Four Simple Steps To Better Results With Your Resume
Is every job description you read the same? No.
Is every job you submit your resume to the same? Of course they aren't.
If all these job descriptions are different, why do you submit the same resume?
Every day, people send the same generic resume out as though each position was identical and each employer was attempting to hire identical skills and attributes. Too often, the results they receive are like the broken watch that is right twice a day—hit or miss success.
They list their name, address, phone numbers and email address, list an objective, education, and chronology of experience with dates of employment. The resume includes some successes or accomplishments. This is their resume.
In the days prior to computers when changing a resume required you to re-type different versions, this made sense. Today, when computers allow you to customize, spell and grammar check documents so easily, you are missing out on opportunities and costing yourself money by being lazy and not tailoring your resume for each opportunity you are interested in.
Here are several steps that you can do to improve your resume and get better results.
1. Each employer will be interested in different attributes of your experience. They often indicate it by the items they describe in their job ad. Emphasize the experiences that you have that relate to the skills being sought and the functions you will perform in the job they will ask you to perform. If you are applying for a staff position, emphasize your staff experience and minimize your management experience. If you are being hired to be a leader, write about your recent leadership.
2. Employers are more interested in recent work, rather than work you did many years ago. Use more space in your resume to highlight recent experience, rather than things you did before George W. Bush became President.
3. Like setting a goal where you make them specific, measurable, achievable within a specific period of time, describe your successes or achievements concretely. Reducing costs is a nice start but it is more powerful to describe something as reducing operational costs globally by 2%. Increased departmental sales by 27% resulting in . . . You get the idea. Use action verbs wherever possible (For more on this, read my article, Preparing an Effective Resume" on www.newyorkmetrotechnologyjobs.com).
4. Ask someone you trust to critique what you've written. Too often, people believe that they can do everything by themselves without asking for help. Ask a friend in your industry to critique what you've written to insure you're on target and aren't missing the mark.
When you go to a restaurant and order a meal, you have the expectation that it will be prepared in a way that will please you and be presented on the plate beautifully. Writing a great resume requires that you be the chef and prepare a meal that is both visually appealing and tastes great too!
Jeff Altman
© 2005 all rights reserved.
Jeff Altman, Managing Director with Concepts in Staffing, a New York search firm, has successfully assisted many corporations identify management leaders and staff in technology, accounting, finance, sales, marketing and other disciplines since 1971. He is a certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues, and a practicing psychotherapist.
For additional job hunting or hiring tips, go to http://www.newyorkmetrotechnologyjobs.com If you would like Jeff and his firm to assist you with hiring staff, or if you would like help with a strategic job change, send an email to him at jeffaltman@cisny.com (If you're looking for a new position, include your resume).
Related Articles:
New Book Identifies Best Jobs for Introverts
Many introverted job seekers have difficulty finding a job that suits their personality. Often they prefer to work alone, in the quiet, and free of distractions. This is becoming much harder to do in an economy that thrives on communication and teamwork. In their new book, 200 Best Jobs for Introverts, Laurence Shatkin and the editors at JIST reveal which occupations do suit introverts' preferences and still offer good pay and promising job growth.
Getting An Employment Lawyer
If you got an employment case that needs legal assistance and representation by an attorney, you must be wary in choosing the right employment lawyer. It is your exclusive right to choose an advocate to uphold your worker's rights. But how do you start scouting for the right lawyer?
Preparing Yourself For Legitimate Work At Home Jobs
There are a number of ?work at home jobs? that are legitimate The list includes many online and offline options
Consultant Jobs In The United Kingdom
One of the hottest areas in the UK job market today is ?Consulting?. The reason why consultants, whether in the financial or technical field, are so highly in demand right now is that companies are facing the squeeze of increased competition. The Internet, the promotion of small business, and the rising demands on businesses from consumers means that everything from production processes to budgets needs to be assessed. The consultant is, therefore, a key member of any personnel grouping.
Banking Operations Jobs Still Out There According to Joslin Rowe
Joslin Rowe reports investment banks are polarising over banking operations recruitment in a tale of fortune and famine.
Morehead Webinar Discusses Measuring Employee Retention Across the Employment Lifecycle
Collecting retention-related data during the entire employment lifecycle minimizes employee turnover.
Connecticut Teen Launches First Telework Jobs Website for High School and College Students
Daughter of Founder of Virtual Assistant Industry Follows in Mother's Footsteps, Spreading Telework in "Millennials" Generation
Reading the Want Ads--Not for Jobs--For Information
What? Want ads are where job announcements
are, not information!Wait! Job want ads are full of information if
you know what to do and how to use them.Doubtful? Here are some ideas of the kinds
of information you can find as a job seeker.
Seminars to Give Updated Information on Employment Law
The Payroll Company, a Wisconsin-based leading provider of payroll services, today announced two upcoming seminars on employment law and recent developments. These full-day sessions—August 18 and August 25—will help small business owners, human resource practitioners, managers, and supervisors avoid legal difficulties with the most pressing issues in human resource management.
Medicaid Pharmacy Cuts Could Force More Than 11,000 Pharmacies to Close, Affecting 300,000 Jobs and $31.1 Billion in Output
A report, released jointly today by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) and the Food Marketing Institute (FMI), analyzes the potential impact of the DRA on pharmacies (Impact of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 on Pharmacies by State), encompassing chain drug stores, independent pharmacies and mass merchants and supermarkets with pharmacies.
Employment Law: Time Limits for Bringing Employment Tribunal Claims
In the case of Chouafi v London United Busways Ltd [2005], the claimant was employed as a bus driver by the defendant company. In October 2003, he was diagnosed with severe depression and was signed off work until February 2004.
Bringing Back Mining Jobs to the United States
With new environmental technologies and modern efficiency methods in mining can we revive this sector of our economy. It would be great for manufacturing costs and coupled with the current low dollar we stand to make gain quite a bit if we can.
Kress Employment Screening Launches Market Research Survey
Kress Employment Screening, a licensed investigations company that provides employers with background checks, today announced that it is in the midst of a market research survey to study companies' background screening practices. Participate in the "2007 Background Screening Trends" survey now.
EarnMyDegree.com Launches New Section Featuring Jobs that Will "Stay in the U.S.A."
New Section Debuts Around Fourth of July Featuring Outsource-Resistant Jobs: EarnMyDegree.com, a web resource of EducationDynamics that connects prospective students with online learning providers, has launched a new section which features 18 American occupations that are built on personal contact and will never be outsourced.
Write Your Perfect Resume
Writing a Resume