Resume Writing Tips
Here is a few tips I have for resume writing. When going over resumes I see a lot of the same mistakes.
- Send me your resume. Approximately 10% of applicants don’t send me a resume at all. Some of them ask some kind of question (usually stupid), and ask me to contact them for a resume. While others seem to have simply forgotten to attach the file altogether. Put yourself in the position of a hiring manager, when you have over 100 resumes to review, you are not going to respond to people and beg them to send you a resume, you will delete their email, and move on.
- Send your resume as an attachment. Some people copy and paste their entire resume into the body of the email. I would advise against it, because it makes printing and saving resumes for review a pain. The content of your email should be a one-paragraph attention grabber that shows me you read my job posting, and are interested in the job. (see #10)
- Attach your resume as a Word or PDF file. Some resumes I get are in WPS (Mirosoft Works) format, which is very annoying because I don’t like Microsoft Works, and don’t have it installed. Furthermore, I’m not going to install it just for you. Also, if you do attach a Word file, make sure it’s compatible with Office 2003, some people may not have Office 2007 installed. Ideally attach two files, a Word and a PDF version. If you need to convert your resume to PDF, you can use CutePDF, its free.
- Spell check and your resume. This may seem obvious, but about 5% of resumes I’ve received have misspellings, and that’s not the first thing you want me to notice about you.
- Put your job-relevant skills at the top of the resume. Ideally, tailor your skillset to the job posting. Also, try to avoid using cliche phrases like “excellent attention to detail” – everybody says it, and I assume you are using that as a place holder because you have no actual skills.
- Don’t be too creative by using unique fonts, this gets extremely annoying. Although it does make your resume stand out, it’s not in a good way, and you’ll most likely end up in the “throw-away” pile. I personally prefer Calibri or Arial, but anything standard will work.
- A clear layout and nice subtle colors is a plus. A well laid out resume will stand out in a good way. Unless you are applying for a creative design position, don’t use too much creativity, it makes me think you are trying to divert attention from your lack of pertinent skills.
- Don’t be afraid to use more than one page. If you have a lot of experience, I would rather see multiple pages than one page that is over-crammed.
- If applying for a computer-related position include a list of software your are familiar with. However, don’t list things like “Internet Explorer”, “Word” and “PowerPoint”. Most people who can email a resume know how to use Internet Explorer and Word. List specialty software, such as QuickBooks, ERP programs, Linux distributions, SolidWorks, etc. Even if the software isn’t completely relevant to the job posting, but its advanced, throw it in – it shows you have the competency to learn advanced software, which is an excellent skill.
- The best way to get my attention - include a well-written paragraph in the body of the email talking about the job posting. Don’t use a generic snippet, I can tell if its generic right away. This can go a long way – first, it shows me that you actually read the job posting. Second, 75% of people don’t write anything at all, or have a very generic message, so you will instantly stand out. Here is an ideal example:
Your posting caught my eye and I am very interested. I am a retiring business finance professional with an MBA and BS, exceptional Excel financial and business modeling skills and a comprehensive understanding of overall business practices. I also held the position of Controller for over 5 years for a small, private service company (The Company, Inc, 2000-2005, computer system validation services, Some Town, NC), growing sales from $300K to $1.5 million in just 2 years. The compensation level specified is very satisfactory for this stage in my career. I would like very much to hear from you because I am fully confident that I have the drive, skills, personality traits and work ethic you are looking for. I can and will help you succeed, given the opportunity – on this you can count!
Notice how the writing isn’t overtly technical, it has personality, I don’t feel like I’m talking to a robot. It shows that the applicant is interested in the job, read the requirements, and has something to contribute. Including some sort of quantifiable information is very useful as well.
The bottom line. Consider the market we are in – unemployment is rather high, consequently there are a lot of other applicants. My best advice is to make things as convenient at possible for the HR person. Grab their attention, attach the right file, and don’t try too hard to stand out by being too creative.
Resume Writing Tips
Here is a few tips I have for resume writing. When going over resumes I see a lot of the same mistakes.
Notice how the writing isn’t overtly technical, it has personality, I don’t feel like I’m talking to a robot. It shows that the applicant is interested in the job, read the requirements, and has something to contribute. Including some sort of quantifiable information is very useful as well.
The bottom line. Consider the market we are in – unemployment is rather high, consequently there are a lot of other applicants. My best advice is to make things as convenient at possible for the HR person. Grab their attention, attach the right file, and don’t try too hard to stand out by being too creative.