21 Effective Resume Writing Tips

Your resume is the single most important feature of your job search. Whether you are a college graduate starting out with an entry level position, or a seasoned executive making a midlife career change, your resume is what will broadcast your career experience, skill set, and personality before you get a chance to make a personal impression.

Before you send in a resume, whether you submit it electronically or send it on resume paper the old-fashioned way, it’s worth reviewing these tips to make sure your resume is in prime condition before sending it off.

1 one-page resume

Limit your resume to one page unless you have an extraordinary career that is all pertinent to your job search. Eliminate old information or anything that isn’t relevant to the kind of job you are looking for.

2 Tell the truth

Remember, you do not have to say everything you’ve done, but everything you say has to be true. Stretching or bending the truth won’t do you any good if the hiring manager decides to do a little research and finds out that you lied.

3 Choose a proper layout

Choose your resume layout based on the kind and amount of experience that you have. Pick a style that will emphasize key skills and accomplishments that are most likely to impress someone with a big stack of resumes to page through.

4 Tailor the CV to the job and career level

Resumes are not one-size-fits-all. Tailor your resume to the job and career level you are looking at, and know what key messages you want your resume to convey so you can make sure those messages are properly emphasized.

5 Use a consistent, professional writing style

Maintain the stylistic conventions that are standard in resume writing. Do not use “I”, and feel free to use fragmented sentences as long as they are clear and consistent.

6 Focus on active verbs

Focus on active verbs that play up your accomplishments in the most vivid way possible. If, in your job as a sales clerk for a mall jewelry store, you increased sales of diamonds by 100%, begin your description with, “Doubled diamond ring sales…” Use the present tense for any job that is ongoing.

7 Quantify your accomplishments

Don’t just say “increased productivity,” say, “increased productivity by 45%.” Don’t just say “organized a conference,” say, “facilitated a training conference attended by 350 employees.”

8 Describe less-known companies

If you have valuable job experiences at a company or organization that hiring managers have likely never heard of, include a description of the company if the function or role is not apparent from the name.

9 Specify your role and achievements

Don’t just mention what tasks or accomplishments you were involved in, specify what your role and specific achievements were. Emphasize your level of responsibility and the outcome that you were directly responsible for creating.

10 Be concise

Technospeak and office jargon that makes your job seem bigger or more important than it really is doesn’t impress anyone. In other words, write “managed filing system,” not “facilitated and implemented coordinated document storage system.”

11. Check for errors!

This should go without saying, but there should not be any typing, spelling, or grammar errors in your resume.

12 Spell out abbreviations

Spell out and define any abbreviations, especially ones that may not be familiar with someone from outside your immediate field or industry. On the other hand, using specific terminology can sometimes show your proficiency. For example, if you are a graphic designer, specify the exact suite of software that you use.

13 Consistent layout and typography

Make sure the layout and typography is consistent across your resume. If you highlight one company name in bold, do the same for all of them. Use a uniform format for all your entries and borrow your layout style from a well-known resume source.

14 Have someone else proofread the result

Don’t rely on spell check; proofread and have someone else proofread to make sure you catch any subtle mistakes.

15 Don’t squeeze

Don’t try to squeeze a lot of information on one page by using a tiny font. Use a clear, readable page, and gain extra space by using a concise format and narrowing the margins a little.

16 Write a cover letter

Cover letters are standard accompaniments to a resume, but if you are applying by email, it may be sufficient to have a cover letter in the body of your email and attach the resume as a standard Microsoft Word document.

17 Printed instead of email? Use quality paper

If you do print your resume on paper, use resume-quality paper (which is thicker and has more cotton content than standard paper) and use the same kind of paper for your cover letter and envelope as well.

18 Don’t just give a recap of your past duties

Some resume guides suggest using the job description as a guide for keywords for your resume, but that can lead to canned, generic looking descriptions. Don’t just give a recap of your past duties—vividly describe your accomplishments in quantifiable ways for a resume that gets noticed.

19 Prove your value as an employee

Everyone knows that your resume has to prove your value as an employee, but it can be hard to figure out how to do that. By thinking of the problems you faced in your job, the actions you took to solve it, and the results you achieved, you will be able to put your value into clear words and numbers.

20 Paragraphs or bullet points?

Should you use paragraphs or bullet points? It can depend on your job, but usually the best solution is a combination—provide a sentence or two of your job description, followed by a bullet point list of accomplishments.

21 Avoid stale expressions

Use vivid and interesting words to describe your previous job experience—avoid stale expressions and empty descriptions.

About the author: Guest post by Whiteflash.com.

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