Writing a resume is one of the most important documents of your life when you are ready to enter the job market. This true in every sector of the economy and every possible job. There is so much competition nowadays for every job that you really do have to have the best resume to be even considered for an interview. While there are a lot of facts you need to know about creating an award-winning resume, there are ten essential facts that all applicants should keep in mind at all times.
Recruiters and employers know exactly what they are looking for when they pick up a resume.According to statistics, they spend only about ten or fifteen seconds scanning the document. This means that you must have pertinent information related to how you meet the job requirements at the beginning of your resume.
It has always been customary to write a resume objective in the cover letter. This requirement has now spread to the actual resume because most readers skip the cover letter. They don’t have time to read all the documentation that you send. A resume objective should focus on how you can meet the employer’s needs, but has to be phrased in such a way as to make the employer the main focus of the writing.
Creativity is imperative in resume writing, but this does not mean embellishing the document with fancy fonts or graphics. It refers to the way in which you use powerful action words and vocabulary specific to the job in order to give the reader a concise look at what skills you possess.
Even though the reverse chronological resume format is the one most often used, there are times when a different format will work better for you. Depending on your individual circumstances you might have to use a functional resume format, such as when you have gaps in your employment. In this case the focus is on your skills rather than your work experience. Maybe a targeted resume would be the best approach if you have skills that are directly related to the job posting.
A resume is no time for you to exaggerate what you have done or can do. A resume must be an honest assessment of what you can bring to the job.
Break your resume into sections and label each section with the appropriate title. This enables the readers to be able to scan the resume quite easily and quickly to gain the information they want to know about you.
Professionalism has to shine through all elements of a resume. You should read and reread your writing to pick up on any errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar. Even if you are very familiar with the jargon of an industry, you should not use this terminology in a resume.
A resume should never exceed two pages. It takes skill to be able to condense a wealth of information into such a short space. You must be very concise in the ways in which you describe any work experience.
Positive statements are all that should be included in resume. This is not the time or place to bring up any negative points of dislikes.
If the employer wants to know why there are gaps in your employment, this will be brought up in the interview. Don’t do anything to address it in your resume. Just make sure you have an excellent answer prepared when you are asked the question.
