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Resume Writing
Use Your Résumé as a Career Status Report
By David Jensen, CPRW, CARW, CEIP
Ascension Writing Services
www.ascensionwriting.com
At some point in your career, you might find yourself needing to update your resume. Whether you’re motivated by a new opportunity or an economical downturn, the notion of reworking your résumé can produce anxiety. During a time when billions of résumés are circulating over the internet or stacking up on a hiring manager’s desk, you need to change your thinking about the role of your résumé in your job search. Your résumé must focus on a specific position in a specific industry. If you don’t know this information, no hiring manager is going to figure it out for you.
Hiring managers are busy. When they need to fill a position, they want to find the most qualified candidate that will give them the best return on their investment. If you are that person, you need to prove it quickly and clearly on your résumé. Show, don’t tell. One of the best ways to show your worth as a candidate is to demonstrate your abilities with qualifications and accomplishments that are measurable. In other words, make sure your job descriptions and accomplishment statements include concrete numbers and percentages. For example, you might have participated in an effort that reduced operating costs or increased sales revenue. When commenting about this endeavor on your résumé, cite the actual percentage of operating cost reduction or the dollar amount of revenue increase.
Presenting this information on your résumé can significantly improve your chances of capturing a hiring manager’s attention. However, carrying the specifics about each accomplishment in your head for several years until you need the information is impractical. Update your résumé on a regular basis to keep track of your specific quantifiable accomplishments throughout your career. The more career highlights that you have written down the better your chances are of recalling information accurately.
Regularly updating your resume makes job transitions easier. By using your résumé as a career status report you will already have an accurate record of your accomplishments in the workplace. Every time you complete a significant project, complete a training course, or win an award, make a note of the accomplishment in your résumé.
Finally, regularly tracking your progress and accomplishments on your résumé can help you determine if your career is moving in the right direction. At times, you may get discouraged and feel stagnant in your career. Regularly tracking your accomplishments and milestones can reveal that you are moving forward even though you haven’t changed jobs or responsibilities. Keeping your resume up to date, showing when you’ve learned new skills, accepted new or additional assignments, or meeting organizational goals in effective, measurable way serves as a allows it to serve as an effective status report.
By David Jensen, CPRW, CARW, CEIP
Ascension Writing Services
www.ascensionwriting.com
At some point in your career, you might find yourself needing to update your resume. Whether you’re motivated by a new opportunity or an economical downturn, the notion of reworking your résumé can produce anxiety. During a time when billions of résumés are circulating over the internet or stacking up on a hiring manager’s desk, you need to change your thinking about the role of your résumé in your job search. Your résumé must focus on a specific position in a specific industry. If you don’t know this information, no hiring manager is going to figure it out for you.
Hiring managers are busy. When they need to fill a position, they want to find the most qualified candidate that will give them the best return on their investment. If you are that person, you need to prove it quickly and clearly on your résumé. Show, don’t tell. One of the best ways to show your worth as a candidate is to demonstrate your abilities with qualifications and accomplishments that are measurable. In other words, make sure your job descriptions and accomplishment statements include concrete numbers and percentages. For example, you might have participated in an effort that reduced operating costs or increased sales revenue. When commenting about this endeavor on your résumé, cite the actual percentage of operating cost reduction or the dollar amount of revenue increase.
Presenting this information on your résumé can significantly improve your chances of capturing a hiring manager’s attention. However, carrying the specifics about each accomplishment in your head for several years until you need the information is impractical. Update your résumé on a regular basis to keep track of your specific quantifiable accomplishments throughout your career. The more career highlights that you have written down the better your chances are of recalling information accurately.
Regularly updating your resume makes job transitions easier. By using your résumé as a career status report you will already have an accurate record of your accomplishments in the workplace. Every time you complete a significant project, complete a training course, or win an award, make a note of the accomplishment in your résumé.
Finally, regularly tracking your progress and accomplishments on your résumé can help you determine if your career is moving in the right direction. At times, you may get discouraged and feel stagnant in your career. Regularly tracking your accomplishments and milestones can reveal that you are moving forward even though you haven’t changed jobs or responsibilities. Keeping your resume up to date, showing when you’ve learned new skills, accepted new or additional assignments, or meeting organizational goals in effective, measurable way serves as a allows it to serve as an effective status report.
d_jensen |
Latest page update: made by d_jensen
, Jan 14 2009, 1:17 PM EST
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| Started By | Thread Subject | Replies | Last Post | ||
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| d_jensen | Boost your resume's effectiveness through volunteer work | 0 | Jan 14 2009, 1:15 PM EST by d_jensen | ||
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Thread started: Jan 14 2009, 1:15 PM EST
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It's no secret that companies are cutting jobs to weather the current economical strain. If you are among the roughly 270 million people who have been let go from your job, your employment status has obviously changed to "in between jobs." There is no shame in getting laid off, but it does create a gap in employment on your resume. During this time you probably dedicate most of your time searching for another job opportunity; however, you can do more than just broadcast your resume to online job sites and sit by the phone. Now is a good time to bolster your skills and marketability. One of the best ways to do this is get out and volunteer.
Non-profit organizations are feeling a much tighter squeeze in this economy because of most of their income comes from private donors and the federal government. In order to continue serving their constituency, these organizations need to continue functioning on less money. They rely heavily on volunteers to keep their programs running. Volunteer work merits its own section on your resume and gives a favorable impression of your work ethic. Not only that, it gives you an opportunity to develop new skills and meet new people. Volunteer service gives you some valuable information to plug into those employment gaps on your resume and it's worthwhile. |
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