Posts tagged with “ResumeHelp”

I recently came across this article on Yahoo.com describing the many reason why your resume gets tossed from the "might use" to the "never use" pile. There are some good tips in this article that touch on the following:

• If accomplishments can be quantified, do it -- but use discretion
• If you send a cover letter by email that starts with 'Hi,' it and your resume will probably end up in the trash.
• It's true that recruiters sometimes use scanners to sort through resumes looking for certain keywords.
• If you mention your age, we have to trash your resume.
• When recruiters see a resume that's designed differently, they think the person's trying to hide something.

Often times as a recruiter I will help people to write descriptive resumes that clearly distinguish that candidate from the flock of other candidates applying to the same job. Honestly, it is much easier to write a resume for a specific job description or position than it is to write a general resume that you would like to use to post on the resume boards. The most common gripe I hear in regards to resume writing is that the job seeker doesn't know how to explain what they have done in a way that will help them to attain their next job. In order to help everyone write effective job descriptions I have come up with a few tips and tricks I have used in the past.

#1 Write a list of what you do/did on a daily basis in last/current job.
It doesn't have to be a fancy list in sentences or anything crazy; this is simply to provide you a cluster of ideas for what you will eventually be adding to your resume. Write a list of 10-15 responsibilities that you took on and then, when you can not think of anything else, perpetuate those fragments into sentences and formulate job duties. Fifteen "thoughts" may transfer into 5 bullet points on a resume and that's a start.