Your resume is the equivalent of a sales brochure. It is not supposed to tell every detail, but to grab someone's attention, entice him, spark his interest. Later on, the interviewer can use it to sell you to someone else. It speaks for you in your absence.
Your resume also softens the reader. It predisposes him to think of you in a certain way. When you meet, the reader has a preconceived notion about you. Tailor your resume to make the impression you want. Most people never consider using their resume to create a certain impression of themselves; they simply write down their work experience. Job hunters who think of their resume as a tool for communication tend to be more effective than those who play it safe and use a bland approach. Your credentials and experience are only one half of what you are selling. Your style and personality are the other half.
Your resume can serve as a guide to the interview. If you highlight certain areas in your resume, the interviewer cannot help but ask about them. If you play down or even leave out certain things, you reduce the chances of having the interview center on those areas.
Some new thoughts on resume writing are presented here in. Use what you want. Some ideas may suit your style; others may not. On the other hand, if you have not been as successful as you would like, you may want to try a style different from what you have been using.
What Happens To Your Resume?
Your resume crosses the desk of someone. This person was not looking to hire, but something about your resume or cover letter struck a responsive chord in him. If one of your achievements fits the reader's problems at the moment, you may be called in.
The reader says to his or her secretary, "Ask this person to come in for a chat, but be sure to say that we have no openings." You are called in for an exploratory meeting.
In most cases, there truly is no specific job opening. If the chemistry is right, and if things progress smoothly, however, a position may be developed for you. This happens more often than the average job hunter may realize and is the ideal scenario. A position created for you has the best chance of being a successful and satisfying one. You could slant it toward your motivated skills.
It's important to realize that your resume your brochure about yourself will be looked at for only ten seconds. You must make that ten seconds worthwhile. The reader will usually look at the top of the first page, and perhaps glance at the rest. You want the reader to see your opening paragraph your summary and other parts that you want to stand out. If something sparks the reader's interest, he or she may spend a little more time on your resume.
Your Resume Is Completely Under Your Control
You have complete control. Determine exactly what will hit the reader's eye on each page, and the impression you want the reader to have of you. For example, you may want to appear as a person with experience in a certain background. Be sure to mention that area in your summary and highlight it in the body of your resume. You may want to stress your long term managerial experience, or your technical expertise. Your resume can show that you are the kind of person who constantly comes up with new ideas and implements them, or solves problems for the company.
Tell the reader outright the kind of person you are. Most resumes focus on credentials, but with so many qualified people vying for the same position, a resume with personality is more readable and stands out. Resumes that are detached and cold are not as effective as those that seem more human. Resumes and cover letters should be alive and enthusiastic.
What you say predisposes the reader to see you in a certain way. If, for example, you describe yourself as dynamic, you will be treated that way. You do not have to come across as dynamic in the interview. If you seem in the interview truly to be that way, do not be surprised if the interviewer happens to mention just how dynamic you are.
This is your story. It is one you want to be proud of. Don't be boring about it.
Test Your Resume
You need to test what you have written in the marketplace. First, show your resume to a friend. Ask him to describe in ten seconds how the information comes across. If your friend describes you the way you wanted to come across, then your resume is presenting you properly. If you come across as having expertise in a field that you did not want to highlight, then your resume needs to position you more properly. The most valuable comments are strategic in nature. If your friend wants you to change the third word on the second page, it will not help you get a job. But if he tells you that you come across as a junior accountant, when you actually headed up a division of a company; that is valuable feedback. Or if you come across as a salesperson, when you hate sales; that is valuable. It is important for you to know if you come across as being at a higher or lower level than you are.
Highlighting Or Understating Job Titles
Look at the first job listed on your resume. Which is more important to the reader, your job title or the name of your employer? Decide which you want the reader to notice for each position. You do not have to be consistent: in one case, it may be your title; and in another, say, if you're looking within the same industry, it may be the name of your employer. Or you may want to highlight both or play down both.
Emphasize or deemphasize by using caps, underlining, boldface, and positioning on a page. I list one job that was a bore for me at the bottom of page two of my resume. Both my title and the name of the company are written in upper and lowercase. Nothing stands out, and most interviewers don't ask me about that job.
