Fantastic Resumes In A Hurry With Impressive Result
Resume writing is a science! You only have a few seconds to impress your new employer. How can you possibly get to the interview or even the pre-screening evaluation with those odds? It is a harsh truth to conquer. It is essential to have a fantastic resume. Most career-focused websites show on average employers spend less than 1 minute on a resume before moving to the next. On average, Career Builder reports 30 seconds, GlassDoor states 7 seconds, Linkedin is close with 6 seconds, and most other sites are within similar timeframes.
You need to hold their attention! Just like starting a business, building an audience is important. However, captivating the audience is better, so they will keep coming back. That is the point of your resume, to keep your employer wanting more.
It’s simple! Here are the components that must be included in your resume. Plus, use technology to clench the interview. Seriously, you need it. Everything is online.
First – Add Keywords
Find a few postings for your ideal position, search for keywords. Check out my LinkedIn Profile as an example! The top search phrases for your industry should be words listed in your resume. To quickly be found by a recruiter, you need to have search keywords. SEO Optimization is not just for website and bloggers. It’s the best way to rank higher in job searches too. Plus, those keywords will quickly catch the attention of your potentially new boss within a few seconds.
I’m a resume writer, seriously, you can see examples on Fiverr. There is a ton of competition, so how do I stand out? Easy, I add in the top keywords. For a resume writer, my keywords are resume, cover letter, CV template, Linkedin profile, professional writer, and resume editor.
Any searches on these keywords and I am pulled into the results! List your keywords in your About Me section, profile summary, and skills sections of your resume. If you are still not sure about keywords, try this tool: https://www.jobscan.co/blog/top-resume-keywords-boost-resume/.
Second – Tell a Story
After you’ve caught the eye of your potentially new boss, the next component employers look for is progress. Employers want to see that your career shows progress. If you were a babysitter and moved into a permanent nanny position that’s great! It may seem meniscal, but it’s advancement.
I personally started as an analyst, so very generic. I quickly learned to compete when my company was bought, then came talks of layoffs. Yikes! I worked with a recruiter, who taught me how to standout. Before I knew it, I had 3 competing job offers. Honestly, I’d only been working for a few years out of college. It was shocking to me, as most of my fellow graduates were still searching for their 1st break. Once I mastered the resume formula, my career skyrocketed. I made director by 30, landing in an executive role by 35. I even started my own business, now I have 2. That’s what a fantastic resume will do! It’s your 1st impression make it good, even if you have someone else write it.
Oooo, before I forget, list your accomplishments! Add these details to each job description section. Go ahead gloat a little.
Third – Readability
You have maybe 30 seconds to impress your potentially new boss and score the interview. Your resume needs to be extremely easy to follow and read. Please take time to develop this component. No long sentences, just quick meaningful phrases with action words in bullets under each job. An action word shows movement, basically you accomplished a task. Fill your resume with action words, but most importantly do this.
Do not get to wordy! It is not an essay, completely the opposite of this post. Employers are not going to read every single detail on your resume. They will scan for keywords, look for progress, and move on to the next resume. Keep it in a format that can be understood at a glance. Too much detail is as bad as a blank page, no one is going to read through it to figure out why you are a standout. You want to draw the eye into the keywords in your resume that align with the job post and eliminate anything that is fluff. Seriously, keep it to the point. Finding this a difficult task, check out my How to eliminate the fluff: resume writing.
Good luck! Don’t forget your online profile should match your resume. Yes, you need a linkedin profile. As soon as employers find an ideal candidate, the next step is to look at their professional profile. Here is a professional career profile on Linkedin that is a standout!
Check out Let me Right your Resume for professional resume writing help.
