Ten Tips for an Eye-Catching Resume
Source:
Gallery of Best Resumes, by David
F. Noble, Ph.D.
In a passive
job search, you rely on your resume to do most of the work for
you. A resume that stands out above all the others may be your
best shot at getting noticed by an employer. If your resume
looks like most of the others in the stack, chances are you
won't land an interview.
In an active
job search, your resume complements your efforts to meet prospective
employers, so you can rely less on your resume to get someone's
attention. But it still has an important role.
Paying attention
to even the tiniest details can help your resume dazzle employers.
Here are ten guidelines to help you sharpen yours:
Best resume
strategies
1. Although
many resume books say you should spell out the name of the state
in your address at to top of the resume, consider using the
postal abbreviation instead. If you spell out the name of your
state in full, the reader may have to translate the name of
the state to its postal abbreviation and not everyone knows
all the abbreviations.
2. Use a
consistent form for writing phone numbers. There are several
different styles floating around, so it is important to stick
with one throughout your resume and in all of the documents
you use in your job search.
3. Make
your objective statement focused, interesting, and unique so
it grabs the reader's attention. If your objective fails to
do this, the reader may discard your resume without reading
further. An objective statement can be your first opportunity
to sell yourself.
4. In the
experience section, state achievements or accomplishments, not
just duties or responsibilities. Achievements can be interesting.
The reader probably considers life too short to be bored by
lists of duties and responsibilities in stacks of resumes.
5. If you
feel you must indicate duties, call attention to special or
unusual duties you performed. If you are an accountant, for
example, don't say you prepared accounting reports and analyzed
balance sheets. That's like being a dentist and saying, "I
filled cavities and made crowns." What did you do that
distinguished you from other accountants? To be noticed, you
need to stand above the crowd in ways that display your individuality
and work style.
6. Instead
of just listing your achievements, present them as very brief
stories, perhaps indicating what you did when something went
wrong or needed fixing.
7. When
skills and abilities are varied, group them according to categories
for easier comprehension.
8. To make
your promotions stand out, list your work experiences chronologically,
with the range of dates for each position.
9. Summarize
your qualifications and work experiences to avoid repeating
yourself in the job descriptions.
10. Create
a prominent skills or abilities section that draws together
what you have learned in previous work experiences.
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