Resume Help Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Writing A Resume’

Are you sending out dozens of resumes each week but getting no response? Do you feel discouraged by a tough job market and your competition?

In your efforts to get noticed, you should keep one thing in mind: Put yourself in the hiring manager’s place. Ask yourself, “What would the employer think of my resume in the initial few seconds she takes to read it?” Even if you’re exactly right for the job, you may never be asked to interview unless you make the proper first impression with a well-written resume and cover letter. Use these tips to guide you:

1. Manage the content and format effectively. The content and format of your resume are very important. A resume that employs a tiny font and has too much information will be quickly passed over by a hiring manager in favor of a clean, easy-to-read, well-spaced document. Use bullet points and even-spaced margins. Don’t make the mistake of including every single thing you did at a previous job. Instead, list key accomplishments and major, progressive responsibilities that highlight your skills. You can then expand on your previous responsibilities in a cover letter and during the first interview.
2. Make the content of your resume reflect transferable skills related to the position for which you’re applying. Hiring managers often glance at a resume looking for key phrases and buzz words that they want in their ideal next employee. Take the time to tailor your resume specifically to a job description. Including key phrases from the description may get you past the employers’ web-based application filter as well as generate enough interest for a first interview.
3. Keep your resume free of spelling and grammatical errors. You want to convey that you are professional and detail-oriented, can write well, and take your work seriously. One glance at a resume with spelling and grammatical errors might cause an employer to think you are sloppy, make mistakes, and are wasting his or her time. Take the time to proofread your resume. (Don’t depend on the computer spell checker) Then have someone you trust review it for you.
4. Your cover letter should always express your interest in the specific job. Does the position give you an opportunity to expand your skill set? Is the company dynamic and progressive? Clearly convey your strong interest in the company and position, and then explain why you’re the ideal candidate. This shows you have done your homework on the company and truly want to work there.

Putting the employer first by having a tailored cover letter and well-written resume will ensure you have submitted the best possible representation of yourself, bringing you a step closer to getting that interview and job offer.

With so many individuals competing for jobs, the only thing that will differentiate you from the rest of the equally qualified crowd is what you achieved while on the job. But be warned—an accomplishment must be quantified in order to hold any weight with the hiring manager or recruiter.

Too many times an individual writes: “Reorganized an entire department per management instructions.” That’s not an accomplishment, that is a daily duty. An accomplishment would read: “Generated savings in excess of $25,000 annually by reorganizing the marketing department and employing temp workers rather than full-time staff.” This speaks to what a hiring manager and/or recruiter wants to see: how you can make them money and how you can save them money.

To further strengthen your resume, make certain to put at least one, preferably two, quantified and relevant accomplishments in the Qualifications Summary. This is especially true if you use the word “proven” to describe yourself. For example, you write: “Accounting professional with comprehensive experience and proven results in negotiations with the IRS.”

Proven by whom? You? That’s not enough proof for a hiring manager or recruiter. They want more. It’s better to write: “Accounting professional with comprehensive experience and proven results in negotiations with the IRS as evidenced by the $0.5 million in savings, resulting from the 2009 audit.”

The above clearly states that you saved your company a half-million dollars through your expertise. That speaks volumes to hiring managers and puts you well above the others competing for the same position.

I was reading a recent article on Reuters news site that said the following:  “Single spelling mistake can derail job application.”  Wow! That sucks!

The article went on to say that a recent survey revealed that 1/5th of Canadian employers stated they would not interview someone if they had just ONE spelling error on their resume! That percentage probably grows if the overall writing quality is poor.  The survey was conducted by AccountTemps.

So what’s the point of this post? The point is that there is no shame in admitting that you are a bad speller, or that you have trouble writing a decent sentence. It’s better to swallow your pride and ask for help than it is to lose opportunity after opportunity because your resume gives off the impression that you are sloppy or don’t pay attention to details. 

There’s a couple of things you can do to double-check your resume and make sure that it doesn’t have spelling or sentence errors. 

The cheapest one is to find a friend that you know is a good writer, or has an eye for detail, and ask them to honestly read through your resume and locate spelling or sentence errors.  And while this sounds easiest, and the least expensive, it also entails a little bit of humility.

Don’t be so personally invested in exactly how a resume is written. If your friend thinks a sentence would read better, don’t get defensive. Listen to what they recommend and make the change if the sentence honestly sounds stronger. Nobody wants to help you if their opinions are met with abrasiveness or argument. And pride can lose you that job opportunity!

Bottom line. Swallow that pride and make sure your resume is the best it can be! No typo’s and no bad grammar! You’ll be glad that you did when you trot off to work while many other people are still job hunting.