the competition. By demonstrating how previous employers
viewed your employment and recognized your individual successes, you can
ensure that hiring managers seriously consider your resume and call you for
interview.
Given the increasingly demanding and challenging work environments of
today, employers expect that employees can work with a minimum of
supervision and make sound decisions in the face of trying situations. They
don??t want to hire followers who need to be led by management and who
prove themselves incapable of making any decisions. Employers want to hire
serious candidates who will assume the mantle of leadership and work
collaboratively with their colleagues to achieve overall company success.
They want unselfish people who understand the value of teamwork and
cooperation.
You may wonder how it??s possible to demonstrate all these qualities within a
two-page document. The simple truth is that if you focus completely on
creating a need and meeting an employers expectations, you will be in a
position to create a strong resume that markets your candidacy effectively.
Understanding an employer??s needs means that you are halfway to securing
your position. Proving yourself capable of meeting those needs will ensure
your success.
Your resume is a vital tool in your job search arsenal. It is critical to your
career success that you create a resume demonstrating your achievements
and enhancing your profile. You must make employers decide that you are a
candidate to be viewed seriously. You need to make the decision for them
and ensure that the call to interview is inevitable, a foregone conclusion from
the time you submit your resume.
If you wish to be hired to the position of your choice and secure the career that
you value, creating a marketing document is an absolute imperative.
Understand how the principles of marketing can be applied to your resume.
Learn from professional marketers and follow their philosophies to create a
Both Ben Needles & Professional Resume Writers are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Ben Needles has sinced written about articles on various topics from Business Credit Cards, Anger Control and Business Credit Cards. About the Author (text)Deborah A. Bailey is a professional coach, writer and founder of Deb Bailey Coaching. She specializes in working with individuals as they move through transitions and experience a life beyond their expectations.. Ben Needles's top article generates over 550000 views. to your Favourites.
Professional Resume Writers has sinced written about articles on various topics from Cover Letter. This article was written by one of the professional resume writers at http://www.professional-resumes.com/. The associates at Professional Resumes will help create a winning resume tailored to your best needs. See why hundreds of people are discovering th. Professional Resume Writers's top article generates over 720 views. to your Favourites.
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