Don’t Get Caught With A Dusty Resume

While this may seem like a no-brainer, this doesn’t necessarily mean you need to develop a brand-new resume for every open position. It just means that you want to highlight the skills and experience that you believe are most important for each specific role you may be going after. Take the time to read potential job descriptions carefully and look for standout keywords and phrases that are important to the role. If you have relevant experience that matches what the potential employer is seeking, make sure you include these keywords in your own resume to show you have the exact skills that the company wants.

An Important Puzzle Piece

A personal statement is often an overlooked portion of a resume, but can be crucial for setting the tone and giving potential employers a better understanding of who you are and what you can bring to a company. Your personal statement doesn’t have to be long, but it should summarize your skills, experience, and career goals. Almost like a mini-cover letter, make sure you tailor it to the job for which you are applying and focus on the value you can bring to the role.

Watch The Interest

Focus on Your Achievements

When developing your resume, it can be easy to get caught up in writing about all the responsibilities you have had in previous positions. However, it’s important to show the impact you had on previous organizations because of the responsibilities you took on to prove how valuable you would be to a potential company. You can easily accomplish both listing your previous job duties and your accomplishments by making small tweaks to your resume. For example, if you were a sales manager, instead of saying you managed a team of four account executives, you can say you managed a team of four account executives and increased originations by 25%. Having those quantifiable and tangible accomplishments demonstrates just how much value you could provide to a potential employer.

Concise & Easy to Read

It can be very easy to worry about including all of your relevant information in a resume that it suddenly becomes overwhelming for someone to read through easily. However, it is incredibly important that your resume is easy for potential employers to skim through to determine if your skill set matches what they are looking for in a hire. To keep your information clear and concise, stick to easy-to-read fonts, and minimal graphics. Sure, you can give your resume a little pizzazz and use some flourishes or color to make it stand out, but try to keep images to a minimum so that potential employers can focus on what matters, your experience and accomplishments.

Block out your information into sections, such as job experience, education, and relevant skills. Use bullets or short sentences to make it as easy as possible for employers to get a full picture of who you are as a potential employee. Make sure to focus on your most recent and relevant experience. You don’t have to list every job you’ve ever had. It is better to showcase your current experience and show how it would make you a good fit for this potential role.

Finally, make sure your contact information, email, and phone number are easy to find so a potential employer can get in touch with you. You can also consider including a link to your LinkedIn profile or a professional website to allow the company to see what you have accomplished beyond your resume, such as being connected in the industry.

Be Honest and Accurate

While it can be easy to inflate your skills and experience to try to make an impression on a potential employer, it is imperative to be honest in your resume so that it accurately reflects what you are capable of. Don’t exaggerate your skills or experience, as you could easily be caught in a lie in an interview or if a potential employer digs a bit deeper into your background. Be truthful about your achievements and qualifications and be honest with a potential employer. If you don’t have all the qualifications they are seeking, you can always express your willingness to learn to be a bigger asset to the company.

Get a Second Opinion

Even if you think your resume is polished and ready to be sent, it’s never a bad idea to get a second opinion from a friend, mentor, or another professional in the industry. Someone looking at your resume with fresh eyes may be able to offer suggestions on how to improve the content or format.

At the end of the day, your resume is an essential tool in your professional life. Whether you are currently searching for job opportunities or may one day be looking for something new, it’s important to have a resume that accurately reflects your skills and achievements. Dust it off, update it, and feel confident knowing that if you ever need it, it’s there to help you get to the next step in your career.