If You're SO Good, How Come Your Resume's SO Bad?
Earlier today, I received a phone message from a caller who offered this:
A recruiter just said these words to me: If you're so good, how come your resume is so bad? Apparently, the recruiter had gone on to say to the caller that he was having a hard time figuring out the candidate's resume story.
Is your resume working for you, or against you? Is your resume helping you generate interviews or is it hurting your chances of getting hooked up with a potential employer? Are you making it easy for someone to get you and your story, or are you making it hard for yourself to get noticed in a sea of talent?
Small things. Big things. Details. Things you don't even know that you're doing can get you ruled out and the bad news, sad news for you is this: you don't even know it! You don't even know that time and again your resume gets passed over by what you don't say, by what you don't include, by what you don't express. Therefore, it is no surprise that you can't and won't get noticed by virtue of what you are and aren't doing. Here's a quick exercise you can do as a self-check of your resume:
Take a look at your existing resume document, then ask yourself these five simple questions in a matter of five seconds - GO!
1. Will the reader know within one second my name and how to get in touch with me?
2. Will the reader know within one second my target goal?
3. Will the reader know within one second why I can do the job I say I am interested in doing?
4. Will the reader know within one second where I'm currently working (or most recently worked) and my bottom-line contributions and career successes?
5. Will the reader know within one second the nature and extent of my education?
Stop! Time's up -- your five seconds are over. Did you pass go? Are you in or out, from the reader's perspective? Even if you allot five seconds per question, the point is, your resume reader doesn't have a lot of time to devote to figuring you out. Maybe they're overwhelmed with other resumes, e-mails, information, text, paperwork, documentation, meetings, and who knows what else. What can you do to make the reader's life less complicated, not more complicated as it pertains to you and your resume story?
Article by, Billie Sucher and courtesy of CareerHub.com. The Career Hub blog connects job seekers with experts in career counseling, resume writing, personal branding and recruiting.
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