If you've sent out a lot of resumes but aren't landing interviews, your resume may need a tweak. Your resume makes a first impression before you've even had a chance to attend an interview or answer any questions. Check out these seven signs of a successful resume to make sure that yours checks off all the boxes.
1. Focus on Achievements
Your resume is the perfect place to highlight your achievements, so don't be modest. Be quantitative and specific about your accomplishments. Rather than mentioning responsibilities, such as selling to clients, demonstrate that you excelled at these duties by detailing how you increased sales in your department by 25 percent.
2. Use Active Voice
Talk about your roles, responsibilities and achievements using strong, active language to capture the hiring manager's attention. Instead of saying "I was part of a team that reorganized office procedures," write, "I revamped the office's sales process."
3. Mention Your Education
In addition to listing your work experience, make sure to include the basic details of your educational experience, including high school and college. Name the institution, the course you finished and the year you completed the course.
4. Make Contact Easy
Whether the hiring manager wants to contact you to schedule an interview or offer you the position, he doesn't want to spend a lot of time trying to track down your whereabouts. Be sure to clearly list your contact information on your resume, and always ensure that it is up to date. Include your address, telephone number and email address.
5. Tailor It to the Job
Don't write a one-size-fits-all resume that you use over and over for every opening for which you apply. Instead, tailor your resume to suit each specific job. Read over the job ad, and focus on your experience, achievements and skills that relate to the job. Use keywords from the job posting to draw attention to your qualifications.
6. Include Volunteer Work
If you've done any kind of volunteer work in your community, add it to your resume. Whether it's intermittent projects or an ongoing assignment, volunteer work demonstrates your character and makes a positive first impression on the hiring manager. You don't have to go overboard when mentioning the work; one or two bullet points can suffice.
7. Pay Attention to Detail
When your resume is complete, proofread it several times. Make sure that every word is spelled correctly and all punctuation is in place. Submitting a resume with errors shows that you lack attention to detail and professionalism.
Check out these seven signs of a successful resume, and make sure that your resume meets all the requirements. Ensuring that your resume contains all these important elements may make the difference between landing in the reject pile or getting that interview.
Photo courtesy of fantasista at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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