10 Secrets to an Irresistible Resume - New Direction...

MAGNETICRESUMES

10 Secrets to an Irresistible Resume

2P A G EwwwBeRealCareercom

MAGNETIC RESUMES10 Secrets to an Irresistible Resume

Irsquom Leslie The Real Job Guru

I love resumes A great resume used the right way is magnetic

It attracts attention for the right jobs gives a taste of your personality makes people want to know more about you and gets you on the interview listhellip itrsquos impossible to resist

And yet most resumes are pretty awful and are headed straight to the recycle bin because they are the opposite of magnetic

Of the tens of thousands of resumes Irsquove reviewed in my career as a recruiter and headhunter Irsquod say that 90 of resumes crash and burn because they fail to make a case for why this person is the right fit for this specific job

Worst of all most people donrsquot know that their resume is the problem so they keep sending it out in the same way and wondering why theyrsquore

getting no response

So Irsquove put together these ten important (and not-very-difficult) secrets to an irresistible resume

This isnrsquot everything you need to know about irresistible resumes of course but itrsquos a great start and you may find the answer to the thing

thatrsquos been holding you back

So herersquos to attracting the job you really want

Leslie Ayres

PS Irsquove included links to some of my blogs over at NBC Universalrsquos website Work Goes Strong where

Irsquom the resident career expert in case you want to delve a little deeper on any of these



Here it is in a nutshell

1 Take time to customize each application Quality beats quantity every time 4

2 Donrsquot apply to jobs you donrsquot want or arenrsquot qualified for Itrsquos demoralizing and it wastes time 6

3 Keep it under two easy-to-read cleanly laid-out pages that can be easily scanned 8

4 Use a positioning headline that instantly shows yoursquore a match to the job requirements 10

5 Write in simple language Avoid corporate babble and write more like you talk 13

6 Make it 100 perfect No typos grammatical errors misspellings or mistakes 16

7 Always include a brief friendly cover note tailored to the job 18

8 Include informative and proud descriptions of the companies yoursquove worked for 20

9 Donrsquot be afraid to show let the REAL you shine through Show some personality 22

10 If you think you really are a great fit for that job follow up without pressure after a week or ten days 24

This ebook is my gift to you for signing up on my website

If you got it in another way thatrsquos awesome but go visit wwwBeRealCareercom and get your own copy so you have access to all kinds of great job hunt and career planning resources

Copyright copy 2012 by Leslie Ayres The Real Job Guru All rights reserved



1 Take time to customize each application Quality beats quantity every time

If you think clicking the ldquoapplyrdquo button on a website job posting and attaching your standard resume is actually going to get you a job yoursquore fooling yourself

As a recruiter on the receiving end I can attest thatrsquos what about 80 of people do They spit out resumes hoping that something sticks hoping that something is going to attract an interview

Unfortunately the quantity approach is a waste of time

You donrsquot want just any job anyway do youYou want a great job one that fits your personal checklist of whatrsquos important and lets you do the things that make your heart sing and brings a smile to your face because you feel valued and satisfied You want a job that fits into your life instead of feeling like you have to settle for something that makes your life suck more

You want a job you love Am I rightWell then you need to know now that spitting out a bunch of quick and dirty job applications is not going to find that one great job for you

In this case more is not always better In fact applying to too many jobs actually decreases your chances of getting interviews because the applications will be sloppy incomplete and formulaic With this approach your background wonrsquot look like it fits the job even when it does

Quality applications that get more response and an immediate ldquowhen can we interview yourdquo response take a little time

Time spent creating a bulls-eye resume is time well spent A quality job application that makes you look like the perfect fit could take hours as you understand the job and the company so you can show why yoursquore a match



Here are some steps to create an application that gets a response raquo Begin by thoroughly understanding the job posting and knowing exactly where you match their

requirements (If yoursquore less than a 75 match skip right to tip 2 please)

raquo Read the companyrsquos website including the latest press releases and the ldquoAbout Usrdquo page to learn about the management and key employees

raquo Next browse around to see whatrsquos going on in that industry or with competitors Who are their competitors and what have they done lately

raquo Check out what current and past employees have to say about the company on GlassDoorcom where you will find surprisingly candid reviews by sometimes disgruntled but often very happy employees that will give you an insider idea of what itrsquos like to work there

raquo Browse around LinkedIn to see past and present employees of the company and to check out the profiles of people who are the decision-makers or potential coworkers noting their experience and the career path that theyrsquove had

raquo See if you know someone who works at the company who can give you some insider information about working there

raquo Customize your resume to address and echo the specifics and the keywords that the job requires so that all of whatrsquos most pertinent in your background is presented in a clear and unmistakable way that directly responds to the position criteria

raquo And of course you need time to compose a brief personal cover note that has starts you off on the right foot and gets your resume read

These steps could take hours but what a great investment One bulls-eye resume submission is exponentially more likely to get a response than just blasting out resumes and hoping someone likes what they see Like a gazillion times better

So stop spitting out mediocre applications and focus on quality It will pay off with more responses to your resume

Donrsquot Wast Your Time Applying to That Jobfrom the blog



2 Donrsquot apply to jobs you donrsquot want or arenrsquot qualified for Itrsquos demoralizing and it wastes time

As a career recruiter whorsquos reviewed and screened tens of thousands of resumes one thing is clear way too many people waste way too much time applying to jobs theyrsquore not qualified for

Overall Irsquod say 50 of the resumes I receive in response to job posting do not even remotely meet the clearly outlined requirements

The worst Irsquove seen is the woman who was a dispatcher for the local bus company who applied to be vice president of marketing with a dotcom startup

This happens either because the candidate a) doesnrsquot really care so donrsquot bother to read the requirement or b) doesnrsquot understand that companies are looking for specific experience and qualifications and if you donrsquot have those you ainrsquot gettinrsquo hired my friend

So get real There is too much competition out there to get hired for a job yoursquore unqualified for It just isnrsquot going to happen

If you want to be a chef but yoursquove never worked in a kitchen accept that you will never be hired as a chef If a position requires experience as corporate counsel for an international company and yoursquore a small-town family lawyer whorsquos never had a big business client you stand no chance of getting that job No matter how nice you are or who you know or how bad you want it itrsquos not going to happen Most jobs actually do need direct experience

Job boards are partly to blame for this new laziness in applying to the wrong jobs because they make it easy to just click a few buttons to apply to job postings

Never confuse clicking ldquoapplyrdquo with actually presenting yourself as a candidate

Donrsquot let the ease of the application process make you apply for the wrong jobs Raise your standardshellip unless you are truly interested and you have at least 75 of what theyrsquore looking for skip it



Not only does applying to the wrong jobs eat up your valuable time which could be much better spent customizing your resume and researching the company but itrsquos demoralizing to send out resumes that are never going to get a response

Irsquom not saying you shouldnrsquot stretch If you are looking at jobs that are a step beyond where you are now Irsquom behind you all the wayhellip but applying to jobs you arenrsquot qualified for is demoralizing and counterproductive

Rejection sucks so head it off before it ever happens by only going after jobs where you are a 75 match or better

I know some of you have a hard time assessing your match to different positions which can make you feel over-confident or under-confident If yoursquore not sure then ask someone you trust to honestly look at the job and at your resume and tell if they think your resume shows you as qualified

When yoursquore selective about what you apply for you can spend more time on each resume and application so it acts like a magnet

Next raquo Are Computers and ATS Doing the Hiring Now

Are Computers and ATS Doing the Hiring Nowfrom the blog



3 Keep it under two easy-to-read cleanly laid-out pages that can be easily scanned

Two well-organized pages are enough for anyone Yes I know there are people saying it has to be one page and there are others saying it doesnrsquot matter because the resume goes into a computer anyway and the computer doesnrsquot care

But it does matter Once you make it past the computer which you should if you have focused on a bulls-eye resume and are qualified for the job then a real live person is going to review ithellip and you need your resume to get your message across quickly

Your resume is a marketing piece not a dossier or a training manual for your replacement

A resume doesnrsquot need to say everything about youhellip it just needs to say the right things about you to show the reader that you have what they need for that job

Two pages are long enough to give the necessary information and short enough to hold the interest of the recruiter or hiring manager

Being able to edit your resume down also shows that you know the difference between whatrsquos important and whatrsquos not

I once got a resume that was 16 pages long Apparently that job seeker thought that recruiters and hiring managers were going to lean back put our feet up grab a cup of coffee and enjoy the great adventures of his work history What really happened is that I moved on to look for someone with better editing skills and better judgment

Herersquos something else you need to know your resume will probably never be readhellip it will be scanned and quickly

All that stuff yoursquove jammed in there that you think is important wonrsquot even register to a reader if itrsquos not edited down to whatrsquos key

Make it simple so the reader can quickly scan the document pick out the important information and



understand the big picture of your experience Leave out unnecessary details seriously no one cares about your daily task to-do list or the name of your manager at this point Just tell people what they want to know in a simple and easy-to-read way so they can decide if you appear qualified and if they want to talk to you

Donrsquot forget to include all the basic information Irsquove gotten resumes that forgot to include a phone number or email address

Make it easy for readers by including hyperlinks to your LinkedIn profile your blog or other online business presence and your company websites too so we can click through

A simpler more modern resume that is two pages or less can make all the difference

I empathize with the challenge of paring down an unruly mess of a resume because I help people restart their resumes all the time But if itrsquos hard for you to whittle it down think how hard it is for a stranger to try to understand it all

Not long ago I worked with a CEO whose resume had morphed into a five-page convoluted jumble of dense corporate babble text and confusing words over the years He didnrsquot even know what it said any more and neither did I

So we worked together to pare it down to a clear concise and well-organized two-pager that focused on the criteria outlined in a job he wanted to apply for We positioned him as the solution to the special challenges we learned the company was facing

Not too stuffy not too pompous just a friendly informative resume that reflected his personality and what hersquod done before that was similar to what hersquod need to do for this role

He not only got the interview he got the job

Your Resume 15 Seconds of My Attention

Hilarious Resume Bloopers

Hilarious Resume Bloopers Part Two

Hilarious Resume Bloopers Part Three

Hilarious Resume Bloopers Part Four

from the blog



4 Use a positioning headline that instantly shows yoursquore a match to the job requirements

Any copywriter will tell you that the headline is the most important part of any ad article or book Headlines are also important for your resume

When someone reads your resume they want to know two things

1 What do you do

2 Does that match what wersquore looking for

A positioning headline is the perfect way to answer those questions as long as the rest of the resume supports what you

sayWhen you begin your resume with a headline and then give a focused summary of what you do you are creating an impression of what yoursquore all about and you can get them excited that they are looking at the person who has what they need before they even see one word of your work history

Be the needle in the haystack with a positioning headline using job titles and functional areas

For instance someone who is an expert in different aspects of online marketing might have a headline like

SEO Expert Online Marketer Social Networking for Businesses

You can see how these few words instantly communicate what this person does When the recruiter is looking for someone to manage their SEO department and build the companyrsquos online presence their heart will start to beat a little faster thinking they may have found that needle in the haystack because yoursquove just told them exactly what they need to hear

Never lie about your experience Just highlight



what you do that is needed for that job If what follows in the resume clearly supports what you say because it talks about your work doing SEO and online marketing and you meet the other must-have criteria then you just made it to the short list of candidates

(And if what follows in your resume doesnrsquot support what you say please go back and read 2)

The secret is to customize your resume every time Customize your headlines for every job you apply to using the same words the company uses in the posting and on their website and focusing on what they want to see

When you lead with a headline that matches the job theyrsquore trying to fill you just made it past the first hurdle Your entire resume will now get a deeper look

On the other hand the wrong headlines will be an immediate knockout Irsquove gotten applications for an Online Marketing Manager job with a headline that ldquoAccounting Managerrdquo Sorry but no I would be okay if you had expertise with both but a mismatch of your resume and the job makes you look you are either a liar are foolish enough to think someone would hire an accounting manager to handle their online marketing or you are just not paying attention All of these are deal-breakers

A positioning headline is not the same thing as an objectiveBy the way for the old-timers out there this headline goes where we used to put an objective but it is very different in its purpose

Objectives were usually vague statements about what the job seeker was looking for (ldquoSeeking a challenging and interesting position that gives me room to learn and growrdquo) but they went out of style because the honest truth is that no one hires you because of what you wanthellip they hire you because of what you can do for them

So tell them what you can do for them

Follow this section with a few more bullets or phrases that describe what you bring to the job or those key selling points that will give some evidence about your qualificationshellip adding to their perception of you as the solution to their problem and they still havenrsquot even gotten to your work experience



Make it even more magnetic by making sure that the language of the company and the job posting is echoed in your descriptions If they are looking for someone with a customer-first attitude make sure there are words to that effect in your descriptions If they describe their company as energetic and bold then see where you can embed those words into your resume Done well no one will ever think you did it just for that job

Donrsquot be afraid to inject a little personality tooRemember they are looking to hire a person not a piece of paper or words on a screen Let some of the real you shine through

Adjectives are an easy way to add some personality to match a companyrsquos flavor or a niche For instance these could be positioning headlines for specific jobs where these adjectives will set you apart from the crowd

ldquoAward-Winning Medical Sales Leaderrdquo establishes that yoursquore a top performer for a job that emphasizes quantifiable success

ldquoRidiculously Creative Marketing Executiverdquo projects a sassiness that might appeal to a company with a similar branding style

ldquoUnstoppable Global Partnership Dealmaker for Capital Medical Equipmentrdquo communicates a tenaciousness that will be irresistible and tells what you do in clear terms

ldquoCustomer Service with Patience and a Smilerdquo would be irresistible for a hiring manager looking to staff a call center or a retail store

It really is fine to use interesting words on your resume and you will find that theyrsquoll be what makes someone remember you

The Resume Objective Is Dead So Why Are You Still Using It

Hilarious Resume Bloopers Part Fourfrom the blog



5 Write in simple language Avoid corporate babble and write more like you talk

Corporate Americarsquos written communications are rife with verbose dense and impossible-to-understand language and resumes are some of the worst offenders

I think a lot of people think that the more complex their writing and the more big words they use the smarter they look But what really happens is that your reader has an unpleasant experience trying to decipher it assumes that you canrsquot communicate very well and will probably just move on At the very least theyrsquoll think you are uptight

I call this overly complicated language corporate babble and it stands in the way of your career success

What is corporate babble

The presenting symptoms of corporate babble are the utilization of multi-syllabic terminology in liaison with mysterious acronyms and indecipherable industry-specific abbreviations delivered for maximum impact with a terse formality that distills human considerations from the communications formula

Thatrsquos an example of corporate babble right therehellip itrsquos unnecessarily long and technical difficult to read and it takes extra effort to decode It hurts my head just to look at it Did it hurt yours to read

Letrsquos try it again in simple language

Corporate babble is using big words and acronyms to sound impressive but actually ending up sounding confusing stuffy and impersonal

Write your resume and all of your business correspondence in simple English Your career will benefit big-time

I understand that a lot of the job postings and corporate websites out there are written in corporate babble but that doesnrsquot mean you have to write that way Itrsquos perfectly fine for you to write more like you speak Then people will have the experience of a real person talking to them rather than a flashback of the headache of trying to decode a legal document



The first step to curing corporate babble is to use simple words Resist the temptation to use a complicated word when a simple one will do Avoid acronyms or abbreviations that are not in common use Resist trite business buzzwords like synergy dynamic impactful or leverage unless there is absolutely no better word you can find

Instead of writing the meaningless ldquoexcellent communication skillsrdquo in your summary section show it by writing your resume in clear English

Technical resumes often suffer from their own kind of technical babble

Technical resumes are often dry bullet points of all-technical language and include lists of acronyms computer programs certifications and terminology that not only fail to paint a picture of a real person doing a real job they donrsquot make sense to anyone whorsquos not a software engineer which includes many of the people who are involved screening your resume

Instead of explaining the overview of their role (such as ldquoMost senior member of the four-person team handling the design and debugging of two software launchesrdquo) technical resumes are often dense explanations of the complexities of solving technical problems

Your resume is the story of your experience so write in plain English so people can easily understand your story

Tell the reader where you fit into the organizations yoursquove worked for and explain the purpose of your job and what you were asked to do Tell them about the company and what happened in the business while you were there Keep it in language that is easy to read

Herersquos a trick to escape the trap of corporate babble pretend yoursquore at a networking event and someone asks what you do

Make it simple In a conversation you might say ldquoI design software for ecommerce companies to use to track their purchasing invoicing and inventoryrdquo or ldquoIrsquom an insurance specialist working with small businesses to find the quality affordable coverage they needrdquo

Now to translate it into resume-speak just drop the pronouns (or at least most of them) and you have a perfect beginning for a resume description ldquoDesign software for ecommerce companies to use in



purchasing invoicing and inventory rdquo and ldquoInsurance specialist working with small businesses to find quality affordable coveragerdquo Voila

Simple language will increase the chances that the person reading your resume will actually understand what yoursquore saying and that increases the chance that your resume moves into the ldquoyesrdquo stack

Is It Ever OK to Lie on Your Resume

Is a Functional Resume Right for You

Should You Pay a Professional to Write Your Resume

10 Tips for Choosing a Resume Writing Service

from the blog



6 Make it 100 perfect No typos grammatical errors misspellings or mistakes

Your cover note and resume are your first chance to represent your high standards and good taste so make them perfect lest you stand out for the wrong reasons

Donrsquot let your first impression be that you canrsquot even spell your own job title (Accounting Manger) or the name of the city you live in (San Fransisco)

Errors give people a reason to screen you out

There are more recruiters and hiring managers than you might imagine who will instantly discount you because of just one typo on a resume Donrsquot risk losing your chance at the job because you typed ldquotheirrdquo instead of ldquotheyrsquorerdquo or misspelled the name of the company or the name of the hiring manager in your cover note

Aim for zero tolerance for typos grammar errors misspellings

and mistakes in your communications

It doesnrsquot take long to check for accuracy Here are a few tips for proofing

5 Check for proper spaces before or after punctuation Modern business and journalism standards call for one space after a period not two Do a find-and-replace to set all double spaces to single spaces

5 Misspellings can be instant deal-breakers Use spell-check to proof your resume but you canrsquot count on spell-check to catch everything because many misspellings are still a wordhellip theyrsquore just not the right word The most common example is when someone mistypes ldquoManagerrdquo as ldquoMangerrdquo Be aware that your word processing software might be set to not check spelling on words in all caps (you can change that)

5 One great way to proof your resume for misspellings is to read it backwards Start at the end and read backwards one word at a time Your eye can catch spelling errors more easily that way because you arenrsquot distracted by content



5 To proof the content read it aloud to make sure it makes sense Resumes are among the most-revised documents around and every time you make a change you risk making a typo or leaving a word hanging Resumes are also written in streamlined language so reading it out loud lets you hear how it flows to a reader

5 Check the tenses in your wording If yoursquore currently working in a job talk about it in the present tense All other jobs must use past-tense verbs only When I see the present tense used in a previous job I assume that the resume was just updated by adding the newest job at the top without bothering to take the time to read what was already there Irsquom not impressed

5 Oh and by the way the past tense of ldquoto leadrdquo (as in to lead a team) is led not lead Itrsquos the newest common error I see joining the recent trend to misspell losing (as in losing the game) as loosing Donrsquot make these errors Just because theyrsquore common doesnrsquot mean theyrsquore acceptable

Typos misspellings and grammatical mistakes cast doubt on your ability to do careful and accurate work and I donrsquot care what kind of job yoursquore looking for thatrsquos a bad thing

Employers want to hire people whose work will reflect well on the company

Remember at this early stage your resume is the only thing someone has to go on to understand who you are Make it perfect Have someone else proof it with a merciless eye before you send it anywhere Then have another person do it again There is no such thing as too perfect when it comes to your resume

How to Proofread Your Resume Like a Pro

Quiz Grammar Dunce or Grammar Genius


from the blog



7 Always include a brief friendly cover note tailored to the job

There are two ways to go very wrong with a cover letter either donrsquot include one at all or cut and paste the same letter for every application These are both reasons your resume might not be taken seriously

Sending a resume without a cover note says yoursquore either lazy or you donrsquot care

Irsquom baffled when I get resumes from candidates who havenrsquot even bothered to write a simple note of introduction These are six-figure executives who want to be considered for jobs they know Irsquom working on and they wonrsquot even take time to write a note They arenrsquot seeing this step in the job search as important and itrsquos probably the reason they arenrsquot getting responses to their resumes

Come on people you are applying for a job that might change your life Isnrsquot it worth a little effort to introduce yourself

But donrsquot get carried away Irsquom not talking about an uptight overly composed cut-and-paste form letter that you sweated bullets over that just repeats whatrsquos already in your resume Sadly that is what a lot of cover letters have become

Understand that your cover note has just one job to get someone to want to read your resume

A cover note is not the place for you to retell the story of your career Thatrsquos what your resume is for Donrsquot parrot back whatrsquos in your resume Itrsquos an introduction not a recap or a recitation

Itrsquos also not the place to add information that isnrsquot included in your resume Your resume must speak for itself in telling your story and if you didnrsquot think something was important enough to include in your resume then a recruiter or hiring manager will rightly assume itrsquos not really a core part of your expertise

And when you just paste that same made-to-impress uptight letter as your cover note for every job we can tell and we think yoursquore lazy and we suspect you havenrsquot really read our job posting and description or done any research yet



Write a personal friendly and simple cover note for every resume Cover notes donrsquot have to be complicated All you need to do is say why yoursquore sending your resume and give a couple of simple reasons you feel yoursquore a match to the job in a friendly and still professional way

Use a friendly salutation not ldquoTo Whom It May Concernrdquo or ldquoDear Sirrdquo

Make your salutation appropriate for your level location and industry If yoursquore an attorney looking for a job in Boston the right salutation in most cases would be ldquoDear Mr Garciardquo but for an ad agency in San Francisco it would seem too formal

ldquoTo whom it may concernrdquo ldquoDear Sirrdquo and ldquoDear Hiring Managerrdquo are too impersonal If you donrsquot have a name then say ldquoGood morningrdquo or ldquoGood afternoonrdquo (depending on the time of day you send it) and it will work for any situation

Irsquoll let you in on a secret your cover letter might not even be read saved or forwarded anyway

Most recruiters are going to skip right to the resume to get the real story and they may not even glance at your cover note Or once they read it and then move to your resume itrsquos ignored and isnrsquot forwarded with your resume either

Some of you are panicking now and feeling attached to that ten-paragraph convoluted cover note with ten bullet points that you worked so hard on I feel your pain but throw it out Every cover note should be written for a specific job Short and sweet

Tell me what job yoursquore applying for where you heard about the job and write a couple of sentences about why your experience is a fit Be to-the-point and friendly and let the reader get a glimpse of the human being behind the resume This alone will distinguish you from your competition

The Ridiculously Easy Cover Letter15 Dorsquos and Donrsquots of Cover NotesFive Fatal Cover Letter Faux PasHilarious Cover Letter BloopersThe Easy Resume Cover Letter Format

Resume Cover Letter Makeover Scarecrow Style

from the blog



8 Include informative and proud descriptions of the companies yoursquove worked for

Jobs donrsquot exist in a vacuumhellip they exist within a context and yoursquoll attract more responses when you share about the situation and context of your jobs

For someone to understand what yoursquove done they need to understand where yoursquove done it They need to know some details about the companies yoursquove worked for ndash what their business is what kinds of customers they serve how big the company is their revenues ndash all of these things are part of understanding what yoursquove done and what you can do

Make it easy for all of the busy people will be reading your resume by telling us what your companies did

Donrsquot assume we know or that it doesnrsquot matter and donrsquot make people have to go do research to understand your experience They may not have the time or patience to go do search online to learn what they need to know about the places yoursquove worked

Put the big picture story in your resume and yoursquoll get much more response

There are two ways to do this in a resume

1 Put a description underneath the company name like this ABC Amalgamators Inc The biggest widget company in the country ABC wholesale widgets and accessories to big retailers in 17 states The company grew from five employees and $1 million in sales when I came on board to 125 employees and sales of $80 million in just three years

2 Incorporate the company description into the story of your jobs ABC AMALGAMATORS INC Brought in to establish the customer service department of new widget and widget accessory company when there were just five employees and less than $1M in sales As employee 6 established the customer service department created all systems and standards and designed training programs to help the company expand as fast and painlessly as possible on the mission of becoming the most respected widget company in the world Selling wholesale to big retailers in 17 states in just three years we have grown to sales of $80 million and 125 employees 35 of who are part of my customer service team



Notice how easy it is to read these descriptions and how the description not only gives information it also allows whatever prestige the company carries to rub off on you by association Their prestige becomes your prestige

The description also continues to paint a picture in the mind of the reader of the environment you worked in which is an important part of them picturing you doing the same thing for them

Hiring managers will also want to see that you have pride in the companies yoursquove worked for because theyrsquoll expect that yoursquoll be proud to work for them So talk the companies up and say what was great and impressive about them

Descriptions help even if everyone knows what the company does

Include a description even if you work for a household name company Everyone may know what Microsoft is for instance but it takes on a new dimension when you describe it as ldquoThe worldrsquos leader in software services and solutions Microsoft was named the Best Global Company to Work For by Forbesrdquo

Not sure how to describe a company Check their websitersquos About Us page as well as what they write at the bottom of their press releases But watch outhellip corporate gibberish dominates many websites so you may have to rephrase it in plain English

Six Quick Tips to Bring Your Resume into the 21st CenturyRecruiters Share 10 Common Resume Mistakesfrom the blog



9 Donrsquot be afraid to let the REAL you shine through Show some personality

People want to hire people they like and yet most resumes are stripped of all personality and read like boring legal documents

The easiest way to stand out is to let a little personality shine through

We all know that companies canrsquot ask you for personal details about your marital status religion where you were born or age and they legally canrsquot discriminate against you based on a number of things

But that doesnrsquot mean that the things about you that make you unique are not going to be an element in a hiring decision and it also doesnrsquot mean that you canrsquot offer information that you think can help you connect with the people on the other side of the hiring desk

Two easy ways to add your own personality into your resume are by using adjectives and by putting information into a personal section

Adjectives can supercharge your resume and turn boring to unforgettable

Itrsquos lifeless and boring to say ldquoProduce results leveraging social marketing and online campaignsrdquo Make it more bold and colorful by saying ldquoGenerate outrageous results through stroke-of-genius viral marketing campaignsrdquo

What adjectives describe you Sprinkle them through your resume and it will take on some of your personality

A personal section lets you hint at things you want them to know but they canrsquot ask

Adding a personal section can let you include information that points to your interests and outside life that might be very helpful when yoursquore applying to companies with certain kinds of cultures



Donrsquot be afraid to reveal personal information because it might be illegalhellip itrsquos against the law for employers to ask for protected information but itrsquos fine if you offer it Of course the only reason to do that is if you think itrsquos going to help you

For example if yoursquore applying to a hot startup in San Francisco and you know the company founders go to Burning Man you could include ldquoOrganizer of my Burning Man theme camprdquo to let them know you have something in common If your church is integral to your life and you think it could be something that connects you to the decision-makers at a company you might include ldquoManage the annual fundraising drive for the teen center at the Main Street Baptist Churchrdquo

You can let people know yoursquore healthy and energetic by including ldquoRun 5Ks and working on my first marathonrdquo If your job history makes you look like a job-hopper you can counter that with ldquoBoard member of local food bank for past nine yearsrdquo

Five Things That Should Never Be on Your ResumeResume Do-Over 7 Signs Your Resume Needs a Total Overhaulfrom the blog



10 If you think you really are a great fit for that job follow up without pressure after a week or ten days

When a job gets hundreds of responses even the best resume can sometimes slip through the cracks so itrsquos worth a follow-up email in a week or ten days to make sure someone has looked at your application

Donrsquot take it personally if you get no response after submitting a resume There are many reasons you might not have heard back after submitting a resume

raquo The company may not be ready to interview yet

raquo There might be a candidate in process already

raquo Your resume may have been eliminated for some reason

raquo There may be an internal candidate who has priority although they still are required to post the job

raquo There may be candidates with better backgrounds than yours

raquo The hiring manager is on vacation

raquo Your resume was somehow overlooked and wasnrsquot given a full review

There are all kinds of reasons and you will never really know so donrsquot spend any energy worrying about it And donrsquot put any energy into wishing that companies would send you a note to say thanks but no thanks Many recruiters and HR departments are up to their eyeballs in work just trying to screen through the volumes of resumes they receive in this age of one-click job applications and they simply do not have the time to respond to every person

If you have sent your resume in for a job you think you really should be considered for go ahead give it another shot

In most situations a follow-up note will get your resume reviewed again



Itrsquos fine to follow up on jobs yoursquore really interested in (see 1 and 2 about only focusing in the right jobs) by sending a non-pushy second submission via email

When you are submitting a second note to a company do it politely and make sure therersquos no sense of nagging or harassment about it Keep it simple and non-pushy If you submitted by email then forward your original note and resume attachment If you submitted via the company website then paste your original note and resume again and start off with a note explaining that you are sending it againhellip something like ldquoI submitted my resume last week for the controller position and know you are probably still screening candidates but because the job sounds like such a great fit for my experience I wanted to make certain yoursquod received my resume and cover note I would love the opportunity to talk to you about this job Thanks very muchrdquo

That approach is almost guaranteed to get your resume reviewed again even if itrsquos just out of curiosity about whether they overlooked someone great and the response might be more positive the second time around Irsquove had situations where someone sent me a ldquowanted to make sure you got thisrdquo email and in fact I had never received the first submission for some reason and they were indeed the perfect candidate

The trick to any kind of follow up in a job search is to keep it simple and optimistic and respectful of the hiring companyrsquos process

Do this follow-up by email not phone Some people advise you to include a closing line in your cover note like ldquoI will call your office on Tuesday to see if you received thisrdquo Donrsquot do that Direct phone calls are disruptive and presumptuous and that interruption doesnrsquot recognize that the company has their own process and pace

The only exception to the phone call follow-up is if you are a high-powered sales person In that case your persistence illustrates your ability to get appointments to present your product

The Magical Interview Thank You Notefrom the blog



I hope these tips have given you some ideas about how you can make your resume more magnetic so attracts the attention of the right people and makes it impossible for them to resist putting you on their ldquomust interviewrdquo list

Make sure to carve out some time to browse around my website wwwTheRealJobGurucom for more information about resumes cover letters interviews career planning networking and social media for job searches salary negotiations and all things job related Irsquom always working on new information for you

Irsquom here when you need help in creating a clear picture of where you want to go in your life what kind of career fits into that vision and to help you stand out so yoursquore the one who gets the offer

Whether your most pressing need is a magnetic resume that attracts attention coaching in how to present your best side so you ace that interview or advice in negotiating the best possible salary I have experience that you can draw on

And if you havenrsquot checked it out already my new book BE REAL The Simple Secret to Knowing the Perfect Job for You puts my personal coaching system into an easy-to-follow and fun-to-do format that guides you step by step to creating a personal checklist thatrsquos your own made-for-you recipe for career bliss

Check it out and yoursquoll learn some new things about yourself that will help in carving out the kind of life you want even if you arenrsquot looking for a new job

Wishing you a career and a life where you can be your real self do what you love and have the kind of future yoursquove always imagined All the best to you

wwwTheRealJobGurucom

Take timeto customize each application Quality beats quantity every time

Donrsquot apply to jobs you donrsquot want or arenrsquot qualified for Itrsquos demoralizing and it wastes time

Keep it under two easy-to-read cleanly laid-out pages that can be easily scanned

Use a positioning headline that instantly shows yoursquore a match to the job requirements

Write in simple language Avoid corporate babble and write more like you talk

Make it 100 perfect No typos grammatical errors misspellings or mistakes

Always include a brief friendly cover note tailored to the job

Include informative and proud descriptions of the companies yoursquove worked for

Donrsquot be afraid to show let the REAL you shine through Show some personality

If you think you really are a great fit for that job follow up without pressure after a week or ten days



Irsquom Leslie The Real Job Guru

I love resumes A great resume used the right way is magnetic

It attracts attention for the right jobs gives a taste of your personality makes people want to know more about you and gets you on the interview listhellip itrsquos impossible to resist

And yet most resumes are pretty awful and are headed straight to the recycle bin because they are the opposite of magnetic

Of the tens of thousands of resumes Irsquove reviewed in my career as a recruiter and headhunter Irsquod say that 90 of resumes crash and burn because they fail to make a case for why this person is the right fit for this specific job

Worst of all most people donrsquot know that their resume is the problem so they keep sending it out in the same way and wondering why theyrsquore

getting no response

So Irsquove put together these ten important (and not-very-difficult) secrets to an irresistible resume

This isnrsquot everything you need to know about irresistible resumes of course but itrsquos a great start and you may find the answer to the thing

thatrsquos been holding you back

So herersquos to attracting the job you really want

Leslie Ayres

PS Irsquove included links to some of my blogs over at NBC Universalrsquos website Work Goes Strong where

Irsquom the resident career expert in case you want to delve a little deeper on any of these




























































































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10 Secrets to an Irresistible Resume - New Direction...

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