Today’s modern resume remains a vital tool in the hiring process. Recruiters and employers often rely heavily on a job seeker’s resume to qualify the best candidates for the interview process. So, if you’re not getting calls for interviews, your resume may be the issue.
To start, take a hard look at your resume and ask yourself the following 6 questions:
- Is my resume professionally written?
If not, consider employing a modern resume strategy (in both look and content) that best positions you as the top candidate of choice. Templates or boring, basic Word files will struggle to compete next to design files and resume’s written by a trained professional. Take a look at some of my award-winning resumes on my website for examples of professional, graphic formats.
- Am I listening to the advice of friends and/or colleagues, or applying strategies from a reputable source?
Everyone has an opinion about resumes, and not all opinions are beneficial or correct. Avoid being led astray with your resume by only applying strategies from people who have first-hand experience with recruitment, hiring, or resume writing. Qualify all advice carefully and remember that there is no one perfect way to write a resume – you are unique and therefore your resume will be too.
- Am I “watering down” my value by adding in absolutely everything about my career history?
When it comes to your skills and experience, not everything is weighted equally in a resume. This means avoiding long laundry lists of job descriptions and focusing too heavily on non-related experiences. Be strategic and select content for your resume that best addresses the needs of the targeted job. Less can be more.
- Have I shared my strongest, most related accomplishments — and quantified them with numbers, percentages, and dollars whenever possible?
Specific results can often speak louder than words. Saying you are good at something and backing statements up with actual examples are two different things. In a resume, results matter – a lot! To increase value, measure achievements by sharing quantifiable figures as much as possible (i.e: percentage of revenue growth, sales in dollars, number of delivery deadlines achieved, team sizes, total project finalized). Replace duties with accomplishments.
- Am I customizing content for each application?
Mass applications with generic resumes yield low results. Improve your success rate by taking the time to customize your resume for every role. Yes, every job you apply for. By including the right keywords and carefully selected career details you can drastically increase the chances of your resume being read.
- Am I using the resume to apply for different positions than it was originally intended?
Similar to point #5, you need to ensure each application includes relevant and meaningful content. If you are using the resume you developed for a teaching position to apply for an administrative role, it won’t work. Content must address the needs of each unique role (and reader), always.
Start by applying these 5 strategies to help boost your resume’s performance. If you wrote the resume yourself, consider having it reviewed by a professional resume writer who can give you objective advice about whether it meets today’s standards or includes any barriers that could prevent you from securing the highly-coveted interview.
- Skye 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.
