A stand-out resume can make all the difference in today’s tough job market. A great resume shows off your skills, experience, and accomplishments in a clear, straightforward way relevant to your desired job. Here are the steps you need to take to make a resume that gets you closer to your dream job and makes managers want to hire you.
Start With a Strong Header
Include your full name, how to reach you, and a link to your portfolio or LinkedIn page. Clean up and act like a boss. Don’t include personal pictures or social media pages that have nothing to do with the business.
Craft a Tailored Summary
Your elevator pitch is the outline of your resume. In two to three lines, talk about your experience, skills, and professional goals related to the job. Pay attention to what makes you a good candidate for the job.
Highlight Your Skills
Make a part of your skills that fits with the work description. Mix hard and soft skills to show that you can do many things. As an example:
- Hard Skills: looking at data, managing projects, computer languages, and CRM tools.
- Soft Skills: being able to communicate, solve problems, be flexible, and lead others.
Detail Your Work Experience
List your past jobs in reverse chronological order. To fill each spot:
- Begin with your job title, company name, and the times you worked there.
- Use three to five bullet points for each job, focusing on accomplishments instead of duties.
- Action verbs like “led,” “designed,” “implemented,” and “optimized” should be used.
- Whenever you can, put numbers on what you’ve done.
Implemented targeted SEO tactics, resulting in a 40% increase in page traffic. Managed a $50,000 budget for social media initiatives, achieving a 20% return on investment (ROI).
Showcase your education
Put your most recent degree at the top. Write down the school’s name, the degree earned, and the completion date. Add any related certifications or coursework to this area to make it better.
Add Relevant Extras
You should list things like language skills, certifications, and charity work if they are relevant to the job you’re looking for. You should include links to your portfolio or examples of your work for creative jobs.
Format for Readability
- Use a fancy style, like Times New Roman or Arial.
- Keep the font size between 10 and 12 for body writing, and make it a bit bigger for headers.
- Make sure it’s easy to read using clear headings, bullet points, and white space.
Customize for Each Job
Change your resume for every job you apply for. To get past applicant tracking systems (ATS), read the job description and include relevant terms in your resume. Also, make sure that human judges find your resume interesting.
Conclusion
A good resume is more than just a list of jobs you’ve held; it’s also your marketing piece. Focussing on accomplishments, making it fit the job, and ensuring the information is easy to understand can help you create a resume that stands out and leads to new possibilities.