A Resume is Like a Can of Beans

By Debbie Herring

Houston Community College Southwest

 

At the grocery store, smart, quality conscious consumers read labels and check contents before making purchases. Employers do the same, carefully reading resumes-product labels for job seekers, to pick the best. A poorly written resume is like a can of beans that lists water, pork and sugar before beans on the contents list. Employers are seldom interested in an applicant whose skills and experience do not match the job. In addition to descriptive details and being mistake-free, well-designed resumes should tantalize the employer, using industry words, similar phrases, titles and skills to match the company's job description.

Like the label on a can of beans, job seekers need to state a clear Objective and specific job titles sought. Think of the Objective as a handshake to tell the employer what job you want and what you are qualified to do. The Objective is the first section on a resume after the name and contact information. The Objective should be short and to the point, without any statement about your personal growth. To get hired, you have to convince the employer that you have something the company needs, and that you are the best candidate. Benefits from the company will come later; get the job first.

Write your resume so that your validating experiences are clear to an employer. The next section, whether it's Skills, Education or Experience, should reinforce the Objective and make the employer understand what you have to offer, especially if you are changing careers or are a new graduate. These sections are interchangeable, however, the section that follows the Objective should confirm what you stated in the Objective, reflecting your strongest qualifications-your “beans.” You may have current computer skills, a brand new college degree, or years of work experience that qualifies you for the job. Rank skills in order of importance from first to last, making sure they match the job.

Highlight all your “beans,” not unimportant details! You are not bragging about yourself; if you can do something, say you can. As you write the resume, keep asking yourself, “Is this important to an employer or for this job?” If the information is not important, delete it. Always tell the truth, just not the whole truth-leave off reasons for leaving a job, company addresses, supervisors, references, salary, and negative phrases.

There are as many styles of resumes as types of beans; no one style is best. Resumes should be one page long, unless you have 15 or more years of professional experience. To check the appearance of the resume, look at the page upside down and avoid blocky paragraphs. Use white or ivory letter-size paper.

A well-written resume will open company doors to an interview, putting you one step closer to the job you want. When the resume works, you will get telephone calls and invitations to apply, with one to five responses for every 10 resumes you send out. If no one calls, let someone you trust read the resume. Seek professional help to write a better one; most career service offices offer free resume critiques so ask for assistance. If your skills are sub-standard, improve them. If your knowledge is weak, target jobs to gain experience. Often, an applicant has only one chance to get into a company. It's up to you to create the best resume/product label that you can write.

The above is an excerpt from The Last Job Search Guide You'll Ever Need: How to Find and Get the Job or Internship of Your Dreams, which is available for sale for $19.85 in our bookstore or $27.00 at Amazon.com but for free to those who subscriber to our free career newsletter. This hot new book contains job search secrets of the most experienced, most knowledgeable and most respected career experts. Learn career planning, job hunting tools and tactics, interviewing, cover letter and resume writing (lots of samples!), networking, and how to find an internship. Written by 149 career experts. To receive a free copy, subscribe to our free career newsletter.

Career Videos