Your resume should be written with the reader in mind, and that means you need to understand who the reader will be. Therefore, beyond the usual advice on avoiding writing mistakes, you need to aim for a resume that will be read easily, give a professional impression, and influence a favorable outcome.
Most resumes will be filtered by computer before the person reading the resume looks at them. This makes keywords important! The filter will be set to certain keywords pertaining to that job, so your resume needs to pass that filter by containing what the computer looks for. This will change from one industry to the next, so think about natural keywords for your industry.
Your resume is read by a busy person who is reading many resumes. That means you have seconds — not minutes — to get your resume scanned for pertinent information.
- Most of the time this means your job history in reverse chronological order because they want to know what you have been doing recently.
- Huge blocks of text (long paragraphs of experience) will be ignored because it takes too much time to read it, so go with shorter paragraphs and bullet points.
- Keep the same formatting throughout the resume.
- Pictures, tables, and information in special boxes or headings are great looking on a resume, but be sure to send the PDF format of your resume when emailing as the special formatting may cause compatibility issues when emailing.
Professionals look professional in the details. Your name across all media should be the same: if you have a common name, consider using an initial to help identify which “J. Doe” you are on LinkedIn, Facebook, or whatever. Your email should be “yourname@email” instead of more colorful monikers like “partyanimal@email”. Think about your brand and what you are selling; in this case, you are selling yourself as a potential asset to the company. I always suggest to my clients a brand new email address just for job search. You want to keep your personal email free from spam. Spam mail comes with any online job board or website where you upload your resume.
Your resume should show how you are different, not how you are the same as the rest of the pack. What kind of company did you work for previously? How are your tech/finance/project management (for example) skills superior to the standard expectation? Are you applying for another government position? Do you have all the necessary data for government websites like USAjobs.com and similar sites? Don’t go into mind-boggling detail, but resume space is premium space so the information should be carefully chosen for maximum influence.
Lastly, if you aren’t going to have your resume professionally written by an executive resume writer, have a few family members or a friend or two review your resume. Let them know who your target audience is and the type of position you are applying for. Keeping your resume focused and audience target clear will ensure the reader that you are confident in the position you are applying to and knowledgeable of who they are.
