Résumé Tips
1 - Be Truthful in your Résumé
Show your best face; you are marketing and selling yourself. Don’t state knowledge you don’t have or sounds exaggerated.
Everything must mesh perfectly. Résumé reviewers and interviewers are experienced at finding strengths, faults, and deception, and they will look for mutually supportive statements in the résumé. Based on surveys, most reviews feel that over half of résumés are untruthful so if they are uncomfortable with what is stated, it will likely be rejected.
Examples of résumé consistency faults:
- Using an unsupported statement: “Sound Sales Experience” but the work history shows only three weeks of sales experience.
- Using the wrong terminology: Example: “Construction Experience - Poured Cement” but cement is used to make and pour concrete.
- Error: "Worked at Abc Company full time from 2007 to 2009" yet the résumé states full time student status during 2008.
- Over-statement: Shows experience as an "Electronics Technician" yet the education section does not identify schooling as a technician in electronics.
- Lie: "Worked as a packer at Abc Company from 2007 to 2008" yet at the interview the person cannot state the company's address, name their former manager or the general manager, or perhaps even identify their primary business.
- Inconsistency where the cover letter addresses experience that is not shown in the résumé.
2 - Use Power or Action Words
Show confidence and don’t sell yourself short.
Power word examples:
- Replace “familiar with” or “knowledge of” with “know” or "learned"…
- Replace “helped train” with “trained”…
Keep statements within acceptable boundaries. Don’t state a skill that you do not have.
Here is a list of some power words sorted into general skills categories (search on-line for more):
| Technical | Training/Writing/Other | ||
| Analyzed | Engineered | Accounted | Mentored |
| Assembled | Evaluated | Applied | Prepared |
| Assessed | Formulated | Audited | Processed |
| Activated | Integrated | Assisted | Qualified |
| Bought | Interpreted | Authored | Recommended |
| Built | Invented | Coached | Reported |
| Caused | Maintained | Counseled | Researched |
| Calculated | Modified | Contributed | Reviewed |
| Charted | Monitored | Compiled | Revised |
| Compared | Operated | Dealt | Selected |
| Created | Programmed | Examined | Studied |
| Designed | Supported | Estimated | Taught |
| Diagnosed | Troubleshot | Identified | Tutored |
| Discovered | Used | Instructed | Updated |
| Documented | Utilized | Learned | Wrote |
| Leadership | Selling | ||
| Accelerated | Eliminated | Achieved | Negotiated |
| Accomplished | Expanded | Acquired | Performed |
| Achieved | Facilitated | Advised | Positioned |
| Administered | Guided | Closed | Prepared |
| Assigned | Led | Collaborated | Presented |
| Built | Managed | Composed | Produced |
| Created | Motivated | Consulted | Prospected |
| Controlled | Organized | Contacted | Purchased |
| Coordinated | Planned | Delivered | Represented |
| Decreased | Proposed | Determined | Retained |
| Delegated | Reorganized | Drove | Supplied |
| Demonstrated | Reported | Established | Secured |
| Developed | Revitalized | Exceeded | Set up |
| Directed | Scheduled | Generated | Sold |
| Enhanced | Supervised | Increased | Won |
.
3 - Reduce Limiting Words
Remove words or statements that diminish a quality.
Examples of limiting words are “some”, “a few” and “occasionally”
4 - Use Business Terms
Use empowering statements that describe your experience in a manner that is more easily transferred to other positions and sound better in the business environment.
Examples:
Replace “helped with” with a statement such as “member of a team” or “contributed”;
Replace “gave duties to staff” with “trained”, “supervised” or “managed”;
Replace “read equipment manuals” with “used”, “interpreted” or other descriptive terms that sounds more business-like.
5 - Keep it Important and Relevant
Don’t state everything as there is limited space in the résumé and limited attention from the reviewer.
State the important accomplishments and facts that are related to the position you are applying for. Remove what is not related, is unimportant or isn’t transferable to the position. This is a common error for those writing a first résumé because past experience may be limited.
Example: Don’t discuss your skill with a “weed-whacker” if you are applying for a job as a software developer. Best is to describe transferable skills or simply omit the details of your weed slaughter sessions.
6 - Reduce the Word Count
Reduce the word count without compromising readability or interest. Every word is important. Use descriptive words that get right to the point, and industry-based words are best. Avoid unnecessary details by removing words that state the obvious or are repetitious, but keep the résumé readable. Remove “I” and “me” from the résumé where possible; the résumé is already about you.
Examples:
Replace “I have experience with…” with “Experienced …”; “I was able to learn…” with “Learned…”;
7 - Pay Attention to Details
Proofread your résumé, Have others proofread it. The résumé must be perfect in all aspects and every detail.
- It must have perfect grammar, structure, wording, appearance, consistency, etc.
- Every paragraph must line up, the styles and fonts must be consistent, the text must be centered on the page, etc, etc ... .
- The staple must be placed properly with no extra holes from botched staple attempts.
- Double check the spelling of the person’s name and the company name.
- Look up postal/zip codes
Everything is detail. There is no greater turn-off to a prospective employer than a lack of detail, and forgetting to spell check or check for grammatical errors is inexcusable.
Another common error is using the wrong word…these pass spell checking and grammar checking so are a little more difficult to fend…oops…find. Having others proofread your résumé in careful detail is a requirement.
8 - Never Fold your Résumé
Mail it or drop it off in a full-size envelope. Use a printed label on the envelope. Avoid handwriting the address on the enveloped if possible, or make it neat if there is no avoiding it.
9 - Create a Version of your Résumé in Text Format (.txt) or .pdf.
More and more companies require you to apply on line using a form. It would be impressive to have a nicely structured résumé in text-only, without formatting.
When submitting your résumé via email, send a .pdf version of it. This is more universal than other formats, and if you choose proper security settings it is more difficult for the recipient to edit it.
10- Customize your Résumé
Every résumé and cover letter should be customized to specifically target the position you are applying for.
Enhance and address those skills that the employer would be looking for in the perfect candidate. The easiest way to do this is to read the advertisement and address all the qualifications that are listed.
As an example, if you are applying for a position that expects you to deal directly with customers, generally enhance your experience in this area throughout your résumé. You would change your résumé when applying for a technical position to include more about technical experience.
Whatever the advertisement asks for must be directly addressed in the cover letter and the résumé. If you don’t have the specific skill, state a transferable skill that would address those essential points. Do not ignore the requested skills in the advertisement.
11 - Exclude Certain Personal Information
Do not put certain personal information in you résumé unless it is to your advantage.
Including these details is considered unprofessional and should not be on a résumé:
- marital status
- age or birth date
- children
- health and physical characteristics
- religion
- photograph of yourself
In most jurisdictions, employers are not permitted to ask about: age, sex, marital status, ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation. They cannot ask for a Social Insurance or Social Security Number until you are hired.
They are permitted to ask about citizenship status from the perspective of whether you are able to work in this jurisdiction.
There may be exceptions to the rule:
- If there is a specific requirement for the position, such as lifting heavy items, you may want to state your fitness level specifically to this requirement;
- Employers look for age clues in the résumé (although it is illegal to discriminate based on age). Often employers will be looking for someone with little experience to be in their early to mid twenties. If you fit in that category, state your High School graduation date or other clue to help them out with this. It’s to your advantage;
- If there are special circumstances. An example would be applying for work at a religious college where religious affiliation may be an important issue.
- Do state what languages you can read and write.
12 - Exclude Activities that may be Perceived as Unbusiness-like
There are certain personal activities or attributes that do not fit well in a business environment and should not be mentioned. This includes activities done on your personal time. Companies are worried about potential damage to their image, or about people wasting company time and resources. Only include if the company specifically makes use or supports these activities or technologies.
Omit references to:
- Blogging
- Facebook and other social media
- Contributing to youtube or other sharing sites
- Anything to do with Computer/Console Gaming
- Exchanging Files (i.e. torrents)
- Memberships in groups that may not be perceived well by some people (examples: political party membership, protest groups, etc)
- Activities that may be illegal in some contexts (i.e. don't talk about hacking into a system or that $1000 software application that you "found" and are playing with at home)
- Anything that may be perceived as potentially "complicated" to deal with in a business environment (i.e. religious beliefs, health problems, marital issues, planned vacation, second jobs, partying, etc)
13 - Include Personal Accomplishments
When discussing your work experience include important specific personal accomplishments. These may be stated under the Work Experience, Education or Personal Accomplishment sections.
Examples of personal accomplishments:
- worked on the planning committee for the 2012 Construction Skills event
- won the Lester J. Dzidjunsky award for volunteering
- recovered 10,000 vital records that were considered lost due to a HDD crash
Accomplishments that that are measurable and observable have the greatest impact. These statements show your skills and desire for self-improvement and success.
Here are some examples of measurable accomplishments:
- Sales position: “Sold an average of one unit per day for a month”, or “Grossed $150,000 in one month” or “Exceeded sales targets in 2006 by 15%”
- Shipping position: “Achieved 99.9% order accuracy rate”
- In construction: “Completed 20% of projects ahead of schedule”
- Retail: “Employee of the month for customer service”, or “Perfect attendance record”, etc…
- General: "Implemented new production procedures that saved an estimated $100,000 per year"
14 - Make it Memorable
Place memorable items in your résumé to leave a lasting impression.
Reviewers will not likely remember your name from reading the résumé so provide something memorable about yourself. This will help to set you apart from the rest of the applicants for the position. Have you:
- accomplished something that most people haven’t?
- received an award or won a competition?
- solved a unique problem for a past employer?
- have an interesting hobby, belong to a club or have a membership in something?
- play a musical instrument?
This is where the “personal interests” section of your résumé can help. Creating curiosity in the reviewer may help secure an interview.
Choose something appropriate in a work environment (i.e. don’t talk about the level you attained with your Warcraft character unless you’re applying for work as a game designer).
15 - Avoid Date Holes
Do not leave gaps of time in your résumé. Employers worry about time gaps where you didn’t seem to be doing anything related to your career. Fill them in, even of you need to generalize. Don’t lie, but you don’t need to detail everything.
If you worked odd jobs and had periods of unemployment, bulk them up in a timeframe. Example: “Work-Related Experience from 2008 to 2011”.
Employers actively look for date holes when sorting out résumés and routinely reject those with unaccounted time.
16 - Do not Describe an Excessive Number of Jobs
Do you have too many different jobs in your past history? This is a warning sign to employers, but you may have good reasons why you moved from job to job, or had short-term jobs. In this case, bulk up the experiences and include them in a timeframe.
If you had a job that didn’t last long enough to have learned anything from it, it’s likely not worth listing. Some people say this is dishonest but I disagree. A résumé is not a personal diary, it is a document that details your relevant experience so omit the irrelivant job.
17 - List Appropriate Detail
You may have several pages of work experience but this much detail is inappropriate for a résumé. Best to list relevant experience and transferable skills gained within that timeframe. Choose to detail only those experiences that may be significant, similar or relevant to the employer and the job you are applying for.
18 - Stage a Conversation or Question
This is an effective and valuable tip suggested by a person who has experience hiring for high-level positions. It is beneficial to structure a statement in your résumé in such a way that will prompt a predictable question. The reasons for this are excellent: you have already rehearsed an answer for the anticipated question, and it allows you to speak about something that you’d like to speak about but is otherwise difficult to put on your résumé.
Things you'd like to discuss in an interview but cannot place on a résumé would include things such as: parent’s educational or work background, specialized skills, sports and other awards, non-business achievements, etc...
Stage a question by leaving out details.Example:
- State “June 2006: Carter Award Recipient” instead of “Received the Carter Award for Group Work on a College Project”.
In this example, there is a good chance the interviewer will ask about the Award for clarification proving you the opportunity to speak about the group project:
Stage a question by adding a statement or detail. The questions from these examples are predictable:
- “Level 4 Security Certificate”
- "Volunteer of the Month award"
- "Extra Credits awarded for university research project"
- "Won second place in regional high school competition"
It takes a bit of thought to set this up, but experience shows this is an effective strategy to get the interviewer to know you better by allowing to speak about something memorable.
19 - Apply for Jobs that you may not be Fully Qualified for
If the advertisement ask for years of experience in a specific field that you don’t have, find the parallels to your experience and sell it. Employers rarely get a candidate that has everything they ask for so they will select the best from the pile and yours may be it. Sending out a résumé is a small cost to you.
Enhance your qualifications by customizing your résumé to address and emphasize those critical points that the employer is seeking.
20 - Egosurf your Brand
Your name is your brand and you must protect this brand. Your personal reputation may be available on-line for others to see and judged from a business perspective. A person may never know what employers have found on-line and may not fully understand why they never get interviews. The cause may be poor personal brand management.
A standard procedure for most progressive companies is to research interview candidates before setting up the interview. If it's anywhere on the web they will likely find it. You must therefore aggressively search the web and social media sites to determine what personal information you have visible to potential employers. A good suggestion is to challenge an IT friend to see what they can discover on-line using the information from your résumé.
More that one reference called me and asked questions about what they found on-line for a candidate (I didn't discuss the details but was both impressed and concerned over what they could find, including club memberships, personal histories, friends, religious affiliation, etc).
There are several strategies for improving your on-line image.
- The first step is protecting your name. Do not use your real name online, but if you do be extra careful on those sites to make your presented persona as business-friendly as possible.
- Use a variety of search engines to find and identify any potentially damaging pictures, statements, opinions, and other information and modify it. If you don't have control over the site check with those that do.
- Overwhelm the bad with good. If you cannot change what was posted, try posting to a blog or other sites with statements that are business-neutral. If you do this enough times the information that may cause problems becomes more difficult to find. Look on line for suggestions on how to do this.
- On social media sites you may want to review your friends list. Join groups, clubs and associations that are seen as pro-business and unjoin those that may be seen as potentially problematic in a business setting such as protest groups.
- Other tips for online reputation management are available on-line.
21 - Create an Image
You may have little or no work experience to show in your résumé so you will need to rely on other "life" experiences. Employers are looking for basic qualities in an employee including these skills:
- Problem-solving and troubleshooting
- Interpersonal including teamwork and leadership
- Time management such as reliability
- Work ethic including initiative, creative, persistent, determined, responsible, disciplined, adaptable, honest
- Growth and learning potential
- Writing and speaking abilities
- Technical depth and breadth
- Loyalty and integrity
- Volunteerism
Add a personal skills/strengths section to your résumé to address these areas. Think about any experience whatsoever that may be used to support your statements such as hobbies, volunteer work, clubs, sports, school projects, helping others, etc. Have a good list of reference people available as the employer will need to rely on their comments to support your statements.
22- Media
With the general acceptance of technology there is an opportunity to use a variety of multimedia tools to convey your message and market yourself. Not only can you provide more details about yourself but you also demonstrate adaptability and technical knowledge.
One consideration may be to create a short video. In this area I have little personal experience but from my research, it is viewed as an acceptable way to enhance an application. Imagine the impact this may have, especially if the video has been customized for that position. It's another opportunity to sell yourself.
Another consideration is to create a personal web space. It could include things like photos of projects you have completed, copies of letters of recommendation, documents you have produced or any additional detail that you would like to share with a potential employer but cannot include in a résumé.
As with the résumé any media must be well produced, brief, and relevant. For video media be aware of your dress, background details in the video or anything else that may detract from the video's impact. Also be aware that despite social progress, cultural awareness and globalization, some people have prejudices and may judge you based solely on appearance or your accent so you may want to consider whether it makes sense to be a video star.
