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Written by Amanda Moreno
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Monday, 29 June 2009 |
Resume
Our economy is still recovering, and businesses are slow to hire. More companies are making cutbacks and less companies are hiring on. The selection process is becoming more demanding, but once the first foot is through the door, your job is to make sure that the other foot makes it through. There are some tips that can improve your chances of getting an interview, and once the interview is reached, some tips to make it past the interview.
Let's start with the resume. It's easy to go out and search for a job, but like the saying goes anything worth having is worth working for. Anyone can make a resume that will fit into any profession, but it doesn't take a lot of effort. Pushing five on the copy machine doesn't take a lot of effort, and employers can tell when the resume has been made to fit more than one type of job. Here are some tips to creating a resume that will stand out.
1. Do Your Research: Know what the company is about. Most companies have Web sites and they usually have a section that details their mission and their goals. It is good to know, going in, what the company stands for and what they are trying to do. This also helps the person looking for a job make sure that they are not applying for a company that stands for something that they are against.
2. Customize Your Resume: Know that you know what the company is about, customize your resume. When listing skills make sure that they can be related to what needs to be done at the job you are applying for. If you are applying for a business position, they are not going to care if you can fix hair. Make sure that you show off your strengths. If you are a quick learner, let them know, show examples of that skill.
3. Know How To List Your Skills: When compiling your work history and skills obtained from those jobs, don't just list your duties. Be creative and let your future employer know what that job taught you. Maybe you worked at a retail store. During that time you developed organizational skills, customer service and how to deal with people. You can highlight that you are hard working, you have great communication skills, etc.
4. Be Creative: Use your imagination. Anybody can get on a computer and make a resume from a template. Employers look through numerous resumes a day, and after the first ten or twenty looking all the same, it gets old. Create your own design. Make sure you are consistent throughout, but don't fall into the mold. Be different and state that, it shows a future employer that you are willing to work and not just take the easy way out. For example, one resume tip site gave the story of a college grad that put his resume on disc, instead of paper. He used his skills and showed off what he could do. He took it a step further and showed initiative (another key word to use on a resume.)
5. DON'T Forget the Cover Letter: This is the key part of a resume. The cover letter makes it more professional, and every employer is looking for a professional minded employee. Take special care when working on this part, spell check, re-check, and have someone else check. There should be no mistakes on the cover letter. A simple mistake could get your entire resume thrown out. Make sure to follow business format, customize it to the potential employer. Once again, don't make a one-for-all types of job. Let the employer know you want this job and only this job. Be specific, and use stories to demonstrate why they should hire you. Don't just say I'm creative and hardworking, give an example, but leave them wanting to know more. (that's how the interview call comes.) Make sure it doesn't go over a page. Nobody wants to read your life story, you can sell yourself in a page, just put effort into it.
Once your future employer reads your one-of-a-kind resume, it's time for that interview. When you receive that phone call asking if you are free for an interview, the next step of preparing is upon you. The resume has already shown the employer that you are willing to work and know how to do your research, don't prove them wrong in the interview.
This article is the first in a series on tips on getting hired. |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 30 June 2009 )
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