Resume writing tactics: the nitty-gritty steps

Career

Here’s a follow-up to my earlier post on . Now that you know what to do, how do you actually get there? I’ll share my process, which some might find useful and others aggravating. I find it a practical approach. (Note that this process is for applying to US jobs…jobs in foreign countries tend to have requirements not covered here.)

Step 1: Read and re-read the job description. I look particularly in the job description for keywords on qualities they’re looking for, like comfort working in an environment of uncertainty and change, self-directed approach to working, etc. and highlight them with a marker. If the job requires technical or foreign language skills, I highlight those.

I find I tend to address most of the information under “job requirements”, like education and work experience in my cover letter, but sometimes there are specific skills they’re looking for under this section, too. I’ll usually also take the time to research the company I’m applying to and the industry (if I’m not familiar with it already) to see what sorts of people or skills they look for. But mainly, I focus on what’s written for the job itself.

Step 2: Review your work history. This takes a while to do, so set aside some time, a mug of coffee, and find a bright and quiet place. The good thing about it is that it’s the most time-consuming the first time you do it and easier with each subsequent iteration. Believe it or not, it can also be a somewhat therapeutic and fulfilling exercise as you take a jaunt down memory lane (assuming not all of your work experience has been miserable).

I loosely keep in mind the qualities and skills stated in the job I want. But in this step, I mostly focus on recalling what I did in each previous job, writing down a general description of the major projects or responsibilities I had. Then I draw lines from each one and describe using action verbs all the possible skills that I used on the project (you could also do this in a separate column).

You probably didn’t do just one thing on each project, so your experience can be written several ways depending on what you want to emphasize. For example, you could have led a team (leadership), worked closely with a cross-functional team (teamwork, cross-functionality), or convinced your team to do something (persuasion). And yes, I go through each previous work experience and subject each project I had to the same sort of scrutiny.

As annoying as it may sound to do, I find this process has produced lots of benefits: it helps you write your resume, yes, but it’s also good preparation for the interview. You’ll be able to respond to all those “Give me an example where you…” questions with specific examples that might not have appeared in your resume, or give additional details about one that did.

Moreover, by forcing myself on the rare occasion to actually sit down for a while and look at what I’ve done so far, I’ve learned about what sorts of jobs I enjoy and which ones I don’t, as well as where I want to go in the future. My previous work experience has largely been with technology companies, in technical roles, but the first time I did this exercise, I realized I really enjoyed my job in customer service more than when I was just a straight programmer. This made me seek out positions that had a customer-oriented focus, which I realized I found much more rewarding. Being able to see where I was and where I want to head also helps me identify skills I need to build as well as plan out a career trajectory instead of just hopping from position to position with little direction. Remember, taking the time to be honest with yourself while working on this process pays dividends in more ways than one.

Step 3: From the list you’ve made, circle the examples that you want to include in your resume. You want to showcase an example of each skill required by the job, and multiple instances where you used it if possible. Keep all the work you did (it’ll come in handy in the future when you do this again), but choose the ones that will be best suited for this particular job. Remember, you only have one page, and the idea is not to cram as many words into each bullet point as possible. Be choosy and specific, and showcase the other required skills in a bullet point for a different previous job.

Step 4: Start laying out your resume Remembering the keywords from Step 1 above, I start matching the bullet points I’ve selected and using the keywords and their synonyms where appropriate. My work experience is laid out in reverse order, with dates on the left, name of company and job in the center, and location on the right. And as a young professional, my educational history still appears at the top of my resume, in reverse order, starting with the MBA. Finally, toward the bottom, I have an “Additional” section where any foreign language or technical skills required in the job that I have are mentioned (Perl, SPSS, Unix, etc.).

Step 5: Refine your wording Here’s where I go back and do the CAR method (stands for Context, Action, Results, see my previous post on resumes for details) on each bullet point. Honestly, this step takes me a long time to do because I’m picky about wording. (Just imagine how long it takes me to write on this site.)

Some other “mistakes” to look for:

  1. Use bullet points, not paragraphs
  2. Use action verbs. Here’s a nice list to choose from. None of this “responsible for…” or “I was…” nonsense
  3. Verbs should be consistently written in past tense throughout the page
  4. Articles (a, an, the) should be excised from the resume, except perhaps when “a” is used to quantify a number, as in “a 20% increase in…”
  5. No pronouns

These changes give your resume more impact, and saves on valuable real estate. In school, we were told that degrees should be spelled out, as well as majors or minors. I also include any graduation distinctions and scholarships. Personally, I leave all GPA information out. If they’re really that interested, they can ask me later. (If you apply to a consulting or i-banking position, be prepared to give all your GPA and standardized test information back to SATs though!)

As usual, if anyone has anything to contribute or comment, fire away below!

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2 Feedbacks on "Resume writing tactics: the nitty-gritty steps"

Sristy

A resume furnishes details for presenting yourself for a prospective job. It is a summary of your skills, accomplishments, experiences and education. There is no standard format for preparing your resume. It should be designed in such a way to impress your prospective employer and to ensure the call for an interview. Apart from the basic categories, you can add on details to make it more impressive. Always make a rough resume with all the details before you finalise on the fair one

.We can go through the basic categories, to help you to make a resume.

Name,Address and Telephone: One has to give his/her permanent address with phone number if any. If you have an e-mail address, include that too, if not open one, to make yourself present as tech savvy.

Objective: It should be brief and to the point. It must give the employer an idea about your work preferences and where you want to be in your career, in future.

For example:
Seeking a challenging position with opportunities for career advancement and learning. To have a long career in the (particular field), gain further skills and attain the goal of the organisation aiming at mutual growth.

Profile: This category is optional but valuable. Here one should give an overall picture of his/her abilities and accomplishments. You must stress on your particular strengths.

For example:
Good knowledge on Aviation Security, Airline Transactions, Operations, bases etc.

Educational Qualification: Here one has to include your degree, specialisation, institutions attended, year of graduation, subsidiary subjects studied, and any special workshops, seminars, related courses or projects done. You can give your qualifications separately as academic and professional or technical if any.

Career Graph or Work Experience: One must give details regarding the place you have worked, the position you held, your responsibilities and achievements if any, duration of work etc. List the name of the organisation, give a brief description if you prefer and the place it’s located. Then give your work responsibilities with an emphasis on achievements- (work projects done, targets achieved etc.) and the dates or period you have served in the organisation.

Personal Profile: Your personal details like date of birth, permanent address and contact number, e-mail, passport details if any, hobbies, languages known etc.

References: References should be given with prior consent from the relevant people. This must include their name, address and phone number. It is not essential to give references in a resume. You can state that references can be furnished if needed.

WANT MORE INFORMATION. THEN FORWARD YOUR RESUME TO sristys_resume@hotmail.com WE WILL GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU



kumar

good matter, useful