Your resume can make all the difference in a tough job market.  We’ll find out what you need to build the perfect resume so you land that job.

If you haven’t done a new resume for a while, some things have changed.  Since most resumes are sent electronically, you don’t have to buy the fancy paper.  It’s a good idea to have a few copies to bring to interviews but plain printer paper will do.

Keywords are important.  Some companies have a program that will scan through them.  Use the words that are in the job post in your resume so those keywords get a hit.

A cover letter is still important if the interview will be the first time you are meeting the interviewer.  Include your skills, why you are applying and why you want to work for that company.  Again, using keywords are important.

Some things you want to leave off your resume:  any job you worked for less than six months unless it’s covering a gap in employment.  Don’t use action words like, “achieved” or “adapted.”  Don’t do a “cutesy” resume, just a standard one.  Don’t use an unprofessional e-mail address like sexykittyforyou@hotmail.com.  Get a g-mail address using your name or initials.  You can leave hobbies and interests off entirely unless you’ve just graduated and need something on your resume.

These are some things you should include in your resume:  Use a standard font like New Times Roman or Arial and a font size between 10-12 point.  If you have more than five years experience, you can spill over to a second page, if it’s less than five years, it should be a single page.

The bullet points under each job should number ten or fewer with the greatest amount under the most recent job and tiered down from there.  Jobs that you held while going to school should be included even if they aren’t related to your field.  It shows that you were ambitious and any job will develop certain skills, like dealing with customers or learning new software.

If you’ve never done a resume or yours’ is out of date, there are lots of resources available to help you and I’ll include them in the show notes.  There are even services that will create a resume for you so if you aren’t comfortable with Word, that is an option but they do charge a fee.

Now that we’ve helped you create a killer resume, what next?  Build a good Linkedin profile.  This is the first place a lot of recruiters and companies go when looking to hire.  Get in touch with a recruiter to let them know you’re looking and the same with your network.  Get the word out to as many people as possible.

The most important thing to remember is to make certain that there are no grammar or spelling errors on your resume.  Not proofreading is sloppy and will turn any potential employer off.

Getting a resume together isn’t hard but it does take some finesse to get it right.   Use our tips and Mark’s website to get the job you really want.

Show Notes

Career Alley:  Mark’s site featuring job search lessons.

Resume Templates:  Pages of resume templates for every type of job.

Betterment:  Get started investing the easy way.  Use this link to get 6 months free!

Featured Image Photo Credit: “Pen and Paper” by Guudmorning! on Flickr

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