To create a resume that resonates with employers one must understand and leverage their personal brand.
A personal brand is all about who you are and what you want to be known for.
A strong resume is your personal sales tool, which positions your authentic offerings and unique value in a way that compels employers to invest in you. A lack of branding in a resume is therefore a lack of strategic focus – and could end up selling you short.
Many people feel overwhelmed by the task of narrowing down everything they have to offer into a distilled statement. Yet branding isn’t about one-liners or snappy statements. It’s simply about you and the value you have to offer prospective employers.
Some easy steps to help you with brand exploration and identification:
- Seek insights from trusted friends, family, and coworkers.
- How would they describe you?
- What words are used most often when referencing your work style?
- What would they say you are best known for? Ask them to narrow this list to just competencies or abilities.
- Explore the emotional aspect of your work and work ethic:
- What personality traits do you think people love about you?
- How do you normally make people feel when you are doing your best work?
- In what ways do others benefit by working with you?
- Write a list of your top skills. Unsure what these are? Ask yourself:
- What have I done and done well in my work?
- What skills did I use to create successful outcomes?
- When did I go above and beyond a job description? Why?
- Ponder the business impacts you are known for:
- What special problems have I solved for my companies? How did I do it? What skills did I use?
- Have I made suggestions that improved workflow or processes?
- Did I find ways to make my job more productive?
- Have I ever been asked to be part of a special project or take the lead on a task?
- Did I create or assume new responsibilities?
- What special recognitions or awards have I received?
- What compliments have I received from managers, clients, or co-workers?
- Have I saved my company time or money? Made my company money?
- Finally, ask yourself: “What makes me stand out from everyone else”?
- Write out your answer in a short paragraph.
- Revisit the paragraph and add in the proof (specific results that demonstrate success).
- Specify the skills you utilized to achieve great things.
Now when you go to create your resume you can draw from these answers, and your newly formed paragraph, to identify a theme…understand your top skills…and position your notable career achievements. All of these items make you who you are – this is your personal brand! Own it and share it in your resume to increase job search success.
- Skye Berry-Burke is an award-winning, multi-certified resume writer who helps bring job seeker’s careers to new heights! Want to win the interview with a resume that gets you noticed? Reach out to Skye online at Skye Is The Limit Resume and Career Solutions to learn how.
