Revisiting Your Resume
Top 5 Tips
Today’s economic conditions require a more aggressive approach. Below are tips on what to do with the single most important document in your Career ToolBox.
1. Own Your Resume
There are thousands of books on how to write a resume. Remember that you are the one who has to speak to it. What do you want it to say about you?
2. Quantify, Quantify, Quantify
Measure all your success stories: Did you save companies money? Did you make them money? Did you train people that got promoted?
3. Successes are Not Job Descriptions
Listing everything you have ever done on every job is a sure fire way to lose the interest of a firm that may have been a good fit for you. Instead, ask yourself this: By being a manager in this role how did I make a difference?
4. 20 Second Acid Test
Give your resume to someone you trust and give him 20 seconds to scan your document. Then ask the person what he thinks you do for a living. Because after all that work, 20 seconds is all you may get from a hiring manager.
5. Proofread. Repeat.
Print your resume out on paper and then read your resume out loud. You will be surprised at all the mistakes you will find. Better yet, have someone else read it.
Read past CareerTOOLBOX columns here: CareerTOOLBOX.
Have a career question? Write alex@creativecadence.com
Alex Sukhoy, a globally-networked creative and business professional with nearly 20 years of corporate management experience, is founder and manager of Creative Cadence LLC, a growth planning, career development and original content agency. Alex teaches screenwriting at Tri-C and, in 2006, she was profiled in BusinessWeek.com. Her novellas, Chatroom to Bedroom: Chicago and Chatroom to Bedroom: Rochester, New York, are currently available on Amazon.com.