Resumes That Rock (16 Expert Tips)
By Karen Fritscher-Porter |
It's never too early to update your resume, even if you're not searching for a
new job. Why? Updating your resume is a valuable reminder to yourself of your
practical value to employers.
Refer to it when preparing your business
case for a raise request or when preparing for your annual performance
evaluation. Your resume is a good reminder of your achievements for your company
as well as your capabilities and skills.
And if you suddenly find your
company, or life, in upheaval and need to start searching for a new job,
preparing your resume is one less stressful activity to worry about. You've kept
your resume current so it's nearly complete. Just polish it, print it and add a
cover letter targeted toward each individual employer and position. Then drop it
in the mail, fax it or e-mail it per the potential employer's preference. It's
so simple, right? Hardly.
If you could really capture your essence in a
bottle and send it to the prospective employer, you'd certainly get the job.
Why? He'd know how polished, enthusiastic, well-qualified and perfect you were
for the position compared to the other trillion candidates applying too.
Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. Your "essence" has to go into the brief
resume and cover letter versus a bottle. And that's how the potential employer
knows he or she just MUST meet you in person.
"Your resume is a
snapshot," says Anne McKinney, author and editor of "Real Resumes for
Administrative Support, Office & Secretarial Jobs" by PREP Publishing
(www.prep-pub.com). "And when a resume is a great resume, from head (its
objective) to toe (its personal section), an employer can really feel that he
has met you. He might not know exactly what you look like but it's a photograph
of you in lots of ways that you've brought to life. And that's not easy for most
people to create since they're not writers."
Here is advice McKinney
shared that should help make your next resume and cover letter writing
experience easier and more focused:
Cover Letters:
1. Don't write
anything that will get you screened out. For example, don't write that you've
just finished having your ninth child but your mother-in-law takes care of the
children during the day. Most employers will think your life is too busy to
truly include them in a reliable fashion.
2. Be careful when you
introduce personal content. But don't exclude it in your cover letter if it
might be of interest to that particular employer. For example, you mention your
youngest child has just left home for college, you're newly single and you're
psyched for this position that possibly entails traveling as a personal
assistant. That employer is looking for someone who is willing to travel or
relocate and focus on him predominately. You're in.
3. Write positive
statements. Don't start with 'I've been out of the job market for 15 years...'
It doesn't inspire confidence. See the tip above for a better way to phrase
this.
4. Stay away from touchy subjects unless it's positive and useful
information. Religious matters wouldn't likely be appropriate for a cover letter
unless, for instance, you're applying to work at a nonprofit organization of
your faith. Then it might be to your advantage to mention something
relevant.
5. Use the cover letter to address questions or discrepancies
that the employer might have about you. Make employers aware that you do know
what job you're applying for and you're not just littering the universe with
your resume. That might mean writing that 'I'm writing to you from Missouri but
I'm planning to be in North Carolina where you're located upon my husband's
retirement from the military when we return to our home town.'
6.
Communicate three main concepts in your cover letter. The prospective employer
wants to know anything that might help her make money; cut a cost; attract a new
customer; retain an existing customer; or solve a problem. Make your
self-promotion do that and you'll be on the DO CALL list.
7. Flaunt it,
baby! If you're a whiz with computer skills, don't be shy about saying so.
Whether you learned a skill on the job or went to school for four years to learn
it, you do have the skill. It doesn't matter how you acquired such valuable
skills--just mention that you have them.
Resumes:
8. Write a single
resume that is suitable for multiple employers.
9. Make your resume one
page. Start by writing everything you want to say; then edit and cut. A two page
resume can work too. Just remember, prospective employers are reading a lot of
cover letters and resumes. Concise is better.
10. Put the juicy stuff on
page one of a multi-page resume.
11. Break the resume into sections:
education, training, computer skills and so forth. Your 'experience' section is
the prime real estate and should be half or more of a one page
resume.
12. Write in chronological order. Start with the most recent
information.
13. Go back in your employment history as far as beneficial
to you. Ten years is good. Experience beyond that can go in a summary under
'highlight of other experience' section, hitting just the highlights without
dates. This is where you can mention you've also worked in CPA and law firms,
giving the employer an indirect reminder that you're versatile.
14. Write
a broad objective statement. Make it all purpose enough so that somebody reading
it won't immediately say 'we're not what she's looking for.' Accentuate your
personal qualities and some of your skills in the statement.
15. Don't
highlight that you've primarily worked in one industry or write that you're
seeking an entry-level position. You may be looking for an administrative
assistant job in the aerospace industry but would you consider office manager in
the company's automotive industry sister company if offered to you?
16.
Write your accomplishments. Your resume should mostly describe what you actually
accomplished on the job. Don't be boring! Say 'trained approximately 30
employees in the word processing department in operation of Microsoft Word...'
not 'responsibilities included switchboard, computer operations and customer
service.' That first sentence says you trained people, communicated, presented
in front of a group, worked one-on-one providing individual assistance and have
lots of computer experience. The second phrasing just says you're boring.
Yawn!
A scheduled interview means your resume is a success. Pop the
bubbly (but not right before your interview)!
© 2005 Karen
Fritscher-Porter
About the Author
Karen Fritscher-Porter is the publisher and editor of The Effective
Admin, a free monthly e-zine for administrative support professionals who want
practical tips to advance their career and simplify their daily job duties.
Learn more about The Effective Admin at http://www.admin-ezine.com where you also can buy
booklets and reports full of informational tips useful to administrative
assistants and their managers.
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