START YOUR CAREER WITH A PROFESSIONAL RESUME
Not all resumes are created equal, aim to have that one professional resume that will be attracting potential employers as soon as you post it on job boards, social networking sites or when you apply to particular positions on various company websites. That’s why we’ve created these tips on how to start your career with a professional resume.
Clearly, the manifestation of an effective resume is when your phone starts ringing. You are getting calls for phone screening or calls to set up a time for a face to face meeting. IF this is not happening for you after 2 to 3 weeks of sending out your resume, you need to review your document as it sure can use improvement. Check for the following –
- Readability: Always remember that recruiters and hiring managers review dozens, if not hundreds of resumes for one particular position. Help them out by making your resume easier to read. Avoid long paragraphs explaining your objective, or detailing your job description. Bullets are the best way to present the information you would like to highlight. Also make sure that the fonts are not fancy (Calibri, Arial suggested), and not too small or too big (10-12 font size suggested).
- Links: Avoid putting too many website links on your resume especially when you are sending it direct to an email address. Most company email servers have very high security standards that they filter out suspicious looking attachments. And yes, if your document has several links to it, it can be seen as suspicious. I understand you’d like to make it easier for the recruiter to look up your former company website or maybe check you out on Linkedin, but believe me, if you already look interesting enough on your resume, they wouldn’t mind doing this extra work themselves to get to know you better.
- Format: No matter what stage you are in your career, a simple format is still the best format. No need for special effects, blocking, colors or any sort of creative touch. I can never stress it enough that content is key.
- Grammatical or Spelling Errors: It is very surprising that even if you have gone over your own resume several times, there are still some errors that can be found if somebody else proofreads it. I think I know why. It is because we know our own resume almost by heart, when you are reading it, you feel like you are reading it but you are actually seeing what you already know in your head and therefore missing the mistakes (if that makes sense!), but the message here is – Ask someone else to proofread your resume for you for grammar or spelling errors. You will thank yourself for it!
- Accomplishments: Lastly, and in my books the most important one, is to ask yourself if your resume tells the reader about your accomplishments. Many of the resumes I see are highly task based. As if they are sending me their job descriptions. This is not what will make you stand out. Re-examine yourself. I am sure that you can find one or two things you have done in the past that made you feel proud of yourself, those things can be translated into accomplishments.
The last item on this list is the most challenging aspect in writing an effective resume. A lot of times it takes another person to help you discover this. Talk to a former boss or colleague who knows you very well. Another option is to work with a professional resume writer or a career coach who will help in uncovering those hidden skills, talents and achievements. Writing an effective resume is hard work, but it is so worth it once you get it right!