The stakes have been raised in the job search. Employers and
recruiters receive a deluge of resumes every day and in response to
every job opening. The online resume databases are packed full with
tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands of resumes! How will you
ensure that your resume will make the cut and that you will capture
attention and get the call for an interview? Here are a few crucial
tips that are absolutely essential to the creation of a compelling
resume in such competitive times.
Tip #1: It isn't about you, it's about the employer.
Yes, I know it is a resume and I know that the traditional
foundation of a resume is a listing of your employment and educational
history. But guess what? Your resume ISN'T about you. Very few of the
actual recipients of your resume actually care where you went to
school, where you worked ten years ago, and what training classes you
completed last year. The simple truth is that the ONLY reason these
facts are useful at all are because they give important clues as to the
value you have to offer to your next employer. Keep this truth in mind
as your write your resume. Yes, you should still include the
traditional elements of a resume, but that should be secondary. Your
focus and emphasis should be on creating content that is
employer-centered and focused on how you have the unique and superior
ability to meet their needs and solve their problems. Present your
facts within this context.
Tip #2: Employers don't care about what you know how to do. They care about what you DO with what you know how to do.
Qualifications are the baseline for a position, but they don't
distinguish you from your competitors in the job market, and they
certainly don't sell. On the other hand, achievements do sell, but
results sell even better. Just telling the reader that you have
achievements and accomplishments isn't very effective unless you
present them in terms of the results and benefits they have produced
for past employers. Continually ask yourself "so what?" in terms of
your achievement. What did you improve, save, increase, enhance, etc?
What impact did the work you do have on the companies? While numbers
are always best, even if you are unable to quantify achievements, the
emphasis should still be on the results and benefits of your work. For
the maximum impact, accomplishments should be presented as concise
"success studies" complete with challenge faced, action taken,
immediate result, and strategic importance. The reason is simple: what
you know how to do (your qualifications, knowledge, and skills) are of
absolutely no value unless you know how to put them into practice for
the benefit of the organization. Show that you do. Prove impact!
Tip #3: Illustrate passion. Don't be afraid to show yourself!
Infuse your resume with your personality and your authentic passion.
Forget the self-promotion, the cliches, and the jargon. You want to let
the facts speak for themselves, but you want to do so in a way that
tells the reader about your personality. Yes, the return on investment
(ROI) that an employer reaps from hiring you is paramount, but of
almost equal importance in the hiring decision will be the chemistry
and the fit. Forget the bland, self-effacing, autobiographical style of
resume writing that you may have been taught in college. Let your
personality and your authentic personal brand shine through, and
illustrate your passion for your job target with succinct success
stories that demonstrate to the reader your unique value. By doing so,
you will attract the right opportunities - the ones for which you are
the perfect fit and for which the corporate culture is a perfect fit
for you.
Tip #4: Rip your resume in half.
Go ahead. Do it. Print a copy of your resume and then take the first
page and rip it in half. Now throw away the bottom half and concentrate
on the top half. This is the most important section of your resume.
This top half of your resume must be absolutely compelling. It must
seize the reader's attention and draw them in with content that leaves
absolutely no doubt that you are the perfect candidate to fulfill their
needs and solve their problems. With just a five-second glance at this
section, the reader should come away with a crystal clear understanding
of your focus and exactly how you would fit in their organization; they
must come away with an accurate perception of your brand and the unique
promise of value that differentiates you from your peers and
competitors. And remember, you must not only tell the reader about your
value proposition. You must show them with examples of past
accomplishments. I said it before and I'll say it again. Prove value!
Prove impact! In short, within moments of picking up your resume and
without looking any further than the beginning of the first page, the
recipient of your resume must come away with the perception of a
dynamic, result-proven individual. And, of equal importance, of a
professional who has clear career direction, and more importantly, who
understands the parameters and challenges of the position and exactly
how she will add unique value and a superior return on investment in
relation to those challenges. It is a tall order, but with clear,
succinct, brand-driven and results-focused writing it is absolutely
possible to achieve all of these goals.
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Nationally
certified resume writer, career marketing expert, and personal branding
strategist, Michelle Dumas is the founder and executive director of
Distinctive Career Services LLC. Through Distinctive Documents http://www.distinctiveweb.com and her Executive VIP Services delivered through http://www.100kcareermarketing.com
Michelle has empowered thousands of executives, professionals, and
managers all across the U.S. and worldwide with all the tools and
resources necessary to conduct a fast, effective job search. Michelle
is also the author of the popular e-book 101 Before-and-After Resume Examples found at http://www.before-and-after-resumes.com and of Secrets of a Successful Job Search: 7 Simple Steps to Land the Job You Want in Half the Time found at http://www.distinctiveweb.com/jobsearchsecrets.html
To learn more about her job search products, resume writing services,
and career marketing programs, and to sign up for many other free
resources, visit her websites
Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
