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Resume 101: How To Make Your Resume Even Better Than It Is

Thinking about brushing up your resume? Read this first.

All accomplishment-based resumes should contain:

  1. Contact information
  2. Objective Statement
  3. Specific skills
  4. Measurable achievements and accomplishments
  5. Employment history
  6. Educational background

Communicating well-defined and transferrable accomplishments is where you have the chance to set yourself apart. Writing down your professional accomplishments becomes the answer to, ‘Tell me a few good things you’ve done that would make me want to hire you.’

Each of your professional accomplishments should consist of four parts:

  1. A description of the event
  2. What made it important
  3. What you did to make it happen
  4. The measurable results

Examples:
Created a volunteer group to organize a viable thrift store operation. Scheduled a team of volunteers to better organize donation intake, sorting, pricing, and staging of merchandise for resale. This initiative ensured consistent workflow among 15 trained volunteers and contributed $6,000.00 quarterly to support a variety of beneficial community projects.

Recommended process and updated procedures for quarterly review of a document control database. Discovered omissions and corrected serious duplication errors in original database, thru improving the accuracy and efficiency of the database. As a result, the company improved its customer service reporting capability by 100%.

Remember:
Avoid vague or windy statements such as “resulted in a large savings of time and money,” or “led to increased sales.” If you can claim that sales increased, you must estimate the amount of the increase and make sure it is reasonably accurate and could bear investigation. Sometimes there is simply no way to put a figure on your results. But you can still demonstrate the value of your work to the employer:

Example:
Served as the Treasurer for the local school’s Parent-Teacher Advisory Board. Established a formal accounting system for expenditure records and created a new process for tracking petty cash and receipts. This effort improved the integrity and efficiency of the bookkeeping function and led to 100% accuracy in reconciliation of funds.

Be sure to include as many specific action verbs, such as the ones listed below, in your statements. This will make your writing more descriptive and efficient.

Action verbs:

achieved                       analyzed                      built
conducted                     created                       designated
established                   finalized                     increased
motivated                     negotiated                 obtained
resolved                        tested                         trained
wrote

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Job Searching During the Holidays

It’s the holiday season, and that’s the wrong time to look for a new job, right? No one is at work, people are thinking of other things, and a job search just won’t be successful.

Nothing could be farther from the truth!

FACT: Because things tend to slow down during this period, decision makers that were previously unavailable may have time to meet with you. Additionally, the end of the year is when organizations part ways with employees who failed to perform, making room for new employees with more promise. In a word… You.

This season is filled with social activities such as company and customer appreciation parties. These gatherings provide the perfect opportunity to reconnect with people that you haven’t seen in a while, or to expand your contacts through networking with people who will likely have roles to fill early in the new year. Also, because other people have suspended their job search during the holidays, there isn’t as much competition.

Organized companies have completed their budgets for 2016, and are either hiring now or are making plans to hire early in the new year. Don’t lose momentum or focus. Now is the perfect time to charge ahead full steam!

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The 80-20% rule highlights how job seekers should be using job search time

Spend 80% of your job search time, energy and thought on networking. The other 20% can be spent on “traditional” job search methods like online job boards.
It is a fact that many of the best career opportunities are quietly filled through the intricate mechanisms of the grapevine.

It only makes sense to pursue every avenue, but the frustration that can arise from sending resumes, scouring job openings and trying to fit yourself into the “job description box” can slow down even the most optimistic job seeker. This is because trying to reach a decision maker when responding to general job postings is next to impossible.

Regardless of where you search for opportunities, you will ultimately gain a position only by coming face to face with the people who know about that position. The more people you network with, are referred to, and interview with, the better your chances. If you don’t go out and meet people face to face, your chances are greatly decreased.

When networking, it’s important to remember that everyone knows something that you do not know. Often, beginning networkers think that they are wasting their time by talking to people who may have nothing to offer them. After all, you want to get a new position, and perhaps you need to do so quickly! Veteran networkers know that every person you talk with is valuable to you or knows someone else who could be.

4 networking tips to remember:

  1. When networking, persistence pays. Many of us tend to believe a “no reply” indicates the person we are contacting has no interest in responding to us and we don’t feel comfortable continuing to follow up. Don’t forget – everyone gets busy. Don’t give up; try again, but be respectful of others’ time as well.
  2. If you are interested in talking with someone, there is a reason why. When you approach that person remember to pay a genuine compliment about something specific that person has done. It also goes a long way when you have your face to face meeting or phone conversation to efficiently bridge between your accomplishments and what you appreciate about the other person’s achievements.
  3. After you visit be sure to send a thank you note. Include some specifics that were discussed in your meeting. If appropriate, include that you will follow up to get referrals.
  4. Always include your email and phone number in all of your written communication.

NOTE TO CMI CLIENTS: Remember to stay positive and reach out to any of us at CMI when you need help!

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More than 1 in 10 working Americans are looking for new job opportunities

Most job seekers are using traditional means to find reemployment, so educated networking that leads to informational meetings is clearly essential to every successful job search.
Recent surveys show that 12.1% of full-time employed U.S. workers are currently exploring or actively seeking new employment opportunities. With that number of people looking for positions in the marketplace, your search efforts must be consistent and persistent.

Networking is the way for you to connect with recent co-workers, customers, bosses, those you’ve met at conferences or events and colleagues and friends who you may not have been in contact with since you left your last position, or even before you separated.

FACT: Decision makers are more likely to talk to people who have been recommended by someone they know and trust. The more you concentrate on building and using your network, the more opportunities you will be aware of and the more you can expand your network.

Networking should not be a one-way street. Keep these networking basics in mind:
1. You must have a good reason for talking to a person
2. Offer to assist others and return the favor whenever possible
3. Ask for advice but not for a job
4. Don’t pressure others to get involved in your job search by sending your resume around

It is a good idea to have a presence on LinkedIn or other appropriate professional online forums. Create a profile and make sure it includes your most recent measurable accomplishments that you worked on with your CMI counselor. Industry and alumni groups are good places to make connections and uncover leads and jobs. Responding to a position posted by a group is often more effective than applying for the same position on a job board.

NOTE TO CMI CLIENTS: If you are networking and have had 15 networking meetings without getting a referral, be sure that you and your CMI counselor are analyzing your meetings to determine how to improve your results. We are here for you. Your success is our success!

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Founded in 1976, Career Management International, Inc. is a certified Woman Owned Small Business. CMI is a leader in the fields of outplacement, career development, and special purpose training. CMI is headquartered in Houston, with offices throughout the United States and affiliates worldwide.

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