By Jennifer Anthony
The most common mistake among many jobseekers is not updating their resume in the correct way. All too frequently, those in search of a new job pull out their most recent resume and simply add details of their latest position.
This easy to fall into habit makes for a very long and boring read for hiring managers. If you don’t edit or delete obsolete information, your resume can very easily become cluttered and long-winded. Here are a few tips that will help keep your potential employer awake and interested while evaluating your qualifications and experiences.
Determine your goals and keep your resume relevant.
Not enough job seekers stay focused on what they really want from a position or even what position they want for that matter. By determining ahead of time what your job goal is, you will be able to maintain focus. Consequently writing your resume around your goal will be easier. If you have more than one focus, make sure to create multiple resumes for each one.
Focus on your accomplishments versus your duties.
Show a potential employer how you made a difference in the past, not just what you were required to do for the job. Place your skills in a short summarized section. By summing them up you give yourself something to discuss during an interview. Point out your accomplishments and quantify exceptional events. If you keep your accomplishments general, it can easily go unnoticed.
Ditch the self-centered, general objective statement.
Employers don’t care what you are looking for. They want to read what you can do for them. Get their attention immediately and stay focused on the employer instead of you. For example, here is the objective statement from a reader who recently sent in a resume to be reviewed.
“Highly qualified professional with over 10 years of significant experience seeking a position with an innovative organization.” What does that mean? Qualified in what? What does he/she consider innovative?
This objective statement could be rewritten to answer all of those questions and keep the focus on the employer. “Customer centered professional offering more than 10 years of experience in a fast-paced environment seeking a management position in the airline industry.” See the difference?
Keep your education current.
If you are a recent graduate, noting when you received you high school diploma is ok. If you are fresh out of college, internships and honors could be displayed. However, if you have been employed for a few years, then remove your high school information and list only the degree(s) you hold (if any) and when you received them.
Customize your resume for every position.
It’s career suicide to have only one generic resume that you send to every job opportunity. Each time you apply for a job, recreate your resume to fit that position, just like you do your cover letter.
The most important thing to remember when creating your resume is to think like the employer. With each and every resume you send out, make sure you address what you have done in the past, how it benefits your potential employer, and how you are you able to put those things into action and duplicate your past successes.
Jennifer Anthony is the Director of ResumeASAP, offering professional and affordable resume writing services. If you have comments about this article, or if you are interested in learning more about professional resume writing, please contact Jennifer Anthony by e-mail.
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To begin, make a decision to discard any former knowledge learned about the “rules” of resume and cover letter writing. People commonly become stuck in “bad” writing habits from a time gone by. It is almost a certainty that since you last wrote your resume, much has been learned and even more has been changed. This is as it should be, for everyday, very creative people are adding to the resume and cover letter writing arsenal.
This ebook is chock full of the most recent and cutting-edge resume and cover letter writing techniques, culled from writing professionals and employment experts.
The Basics
For years, we have been told that to be most effective, a resume should be only one page. This just does not apply any longer! Today’s resume is creative and unique.
Aside from the most essential and key elements, a resume should reflect the personality and need of the job seeker and not be some cookie cutter rendition of what is “acceptable and expected.”
Standards in resumes and cover letters have changed dramatically, but, only so far as the job seeker has the creative expression and know-how to pull it off! Therein lies the difference. Everyday, employers read all of the standard resumes. They are required to go through each and every one! But, which one will catch their eye?
Formatting in resumes and cover letters has expanded, too. When you consider that your resume will be your own, personalized form of marketing yourself -- this lends itself to all manner of unique communication and expression.
Again, so long as the essential elements are included in each resume and cover letter, you are at complete liberty to make certain that your resume will impress and with a bang!
Just how, exactly, does one do this?
First of all, learn about the most basic principles involved in writing a highly effective resume and cover letter. Once you have this down, the creative expression can begin!
Your most basic purpose in writing your resume and cover letter will be to be noticed among the many. You want to stand out as not just a good candidate but as “the” candidate just fitting for the job you want.
When you consider that next to your well written resume, not even one hundred other resumes will be written as well as yours, you can see the odds will be in your favor. Your salvation here is in writing a resume that will compel a perspective employer to notice your credentials. If you can master this technique, the rest will be pure gravy.
Please find below a list of the latest additions to our job specific sample resumes:
Sample Electrician Resume
Sample Fashion Designer Resume
Sample Financial Services Resume
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Sample Resumes
