Advice For Writing A Strong Resume

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Photo by João Ferrão on Unsplash

Creating a strong, solid resume involves several steps, which, when taken together, prove fruitful for an improved resume. Simple enough in themselves, it is important to actually go through and check that all the elements needed for a strong resume appear.

First of all, an aesthetically clean, grammatically correct, and clear resume is a must. This indicates a well-educated and polished individual. The resume must be well organized and focused to be considered.

In other words, include only previous employments that apply to the new job which you want in most relevant order. In the process of polishing up your resume, be sure that it stays interesting to the perspective employer.

Your resume should be specific to each job to which you are applying, and your resume should speak for you as to why you are the right candidate. Your resume represents you, so the impression your resume makes is the impression that you have made. With these points in mind while writing and revising your resume, you shall end with a strong, attention-grabbing resume.

Language is indispensable to us and we use it constantly, but grammar, spelling, and writing style have taken a back seat for the majority of us thanks to computer technology which corrects for us. All too often though, these corrections leave much to be desired.

In other words, it is still up to the writer to ensure that what he has written is well written. Any blatant spelling or grammar errors jump out at the reader, and your strengths and talents take a far back seat to the minor spelling mistakes. Revisions must be done on resumes, and the first revision should check for correct grammar and spelling.

You want to ensure that yours is an aesthetically clean, grammatically correct, and clear résumé. This right here is what grabs your application reader’s attention. As they say, first impressions last. Everything rises and falls with this step right here. This will project you as a well-educated and polished individual.

Having someone else proofread is wise, as it is always easier to see others’ mistakes rather than our own. Resume builder websites specializing in optimizing and improving resumes are also a great idea to help you avoid the pitfalls of resume writing.

Clarity and conciseness are also important in the resume. The fewer unnecessary words and the more direct your phrases are, the easier it is to read through your resume.

Keep in mind that resumes are not read, they are merely read through. They are glanced at, or at best skimmed, so the clearer and more concise you are in expressing yourself, the larger portion of your resume will be noticed. One page resumes are preferred as they are concise and help you focus. This focus forces you to choose and include only your most important jobs and achievements.

When writing a resume, never lose focus. Remember the point of the resume: the key to securing interviews. Thus, make sure that every point included in your resume indicates to the resume reader why you are the one who should get the interview and, eventually, the job.

Don’t include extras in your resume. If they have nothing to do with the skills and talents you will need for the job you want, they do not belong on the resume. Again, keep in mind that resumes are only skimmed over, and so should contain only that information which applies.

If you have a life experience that is so unique and interesting that you have to put it on your resume, tie a skill learned from it with the job you hope for. The unique activity will be noticed, and the fact that you learned from it in a way that will help you at future jobs will be viewed as a plus.

In keeping organized and focused, state your work experience in relevant order. Hopefully, and most likely, your most recent work experience is most relevant to your future job.

If you are fresh out of college, you will likely want to prioritize your education, as presumably you will not have a meaty employment section at this point. On the other hand, if your college graduation is an old, fond memory at this point, start your resume with work experience.

Following the above tips will help keep the attention of your prospective employer. Keeping the interest of those reading your resume is vital, since these are the people who will be contacting you for an interview. Clearly indicating your career goals is a wise choice.

The use of words indicating action, initiative, and energy is an intelligent move. Such words will help you focus on what you have done personally, and make your resume specific and unique.

It is wise to have a template resume from which you format specific ones for each job that you apply to. This way, you will never have a generic resume, which will naturally impress potential employers. When you take the time to personalize your resume, you show that you want the job more than others who are not willing to put the time and energy into theirs.

Another step is structuring your document. There are several formats that can be explored out there but by all means make sure that the most important sections are highlighted in yours. These important sections will, in most cases, be highlighted in job advertisement although, some companies’ advertisements may not be as detailed.

Remember that today there are issues of electronic screening, through which your résumé will be processed. What you may also want to do is ensure that yours is Applicant Tracking System compatible, otherwise it may not even reach the eyes of a human reader.

Give readers reasons to keep reading your resume. What many job applicants do is, although they are qualified, they fail to communicate such precisely in an organized manner and as result be trashed out.

A specific resume will wax the interest of the resume reader, and give rise to questions they will want to ask upon meeting you. In other words, the reader will want to interview you.

There is no denying it. Job-hunting is a serious business. In fact, unless it is approached as such success is almost impossible. Job seekers globally know that in our day, getting employed means spending days and even months grafting CVs and sending several of them to potential employers or in responding to advertisement for some.

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Teboho Polanka
Teboho is a Social Worker, Writer and Inspirational Speaker. He is in pursuit of MSc. in Managerial Psychology. Graduates are able to apply psychological principles and methods to tackle challenges in the work environment and provide effective practical solutions. Acting as industrial-organizational psychologists.