Resume writting Tips

The first thing anyone writing a resume should understand is the purpose of the resume itself. A resume is an advertisement. The sole purpose of a resume is to get an interview. There is no other purpose. The resume’s aim is to wet the appetite of the reader. The reader should finish the resume feeling that this product (you) would offer them direct specific benefits.

Great resumes have four sections:

1. This is where you make assertions about your abilities, qualities and achievements. You want powerful, concise advertising copy here. Make sure all the information and assertions are accurate. The reader should see someone special while reading this.

2. The evidence section. Here you back up your assertions with evidence that you did what you said you did. Here is where job history, education, certifications obtained and that sort of thing go. This is the information you are obliged to include.

3. The summary where you reinforce that you are the best person for the job with the most pertinent examples.

4. Skills and Accomplishments


We will save the evidence section for another day. Today we will concentrate on assertions, skills and accomplishments and summaries.

The person reading this resume is a real person. Not some anonymous mystery person buried deep in some corporate headquarter. This person is responsible for the productivity of the person they hire. They call deeply how well the job will be done. Write your resume to appeal directly to them.

Ask yourself: What would the perfect candidate look like to this type of person? What does the employer really want? What special abilities and attributes would this person have? What is the difference between a truly exceptional candidate and one that is merely good? If you don’t know these things in detail, consider calling the employer and asking them?

After determining attributes and abilities a perfect candidate would have for a particular job you should prioritize, starting with the most important. Scour your background for examples that demonstrate that you have these attributes and abilities. If you don’t have enough evidence in your professional life, add examples from your personnel life. If leadership is required and you were on the board of trustees at your church, use that. If teaching is required the little league team you coached was undefeated, use that.

After reading your resume the reader should want to pick up the phone a talk to this person. Often is best to only hint at some things. Leave the reader wanting more. That way, they have even more reason to reach for the phone. The assertions section usually has two sections. In both of them you want to communicate, assert and convey that you are the best possible candidate for the job.

The assertion section breaks down into the objective the summary and your skills and accomplishments.

Let’s start with the objective. Ideally, your resume should be pointed toward conveying why you are the perfect candidate for one specific job or job title. Good advertising is directed toward a very specific target audience.

Let's look at a real world example. Suppose the owner of a wireless integration company advertises for an experienced wireless sales person. A week later they have received 200 resumes. The candidates have a wide variety of backgrounds. The employer has no way of knowing whether any of them are really interested in wireless integration.

They remember all the jobs they applied for that they didn't really want. They know that many of the resumes they received are from people who are just using a shotgun approach, casting their seed to the winds. Then they come across a resume in the pile that starts with the following:

"OBJECTIVE – a wireless integration sales position in an organization seeking an extraordinary record of generating new accounts, exceeding sales targets and enthusiastic customer relations.

They are immediately interested. This first sentence conveys some very important and powerful messages: "I want exactly the job you are offering. I am a superior candidate because I recognize the qualities that are most important to you, and I have them. I want to make a contribution to your company." This works well because the employer knows that someone who wants to do exactly what they are offering will be much more likely to succeed than someone who doesn't. This candidate has done a good job of establishing why they are the perfect candidate in their first sentence. They have thought about what qualities would make a candidate stand out. They have started communicating that they are that person immediately. What's more, they are communicating from the point of view of making a contribution to the employer.

They are not writing from a self-centered point of view. Even when people are sharp enough to have an objective, they often make the mistake of saying something like, "a position where I can hone my skill as a scissors sharpener." or something similar. The employer is interested in hiring you for what you can do for them, not for fulfilling your private goals and agenda.

This is how you write your objective.

First of all, decide on a specific job title for your objective. Go back to your list of answers to the question "How can I demonstrate that I am the perfect candidate?" What are the two or three qualities, abilities or achievements that would make a candidate stand out as truly exceptional for that specific job?

The person in the above example recognized that the prospective employer, being a wireless integration company, would be very interested in candidates with an ability to generate new accounts. So they made that the very first point they got across in their resume.

The objective needs to stick to the point. Avoid phrases that are obvious or do not mean anything, such as: "the ability to enhance potential and utilize experience in new challenges." An objective may be broad and still somewhat undefined in some cases, such as: "a mid-level management position in the wireless or networking industry."

Remember, your resume will only get a few seconds attention, at best! You have to generate interest right away, in the first sentence they lay their eyes on. Having an objective statement that really sizzles is highly effective. And it's simple to do. One format is:

OBJECTIVE: An AAA position in an organization where BBB and CCC would be needed AAA is the name of the position you are applying for. BBB and CCC are the most compelling qualities, abilities or achievements that will really make you stand out above the crowd of applicants. Your previous research to find out what is most important to the employer will provide the information to fill in BBB and CCC.

The "Summary" consists of concise statements that focus the reader's attention on the most important qualities, achievements and abilities you have to offer. Those qualities should be the most compelling demonstrations of why they should hire you instead of the other candidates. It gives you a brief opportunity to cover a few of your best qualities. It may be your only chance to attract and hold their attention, to get across what is most important, and to entice the employer to keep reading.

The "Summary" is the one place to include professional characteristics (extremely energetic, a gift for solving complex problems in a fast-paced environment, a natural salesman, exceptional interpersonal skills, etc.) which may be helpful in winning the interview. Gear every word in the Summary to your targeted goal.

How to write a "Summary"? Go back to your lists that answer this question. What would make someone the ideal candidate? Look for the qualities the employer will care about most. Then look at what you wrote about why you are the perfect person to fill their need. Pick the stuff that best demonstrates why they should hire you. Put this together in your "Summary" section.

The most common ingredients of a well-written "Summary" are as follows.

o A short phrase describing your profession
o Followed by a statement of broad or specialized expertise
o Followed by two or three additional statements related to any of the following:
+ breadth or depth of skills
+ unique mix of skills
+ range of environments in which you have experience
+ a special or well-documented accomplishment
+ a history of awards, promotions, or superior performance commendations
o One or more professional or appropriate personal characteristics

The last section of your resume is your skills and accomplishments. You are still writing to sell yourself to the reader, not to inform them. Basically, you do exactly what you did in the previous section, except that you go into more detail.

In the summary, you focused on your most special highlights. Now you tell the rest of the best of your story. Let them know what results you produced, what happened as a result of your efforts, what you are especially gifted or experienced at doing. Flesh out the most important highlights in your summary.

You are still writing to do what every good advertisement does, communicating the following: if you buy this product, you will get these direct benefits. If it doesn't contribute to furthering this communication, don't bother to say it. Remember, not too much detail. Preserve a bit of mystery. Don't tell them everything.

Here is a good way to structure your “Skills and Accomplishments”

1. A listing of skills or accomplishments or a combination of both, with bullets

Example:

SELECTED SKILLS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

o Created dozens of teaming agreements with the industries major suppliers.
o Conducted legal research the Federal and State Government markets
o Coordinated creation of Government Sales Board among members of the wireless networking community.

2. A listing of major skill headings with accomplishments under each. The accomplishments can be a bulleted list or in paragraph form. The material under the headings should include mention of accomplishments which prove each skill.

Example:

SELECTED ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Program Design: Meeting Government needs

As part of the Wireless Training Board developed the program to merge suppliers, integrators and government purchasing authorities into a unified strategic force. Contracts awarded to integrators in our group increased 280% in 2006.

3. A list of bulleted accomplishments or skill paragraphs under each job (in a chronological resume).

Example:

Director of Federal Sales and Marketing

XYZ Wireless of Georgia

o Promoted from Sales Representative within one year of joining company to Director of Sales and Marketing. Responsible for all sales in the Federal, State and Local government markets.

o Recruited, trained and managed sales staff. Developed marketing strategy, prepared sales projections and established quotas. Selected and contracted with overseas sub-agents to achieve international market penetration.

o Negotiated and finalized long-term contractual agreements with suppliers on behalf of clients. Oversaw all aspects of transactions, federal guidelines, set aside quotas, federal compliance issues.

o Planned and administered sales and marketing budget, and maintained sole profit/loss responsibility. Within first year, doubled company's revenues, and produced $17 million in annual sales during the next three years.



In later sections of this series we will cover the evidence section of the resume as well as guidelines for quality presentations, determining if a particular job is best for you and other issues.

Good luck and good job hunting.