Tips and Advice on How to Write Your Resume Today

When every other resume lists the same responsibilities as yours, it’s hard to stand out. Focus on describing your achievements instead.

Hiring managers don’t care about your internship from 8 years ago; they want to know how you can help them reach their goals. Ensure your work experience is impactful by tailoring it to the job ad and using powerful words.

1. Focus on your strengths

It’s essential to know your strengths to sell them in your resume. An excellent place to start is your professional summary, which should be three to five sentences that highlight your most significant accomplishments and most relevant skills. Be sure to use powerful words and quantifiers to make it more compelling.

You should also include measurable achievements in your work experience section, like sales increases or project completion times. Lastly, don’t be afraid to include any awards or accolades you’ve received in your education section. These can be a great way to show your strong academic record. You can also check lots of resume template examples on the internet or consult with professionals. 

2. Make it easy to read

If your resume has a lot of white space, consider adding an extra section for volunteer work, academic achievements, or other outside-the-box experiences. However, these sections must be relevant to the job you’re applying for.

Regardless of your chosen format, ensure your work experience section is concise and impactful. Don’t repeat your responsibilities; use action words like “designed,” “improved,” and “achieved” to make your experiences stand out.

Also, ensure your professional summary is packed with relevant keywords to help you get past automated pre-screenings by applicant tracking systems. You can also include a link to your website or social media (if relevant to your profession). Use PDF instead of Word because it has less chance of messing up the formatting.

3. Be consistent

It’s important to be consistent throughout your resume, from the writing style to the details included. This helps ensure your resume is coherent and professional. It also makes it easier for hiring managers to understand what you can bring to the role.

Use action verbs rather than buzzwords to grab attention and add a sense of urgency. This will help you stand out from your competition and show you’re ready to do the job.

The Education Summary section should only include your degrees and relevant academic accomplishments. You should also be careful when choosing keywords to ensure your resume is optimized for ATS systems. The best way to do this is by rereading the job description and selecting the most relevant keywords.

4. Be honest

If you’re a career changer or new to the job market, knowing how much information to include about your professional experiences can be challenging. If you’re unsure, asking for advice from family or friends can be helpful.

It’s essential, to be honest about your work experience on your resume. Avoid trite, lackluster descriptions of your previous roles and instead focus on describing your accomplishments. Using words like “achieved,” “designed,” “improved,” and “established” can help.

Likewise, it’s essential to tailor your resume to each position you apply for. Hiring managers can tell if you’ve sent them the same resume for every application. Typos and grammatical errors will also send your resume to the trash bin. Edit your resume thoroughly and ask someone else to review it.