32 Easy Do’s and Don’ts to Power-up Your Resume

Time to re-do that old resume? Here are 32 easy do’s and don’ts to power-up your resume.

32 Easy Do’s and Don’ts to Power-up Your Resume

My clients who are in job transitions often feel nervous about their resumes. Usually it’s not because they have nothing meaningful to put on the resume. Nope! They are stressed about the format, wording and details.

Here are 32 easy do’s and don’ts that I share with them:

Do:

• Read the job description and adapt the resume to it, if possible. Use keywords that help the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) identify your resume as relevant for the job (job titles, skills related to the job, leadership qualities and other “soft skills”)
• Proofread and then have someone else proofread
• Glance over your finished resume and ask yourself, “Will it catch the hiring personnel’s attention within 6 seconds?”
• Keep it to 1 page (adjust font size and spacing- but don’t make the font too small)
• Use a simple, clean font (no fancy or goofy stuff)
• Use single spacing
• 1-inch margins
• Send as PDF if emailing the resume
• Include
  • Name
  • Contact Information- email, phone, snail mail address, website
  • Profile (This is your one-sentence elevator speech or branding statement.)
  • Skills/Areas of Expertise- include professional, technical and networking/soft skills
  • Experience- jobs and internships (If you don’t have much job history, include significant experiences such as missions trips, significant travel, or significant charitable work.)
    • Describe your jobs in terms of accomplishments, leadership, problems solved, challenges overcome, results and positive impact for the organization
    • Include numbers, if possible, such as “Increased sales by 50%” or “Reduced error rate by 20%”
    • Explain if there is significant time between jobs
    • Watch your grammar- keep verb tenses same
  • Awards
  • Education (and Professional Development, if applicable)

Don’t:

• Create a fancier format of resume than the position warrants- an artist or graphic designer should present a wildly creative resume look, a lawyer should not
• Use photos or icons if the job is not a creative position
• Give an email address that is silly or difficult to copy or remember
• Include Objectives (they went out of style)
• Include Date of Birth (unless you want to)
• Include high school name if you already have a college degree (unless you REALLY want to)
• If you use bullet points, try not to include more than 5 bullets in a section
• Use slang, contractions or abbreviations
• Use the word “I”
• Exaggerate

Try:

• 2-column format (You can buy templates on Etsy if you need help.)

Power Vocabulary for Resume

Accomplished  

Achieved

Analyzed

Arranged

Assisted

Collaborated

Communicated

Completed

Composed

Conducted

Contributed

Coordinated

Created

Directed

Demonstrated

Determined

Developed

Enhanced

Evaluated

Executed

Explored

Facilitated

Founded

Generated

Guided

Identified

Implemented

Improved

Increased

Influenced

Initiated

Leadership

Led

Maintained

Managed

Mentored

Networked

Obtained

Organized

Overhauled

Performance enhancement

Pioneered

Planned

Problem solving

Processed

Productivity enhancement

Programmed

Promoted

Reduced

Reformed

Repaired

Represented

Resolved

Spearheaded

Stimulated

Strengthened

Team building

Trained

Won

Now it is your turn! Get busy with your career change and your resume. Contact me for wise guidance on your adventure!

32 Easy Do’s and Don’ts to Power-up Your Resume