My Daily Steps

Updating my resume at the beginning of this job search felt daunting since I thought it had to be perfect right out of the gate. Don’t get me wrong, a resume always has to be perfect as far as spelling, grammar, and accuracy…but mine has morphed every few weeks with regard to format and exactly how I summarize my talents. I’ve written and re-written my accomplishment statements several times to be more concise, meaningful, and add stronger verbs.

The conventional wisdom you’ll hear from everyone states:

• For most job-seekers, use chronological format to make it more easily skimmed (and not tossed) by recruiters/hiring managers.
• Use formatting consistently (indentations, bullets, periods, header formats, etc.).
• Use well-accepted fonts and paper (unless you’re after a job as an artist, designer, creative director, etc) – for ease of reading and scanning.
• Keep it readable using reasonable amount of white-space, section headers, bullets for emphasis, and minimal length (2+ pages).

So what fresh resume insights have I learned or been reminded of? Check out these tidbits:

• A resume is not just your history – it’s what you are capable of (accomplishment statements). Make all your accomplishment statements quantifiable (dollars, time-savings, customers retained, other metrics) – employers want to know how good you are.
• Your Summary statement should recap your strongest overall talents (put it at the top). Make the reader want you even before they reach your history.
• Insert industry or job-specific keywords within the resume – so the resume scanning software will pick yours out of the masses. Google on “resume keywords” for a current list. Or let me know and I’ll post the list I found. This means you’ll likely have several resume versions.
• If you have a number of recommendations on LinkedIn (see prior post), list your LI profile’s URL under your address in the resume header.
• Save a version of your resume non-formatted for uploading into web-based job applications – it will upload more accurately and save time in adjusting within the application tool.
• There are additional tools like www.visualcv.com to post your resume with links to many attachments like photos of projects or events, videos of press conference, white papers or articles you’ve written, etc).
• Keep a consistent story. Make sure your resume and your profiles on LinkedIn and job board postings look like they’re from the same person.

Next post I’ll cover personal commercials, …in other words, “How do I say what career I’m looking for – quickly – to peers, friends, family, and prospects without making their eyes glaze over?” You want them to offer help and connections, not change the subject and run the other way!