Everyone knows that our economy is in shambles. Jobs are scarce and everyone is worried about money. As a college student, it can be even scarier because not only do you face the same challenges as everyone else, but you also have to deal with not having any real-world experience at all, which can really be a huge pain in the ass when you’re at it. try to find out how to write a resume.
After years of studying the hiring process and learning how to be successful at interviews and consistently land jobs, I discovered that the first step to getting hired ultimately comes down to being able to GET THE INTERVIEW IN THE FIRST PLACE. And this can be done by learning how to write a resume.
But not just any resume… A resume that will AUTOMATICALLY attract employers and hiring managers and literally compel them to want to interview you.
So what can you do to start learning how to write a resume?
Here are my 5 “hidden secrets” on how to write a resume:
1) Learn how hiring managers think: how will you persuade employers to interview you? How can you make yourself look good enough on paper that hiring managers are convinced you’re worthy enough to bring in for a job interview? That is probably the most challenging task there is when it comes to creating a resume. Take Sun Tzu’s advice from The Art of War: “If you know the enemy and you know yourself, you need not fear the outcome of a hundred battles.” Study psychology of recruitment. Study the hiring process. Find out what employers are REALLY looking for.
2) Write with their needs in mind: If you give employers what they want, they will listen. What does every employer want on your resume? That’s hard to say, because every employer has a different job that needs to be covered. It’s your job to figure out what they want and fill those needs on your resume. Hiring managers usually ask themselves a few questions when choosing a resume to read. Are here:
1. “Who cares?”
2. “So what?”
3. “What’s in it for me?”
When you think about it, hiring managers are reviewing your resume for their reasons, not yours. They don’t care what you want. They care about what they want. All employers, all hiring managers, are the same. Can you provide the answers? If you can’t, your employers… well, you won’t have any employers. Consider this step as part of your research phase on how to write a resume. It’s an essential step in how to write a resume that will draw the eyes of your future employer to the page.
That’s what you want, isn’t it?
3) Select the Format That Gets RESULTS – My clients ask me a lot, “How should I format my resume?” And you know what I tell them? Use whatever format will do the job and get you the interview. Period.
Now it turns out that there have been some formats that have been statistically shown to generate the best results and some formats that have been shown to generate the worst results. Based on my research, I would recommend using the achievement-based resume format and I would NEVER EVER use the skills-based (or functional) resume format.
4) Learn to “put words” to your accomplishments: This is where most of us “non-writers” get stuck in the resume writing process. “How do I make my responsibilities sound really good?” The answer: Learn how to write a hypnotic text resume. Learn to generate desire. Emotion. Learn to let your words paint a picture and tell the story of your past successes. Wind them up with benefits and curiosity. And give them reasons or logic why they should interview you. Think about the hiring manager’s emotional concerns and speak to him in a way that he can’t ignore. If he does, he will create a resume that is both persuasive and hypnotic. For example:
Before
“Wrote, performed data entry, answered phones, receptionist duties”
After
“I entered data for 16 regional hearing officers as a member of an eight-person office team. Assisted with email responses, distribution, reporting, and payroll entry. Helped clear the backlog of 1,000 outdated files “.
Are you beginning to see why it’s important to learn how to MARKET YOURSELF to employers?
5) Learn Resume Design Principles – Did you know that studies of resume screeners have shown that “nice” resumes are more likely to make it into the interview pile than an “average” looking resume? It’s true. This fact has been proven countless times. Having a resume design that is simple and professional is crucial if you want to be able to stand out from the masses. The key is to make your resume look attractive and easy to read. You need to ask yourself, “If I were forced to read thousands of resumes as part of my job, which ones would I naturally prefer over reading a single word?”
Use short paragraphs, bullet points, and wide margins. If you pick up a resume and it’s a solid block of text, would you want to read it? Probably not. It’s not attractive. It looks like work. Instead, make your resume attractive. The way you present your resume is a key factor in how to write a resume that can make people like you even before they read it.
As you can imagine, how you use those secrets is up to you. Review your resume, review the entire document, with these tips in mind. Look for places to rewrite, reformat, or otherwise grab and hold your reader’s attention. And as you absorb this information, you’ll see that a resume isn’t simply a piece of paper used to convey your work experience. It is actually a marketing tool used to PROMOTE YOU as someone worthy of a job interview.
See the difference?
So, in the comments below, let me know which of these 5 secrets interests you the most… If I get a lot of good feedback, I might post more detailed “How to Write a Resume” tips. Trust me, there’s a lot more funk where this came from!