Except people who write resumes for others for a living, I can’t think of a single soul out there that wants to sit down and put together their own resume. It’s hard to shine the light on yourself and put words on one page that defines who you are and stand out above the rest. It’s just not something that many people can do and do well. That’s why many put their resume in the hands of experts. For some reason it’s just easier to tell someone else what you do and jot down your skills and experience and hand it off for someone else to write. Essentially, this is the route many take and they pay high dollars for it to be done. However, if you follow these 5 tips on writing a resume, I assure you that you will do just as well if not better than a professional resume writer. Not to mention, you will have accomplished it on your own and saved yourself some dough in the process.
1. Microsoft Word-If you own a computer then chances are you have Microsoft Word and with it you have the ability to use templates that are free to use for building a resume. Go through them and find the one that best fits the position you are applying for or use a blank one to design yourself.
2. A Picture Means A Thousand Words- The proper etiquette for applying a picture to your resume once was frowned upon. However, today it’s not looked at as improper, so use it to your advantage. Place a thumbnail picture of your professional looking self up in the top left corner or top center if you prefer. Make sure that whatever picture you choose is a good quality picture and won’t come out fuzzy when printed. Also, this is a good place to put how to contact you. Utilize this area next to your picture or below so that recruiters know where you live, phone number, email, web address(if you have one) and any other pertinent information that you want them to know.
3. Most Important Piece-Hiring managers don’t have time to read every detail of your resume. The first thing they want to see is the skill summary. This should be where you put a paragraph summary of your skills, knowledge and expertise. You can add bullet points on what you have done in the past jobs or you can write it out using a short summary. Either way, it needs to be at the top of page with a well thought out title of your skills. Example: “Finance Professional” is a great example of a resume that I am building for someone. He’s in finance and has been for years, so this sums it up for him as a title. Underneath that I highlighted his skills, knowledge and training in the field with bullets of all the different areas of expertise.
4. Career Chronology- This is where you want to add your different employers that you have worked for in the past. You bold type the employer name, location and out to the far right put the date you started and ended. Underneath you go into a short summarized job description. The key to this is short, because of the limited space you have for a one page resume. Choose your words to reflect what you do at this job and position. Don’t get too wordy with your description, but be descriptive enough to where the hiring manager knows what you did at the company. Example: Operations manager of a full spectrum lender with focus on meeting and exceeding monthly goals set forth by the company. Trained employees on…Try to keep the description to no more than 5 sentences per employer.
5. Education and Certificates- This is important piece and should be showcased in bold at the bottom. If you got that degree make it BOLD. You want the hiring manager to know that you worked hard for that degree and you are proud of it. If you didn’t get a degree, don’t stress out. You can put your education, certificates, or even hobbies in this area. Be sure and add your dates for when you received your awards, certificates and education.
All that being said, make sure you proofread your resume and utilize your spell checker. Nothing can kill a resume faster than misspelled words and poor grammar. You want it to stand out, but you don’t want it to say that he or she can’t spell so why should we hire this person? Just remember that the hiring manager is going to start at the top and start scanning. You want to make sure that your summary is what shines the most, so polish and then polish again. Have someone else read it before you send it off to the sea of resumes and ensure that it’s clear and concise.
Following these tips will enable you build a great resume that stands out of from the pack and help you land that dream job.
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