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Resume Writing

The One Thing That Will Improve Your Resume
By Joe Turner, Career Coach

Too many books on resume writing are out-of-date. Although well-intentioned and filled with other good information, most have not been updated for the modern job search.

Your resume will be seen by many eyes, including electronic. Computers "score" resumes by the number of keywords (also known as "buzzwords") the employer will find most relevant. If you don't account for this, your resume could stay locked in some database, never to be even seen by anyone while you wait for a call that never comes.

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Depending on how it's written, your resume can make or break your job search. A professional, well-written resume can have employers banging down your door; but a sloppy, mistake-laden resume can turn off a hiring manager in a split second.

Proofreading is a must. Neglect doing it and you could send out a resume with simple mistakes that could have been avoided. Before you send yours to an employer, follow this checklist to ensure it is the highest-quality representation of yourself.

1. Grammar and spelling -- Use the grammar and spell check function in Microsoft Word. When you are finished with that, print out your resume and read the document word for word. Spell check won't know that you meant to enter "manager" when you actually typed "manger."

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Show (Don't Tell) Three Essentials If you've made the decision to make a career change, don't apologize about it. Show potential employers why you are a good fit for their company and how your past experience, while perhaps not identical, can translate into the skills required for the job opening.

While your resume will show that you've held jobs that are likely different than those you are applying for, the achievements and career highlights you include in your resume and your cover letter should really demonstrate that you have what it takes to succeed in any job.

David Boeckmann, a former recruiter for a Fortune 500 company and founder of Stellar Interviewing Concepts, estimates he has read at least 2,000 cover letters during the course of his career. "Most of them say the same thing."

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We've all been through it.

The waiting -- endless waiting -- for the phone to ring with the hope that, maybe, just maybe, one of the resumes you sent out this week will get through to the right person... and he'll like what he sees.

There are things you can do to land that all important first interview, Brad Turkin, executive vice president of staffing company Comforce Corporation says. "As the old saying goes, you only have one chance to make a good first impression. And the resume is it," he notes. Here are his tips for creating a phone-ringing resume:

Know your Strengths. "The first thing you should do," Turkin says, "is some serious soul-searching. Know the kind of job - and company - that you want. Know your strengths... and acknowledge your weaknesses."

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