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Resume Writing Tips
- By Mallet Easow
- Published 07/22/2007
- Resume / CV writing
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Mallet Easow
Working with Deloitte as "Analyst - Talent Management", Mallet Easow is a respected contributor to the CiteHR Human Resources online forum, sharing expert knowledge with others in his field.
View all articles by Mallet Easow
1. Use the Action = Results Formula
Content is imperative! Specifics that demonstrate your abilities, accomplishments, and past experiences are crucial to making your resumé stand out. A beautifully designed resumé that lacks substance will not get an interview. Carefully analyze your background and highlight the necessary information required to successfully do the job. Stress the action and then be sure to follow it up with the result of that action, such as "Managed the entire financial restructuring of two subsidiaries, the results decreased staff & overhead, saving $550,000 annually."
2. Visually Appealing
The appearance of the resumé cannot be overemphasized! It should catch the eye. Watch for spacing and margins. Allow for lots of WHITE SPACE and BORDERS. Make use of italicizing, Capitals, underlining, bolding, indentations, and •bullets• to emphasize important points. Use a computer and get a laser printed copy of your resumé to give it a sharp, professional look. White or cream, high quality linen or woven paper is recommended.
3. Be Brief, Concise and Use a One Page Format
Employers scan resumés and decide in less than 30 seconds if it's a yes, no, or maybe. No one will read a 4 page resumé! By focusing on the activities and achievements of the last 5-7 years (presumably the most accomplished part of your career) you can create a stronger impact with employers and not lose them on earlier jobs that won’t influence their opinion on whether or not to grant an interview. Be a skillful editor, deleting the portions which are not relevant or least helpful to your securing that particular position. Strategically, a one page resumé has proven to be the best.
4. Be Targeted
Employers want specifics of how you can do the job for them. Vague, general resumés that cover many possible job options often get lost in the competition. Target each resumé to the job title sought. Although you may qualify for several different positions, it's actually better to create a different resumé for each different job and incorporate only the information pertinent to doing that specific job title in the resumé. This will alleviate the tendency to crowd your resumé with too much non-related information. Employers react favorably to related specifics.
5. Use a Summary of Qualifications
This is the most important part of your resumé. The "Summary of Qualifications" section powerfully illustrates the top selling points that you’d bring to the job, summed up in five to six sentences. 90% of other job candidates don’t include this, but employers felt this is an ideal way to get noticed - fast.
6. Show Accomplishments
Employers like proof that you can do the job. Be sure to demonstrate results of your work and how your former employers benefited. Include evidence of your productivity by noting any cost or time savings. Mention any innovations, changes or actions that show how you actively take on a job and produce desired results.
7. Be Accurate
State your skills, qualifications, and experience as positively as possible without exaggerating or misstating the truth. Be sure your job responsibilities are adequately described by your job title. Indicate the true level of your abilities. Also include dates of employment, along with companies you’ve worked for.
8. Use Action Verbs
Descriptive action verbs — such as established, analyzed, implemented, created, streamlined, organized — add power to your sentences. Start each sentence using an action verb.
9. Proofread
Hands down, this was "numero uno" with every manager and HR person in our survey - they hate spelling mistakes and typos. Many said: "I stop reading when I find spelling mistakes." Employers felt that typos scream, "don’t hire me", reflecting the poor quality of work they can expect from you. And many noted that they had seen mistakes even from the highest level executives. Proofread! Don’t trust computer spell checkers. Read every word to be sure it is correct. Perfection is necessary to remain competitive.
10. Don't Include Personal Statistics or References Tagline
It is no longer considered professional or wise to include information about marital status, gender, height, weight, or health on your resumé. This information violates discrimination laws and most organizations are pleased that you did not include it.
Employers know you'll provide references if they request them, therefore it is not necessary to put "References upon request" at the end of your resumé.
11. The Final Test
Be sure that your resumé answers these questions: Does it clearly and quickly communicate to employers that you can do the job? Do your strengths come across? Does everything support the job you are targeting? Should anything be removed? Does it really sell my skills? Keep working on it until the answers are all YES.
Content is imperative! Specifics that demonstrate your abilities, accomplishments, and past experiences are crucial to making your resumé stand out. A beautifully designed resumé that lacks substance will not get an interview. Carefully analyze your background and highlight the necessary information required to successfully do the job. Stress the action and then be sure to follow it up with the result of that action, such as "Managed the entire financial restructuring of two subsidiaries, the results decreased staff & overhead, saving $550,000 annually."
2. Visually Appealing
The appearance of the resumé cannot be overemphasized! It should catch the eye. Watch for spacing and margins. Allow for lots of WHITE SPACE and BORDERS. Make use of italicizing, Capitals, underlining, bolding, indentations, and •bullets• to emphasize important points. Use a computer and get a laser printed copy of your resumé to give it a sharp, professional look. White or cream, high quality linen or woven paper is recommended.
3. Be Brief, Concise and Use a One Page Format
Employers scan resumés and decide in less than 30 seconds if it's a yes, no, or maybe. No one will read a 4 page resumé! By focusing on the activities and achievements of the last 5-7 years (presumably the most accomplished part of your career) you can create a stronger impact with employers and not lose them on earlier jobs that won’t influence their opinion on whether or not to grant an interview. Be a skillful editor, deleting the portions which are not relevant or least helpful to your securing that particular position. Strategically, a one page resumé has proven to be the best.
4. Be Targeted
Employers want specifics of how you can do the job for them. Vague, general resumés that cover many possible job options often get lost in the competition. Target each resumé to the job title sought. Although you may qualify for several different positions, it's actually better to create a different resumé for each different job and incorporate only the information pertinent to doing that specific job title in the resumé. This will alleviate the tendency to crowd your resumé with too much non-related information. Employers react favorably to related specifics.
5. Use a Summary of Qualifications
6. Show Accomplishments
Employers like proof that you can do the job. Be sure to demonstrate results of your work and how your former employers benefited. Include evidence of your productivity by noting any cost or time savings. Mention any innovations, changes or actions that show how you actively take on a job and produce desired results.
7. Be Accurate
State your skills, qualifications, and experience as positively as possible without exaggerating or misstating the truth. Be sure your job responsibilities are adequately described by your job title. Indicate the true level of your abilities. Also include dates of employment, along with companies you’ve worked for.
8. Use Action Verbs
Descriptive action verbs — such as established, analyzed, implemented, created, streamlined, organized — add power to your sentences. Start each sentence using an action verb.
9. Proofread
Hands down, this was "numero uno" with every manager and HR person in our survey - they hate spelling mistakes and typos. Many said: "I stop reading when I find spelling mistakes." Employers felt that typos scream, "don’t hire me", reflecting the poor quality of work they can expect from you. And many noted that they had seen mistakes even from the highest level executives. Proofread! Don’t trust computer spell checkers. Read every word to be sure it is correct. Perfection is necessary to remain competitive.
10. Don't Include Personal Statistics or References Tagline
It is no longer considered professional or wise to include information about marital status, gender, height, weight, or health on your resumé. This information violates discrimination laws and most organizations are pleased that you did not include it.
Employers know you'll provide references if they request them, therefore it is not necessary to put "References upon request" at the end of your resumé.
11. The Final Test
Be sure that your resumé answers these questions: Does it clearly and quickly communicate to employers that you can do the job? Do your strengths come across? Does everything support the job you are targeting? Should anything be removed? Does it really sell my skills? Keep working on it until the answers are all YES.
Spread The Word
Article Series
This article is part 2 of a 2 part series. Other articles in this series are shown below:
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Resume Writing Tips
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Comments
Comment #1 (Posted by rahul)
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really nice!! thanks for thetips.. its a must read article...
Comment #2 (Posted by Brent)
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Really enjoyed this article. Concise and to the point, with every tip being easy to understand, actionable and useful.
If you have a resume writing service or review resumes, please let us. I'm sure many would be interested. Thank you again for a great article.
Comment #3 (Posted by lena)
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Very well explained and to the point. Thank you.
Comment #4 (Posted by Angelyn Seet)
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Article is very well written, comprehensive and succint. Thanks for sharing!
Comment #5 (Posted by Maria)
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This will help me update my resume for work-fast.
Comment #6 (Posted by tom)
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Thanks for all of the great information. A resume holds all of your personal accomplishments in and out of the work force. In order to land your dream career, you need to build a resume that is going to gain interest of the employer right away! When I was searching for a resume builder, they all seemed to be the same and I wanted to stand out of the crowd; I headed over to www.careersuccessions.com and they have an excellent resume builder and tips on how to make a great resume. Head on over and try it out, good luck!