Article Surfing Archive

Few people really understand how to create a resume that works for them. While your curriculum vitae is a factual document, it is also a marketing tool...and it is your best one when it comes to job hunting. In some cases, it is your only one. Because it is so important, it requires some professional guidance. Almost every job-seeker I've encountered who thought they had a well-done resume found out how wrong they were once we started looking at their resume in detail.

There are three vital ingredients that your resume must have in order to ensure that you are taken seriously by a prospective employer.

One of the first things that you need to get right when it comes to how to write resume is to get the formatting worked out. First impressions are important at an interview but even more important when it comes to getting you the interview in the first thing. Learning how to build a resume that is well laid out is a common problem amongst job-seekers and is the reason why many don't progress any further. There is a standard layout for resume and it usually only takes a little planning and creativity to fit even the most challenging situations into that layout. The importance of a clear and consistent layout is best viewed from the perspective of a hiring agent. Imagine that you are the hiring agent and must sift through a range of resumes that have fancy layouts or unreadable fonts or that go on and on. One of the secrets of how to build a resume is to make sure you keep it to one page, only use black ink in an 11 or 12 sized Times New Roman font. Include only the last ten years of work history. Avoid colored paper, personal information like your birthday, and highlighting or using italics, unless it is in a header.

Being clear and specific in the objective you position at the top of your resume is way to indicate to a potential employer not only what you want but that you are focused on getting it. Your objective should be inline with the abilities you have illustrated in your work history and tailored to an extent to the job you are applying for. You don't need to use the exact same objective for every position you apply for. Employers appreciate and value a well thought out objective because it helps them qualify one candidate against another.

The third most important factor has to do with the posturing of your work history. If you already have a resume, pull it out and look at the duties that you list under your last job. Does it read more like a job description or does it reflect your abilities over and above what you were hired to do? The duties you list should be brief phrases that show how you added value to that particular company. You need to choose powerful words to describe your contributions, like "provided leadership," "organized," "created," "facilitated," "solved" and "entire." Do you see how these words can elevate the typical "filing," or "customer relations" language? Check everything that you list against your objective to ensure that there is a direct correlation between the two. You are giving evidence to support your objective, so do a good job in selecting your words, and let those words do a good job for you.

Learning how to create a resume to go with your cover letter that presents your skills and experience in the best possible way is crucial to your success with your job hunt. Resume writing isn't easy but if you follow the tips outlined above then you will be well on the way to producing an excellent, readable cv. If you get stuck then get help from a professional so that you don't lose your momentum.