Friday, June 4, 2010

Resume Writing Tips – Four that are Important and Often Overlooked

Writing your own resume is something to take to heart as your resume will be the single most important weapon in your job-getting arsenal and knowing some easy resume writing tips can help turn your resume into a lethal weapon that is all but guaranteed to get you wonderful results. Many people simply overlook the little things when it comes to their resumes, but it is the little things that often mean the difference between many resume views and your resume ending up in a dumpster.

While proper structure and good keywords are always a must when you are constructing your resume you also need to remember these little and often overlooked tips:

1. Proofread: When your resume is done and you feel as though it is where you want it to be you need to be sure to proof read it. Then you should proof read it again. Then give it to your friend and have them proof read it. The point is that you need to be sure that your resume is not littered with many little misspellings or grammatical errors as there is nothing that says, “Hey, I am careless and don’t check my work,” more than bad grammar.

2. Don’t Over-Style: Using bullet points to emphasize a point in your resume and using bold to indicate a title are great ways to jazz up you resume. However, using all sorts of fancy fonts, different font colors, using bold too much, and using italics too much is a sure way to annoy a reader and have your resume thrown away quickly. Some style is good, but if you spend too much time on style you will end up with a confusing and agitating resume.

3. Supply Contact Info: This sure seems like a no-brainier doesn’t it? The fact is that many people only put one form of contact on their resumes. If your resume really speaks to a potential employer then you want that potential employer to be able to reach you with the greatest of ease. You should include your address, your phone numbers with times that you can be reached at each number, and you should also include your e-mail address. The more ways and employer has to get a hold of you the better. If you are too hard to reach, then they may go on to the next applicant.

4. Sound Professional: Avoid using slang like the plague. Just because you know what the cool phrase of the month is, doesn’t mean that a potential employer will. You should also be sure that your e-mail is professional sounding. If you have an e-mail that is partyguy@xyz.com then how professional do you think you are going to come off? E-mail addresses are free with many different services so if you have an e-mail address that is unprofessional sounding then get one that sounds professional such as workhardguy@xyz.com.

Writing the perfect resume doesn’t have to be a challenge, you just have to be sure to look at everything; including the little things. By taking your time and following these easy resume writing tips you too can have a knock out resume that you will truly be proud of.

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