Focus on What You Want

If you are planning your career change or just need to update your resume here are “ Ten Principles” for Powerful Resumes from Marcia Bench’s book, Career Coaching .

1. Remember that a resume is a marketing tool, not a complete chronology of a lifetime of work. Content should be selectively chosen using the “self as product” mind-set.
   
   
2. Realize the primary purpose of a resume: to get the interview, not a job - at least not directly. Remember that the job search is a two-part process. The first part is marketing oneself sufficiently on paper for (or networking) to get the interview. The second part is selling oneself in person at the interview to ultimately get the job.
   
   
3. Lead with your best tangible skills. Many job seekers make the mistake of putting their “soft” skills in the first third of their resume. This is usually not what screeners are most interested in.
   
   
4. Customize the resume for each job opening applied for.
   
   
5. Use a chronological resume (especially with recruiters) unless:
   You are changing fields
   • Your work history is very long and has gaps in it
   • A wide range of skills needs to be more effectively showcased
   • Diverse accomplishment from a long career at one company needs to be emphasized
   • A record of frequent job changes needs to be de-emphasized
   • Your lack work experience, as with new a worker moving into the workplace, needs to be de-emphasized.
     
     
6. Begin the resume with “Summary of Qualifications” instead of “Job Objectives.”

6. Continue with applicable sections of the resume, depending on your background.
   
   
7. Follow design protocol. Use standard-size paper, white or cream in color. As well as standard fonts such as Times Roman, Arial, or Helvetica, print in black ink. This will help convey a professional impression.
   
   
8. Consolidate your background into no more than two pages.
   
   
9. Avoid any unnecessary information, but include all that is required. Be sure that your name and phone number appear on all pages of the resume and on the reference sheet (in case the pages get separated), and double check to be sure that all information is complete.

A good resume, like any good marketing tool, entices the reader to want to know more. Don’t be afraid to accurately demonstrate your strengths and talents.

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