How Do I Write a Resume
The key to a successful invitation to a first interview is a well-planned and organized resume that interests the reader. Human resource departments and hiring managers are flooded with hundreds of resumes a day. An unexceptional resume only ends up in the rejected pile with the other resumes that states the prospective applicant either didn't have the necessary skills to compose a stellar resume, or doesn't have the talents to work for the hiring firm. Either situation ends up as the reason you never receive a call back. And no one enjoys the dread of unemployment.
If the thoughts of why you are not receiving the responses from your employment inquiries, it could be time to re-construct the resume to provide you the advantage of standing out from the other candidates applying for the same position. After all, it is a fight, struggle and competition to catch the interest of the interviewer. Turn the tides so they flow in your favor.
Your resume is the first impression of you, the person. You are selling yourself. Therefore, you must become your own marketing department. A fantastic resume informs the company of your abilities and sells them on the idea you are the best candidate for the position. Your skill set must leap from the page, impressing the hiring manager and presenting the idea that the manager desires to meet you and interview you for the position.
Imagine your resume as the marketing tool of communication, an advertisement of you, applicable to the particular position at that time, utilized to win the interview. You must convince the reader you have value and direct benefits to provide to the hiring firm. It stimulates interest in meeting you and learning more about you. Following are a collection of tips to integrate into your resume.
Honesty above all.
Lying or falsifying details on your resume may gain you an interview, but far too many companies perform background and references checks on the applicants. Inflating your abilities and performance of a task you actually don't know will be exposed. Why make it difficult on yourself?
Be professional.
It may have been cute at the time you signed up for hotstuff@cartoonalley.com, but not everyone has your sense of humor. The unprofessionalism may turn off potential employers. Several seconds to create a new email address, preferably your name, solely for resumes will speak of your attention to detail in such matters.
Be Concise and to the point.
Write out everything you want to include on your resume, but don't turn it into the next best novel. You can trim it down to one page later, hitting the important facts. With some applications requesting ten years of employment and past addresses for complete background purposes, all of the extraneous information will be included on their forms.
The facts should speak for themselves. Bullet points are easier to read than full, complete, descriptive sentences. You want to catch their interest with the best you have to offer. Give precise information, preferably with numbers to support your facts. You want to sell concrete facts of how much, how many, what quantity did you save or perform and how did you do it. Vagueness and a generalness of the information will not deliver a strong enough interest or attention of who you are. Every resume that hits a hiring desk is full of 'responsibilities and duties' descriptions. It is your achievements, accomplishments and quantitative descriptions that sell and markets well.
Polish Your Resume.
Always, always, always check for typos and grammatical errors. Then check again. Have a second person proofread it for mistakes. Spell checkers will not locate and correct basic grammatical errors. These types of missteps are easy to fix, and make a huge difference in whether or not an employer will consider you as their next employee. Use easy-to-read fonts and a clear design to make your resume more appealing, as well as a good paper stock. Printing the entire resume in that cool font with italics may appeal to you, but only comes across as a gimmick to the reader. Formatting should be very simple. Left-justification is best and easy on the eyes.
Be cover letter specific.
Generic, mass-marketed cover letters will not attract anyone. Each and every cover letter should be specialized and individual to the position in question. Professionalism, attention to interest in the position and a focused purpose in a cover letter speaks more than, "I want a job."
Leave the inessential facts at home.
Unless an interviewer asks for references, only bring them forth when asked. Chances are, the application will contain an area for reference information. The 'References Available Upon Request' feature on your resume is unnecessary.
Personal details of your favorite hobby, what you enjoy in your spare time, your height, weight, age, and Scout troop you belonged to in the third grade will not position you ahead of someone else in the resume pile. The information is irksome at best and takes up unnecessary resume space. Especially if the extra information adds another page to your resume.
Personal stories and information that have nothing to do with the position do not belong on a resume. Save the celebrity sighting and name dropping for your friends.
Locating suitable employment is demanding. Make the task easier and create the resume that will appeal to employers and earn you the phone call requesting an interview. Remember, one size fits all will not generate the interest you seek. Customized, specific resumes and cover letters set you apart from the multitude of applicants and catches the attention of the interviewer.
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