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Based on the feedback from my last article, 10 Steps to a Successful Job Search, the next several articles will focus on some of the specific steps. We will start with "Make Your Resume JUMP Off the Page".
Developing a resume that jumps off the page at the reader is critical to your job search success. A Recruiter or HR person will only spend about 20-30 seconds reading a resume, before they make a ‘yes' or ‘no' decision. During that short window of time, you have to convey that you are the best fit for the role. So how do you accomplish what seems like such a monumental task? To start with, keep your target audience in mind and understand what they are looking for when reading your resume.
Ten tips to make your resume reader friendly;
- Get the reader from your name to your current role within the top third of the page. What is of most interest to the reader is your last five years of experience.
- No bullet or paragraph should be longer than 3-4 lines. Anything more than that is difficult to read quickly, so it is either skimmed or skipped all together.
- Make your resume accomplishment oriented. A resume that reads like a job description does not differentiate you from the hundreds of other applicants.
- Your accomplishments should be bulleted to make them stand out on the page.
- Attract the reader's attention by quantifying your top three accomplishments per position by using numbers, percents, and dollar signs.
- Start each bullet with action oriented words that convey a strong sense of the role you played in that accomplishment.
- Standardize your use of font and format throughout the resume. Use an easy to read traditional font like Arial or Times New Roman. Make sure to also maintain the same consistency of how you format each section of the resume.
- Incorporate the key buzz words from the job description into your resume. This will help capture the readers attention and make you more easy to relate too.
- Most resumes should utilize a functional format. The only exceptions to that rule are those individuals making a significant career change (ie engineering to accounting or sales rep to a social worker).
- Keep the resume to two pages in length, anything longer is unlikely to get read. This can be accomplished by limiting your experience to the last 10-15 years.
In this ultra competitive job market, you are at times competing against hundreds of other candidates for your next position. To make yourself stand out from the crowd, you need a resume that concisely captures your experience in an easy to read format. By making your resume easy for the reader to understand, you have effectively gained a leg up on the competition. Congratulations, now that you have made your resume JUMP off the page, you are ready for next weeks article on "The Elevator Speech".
Do you feel like your resume getting lost in a black hole? Are you networking but not seeing any results? You can benefit from my 15 years of experience recruiting for both Fortune 500 companies and executive recruiting firms. I have reviewed over 40,000 resumes and conducted 5000 interviews, and I can help you and your resume stand out.
My name is Steve Gray with Career Search Strategies. Please ask me about scheduling a FREE 45 minute consultation to jump start your search and find the career you've been looking for.
Email me your name and preferred email address, and I will send you all future articles as well as a weekly list of job opening.
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