5 Simple Steps to Creating a Killer Strengths Based Master...

5 Simple Steps to Creating a KillerStrengths Based Master Resume

CampbellDuke Personal Branding | CampbellDuke.com

Congratulations!You've taken an important step in transforming your work life, and creating work you LOVE. Thefirst step in career transformation starts with YOU – with you getting clear about who you are, what you love and what you have to offer an employer. Afterall, getting someone to pay you what you're worth for your services means knowing exactly what you've got to offer.

In this mini-module,you will:

• Pull together a master resume that you’ll use to create specifically targetted resumes for each application you make, and

• Learn how to write effective ChallengeActionResults Statements the ‘GOLD’ in your resume. These statements not only help you with your resume but they set you up for more successful interviews. Really.

Finding work you LOVE is all about knowing your strengths and skills and having effectiveexamples to back them up. You have more strengths and skills than you know. It’s time to getclear on what they are and show them to potential employers.

Let’s get started!

BethBeth Campbell Duke, BSc., BEd.


Resume BasicsYour 'Master Resume' is a document that contains all of the information you'll pick andchoose from when creating a new targeted resume for each position you're applying for. Notall of your work experience, volunteer work, skills or references will be appropriate for everyapplication, and having an up to date master document that you can copy and modify foreach new position you're applying for makes creating each targeted resume easier.

It’s important that you target each resume you send out! Gone are the days when you created100 copies of the same resume (on buff-coloured paper) and mailed them out willy-nilly.

In today’s world, both employers and employees are looking for a work situation that fulfills the needs of both parties. It’s expensive for employers to have a new hire and they’re payingmore attention to finding the ‘best fit’ just as you are. In this scenario, it becomes critical thatboth you and your potential employer are clear on the unique combination of personality type,interests, strengths and values that they’re looking for and that you bring to the table.

The resume is still a key document for job hunters looking to attract the attention ofpotential employers they’d like to work with.

The secret to writing a 'killer' resume one that will attract attention is to include short,powerful statements of your strengths and accomplishments. Yes – these can take sometime to write – but it's time well-spent.

In the process of writing these statements, you're also helping yourself write the answers to many of the most problematic behavioural interview questions you'll be sure to face when you get your interview!

If you have already created your Master Life/Work Portfolio now’s the time to grab it. Withany luck, you already have at hand a number of the documents you’ll need to fast-trackyourself through some (or all!) of these steps.


The 5 Simple Steps To Creating A KillerMaster Resume:

1. Create the reverse-chronological component of your master resume.• Use old resumes and update work experience, volunteer experience, special

hobbies, training, etc. List items within categories from most recent to oldest. A template is included in Appendix I.

2. Write Challenge-Action-Result Statements.• For each job, volunteer position or experience you've included in your master

resume, write a Challenge-Action-Result (CAR) Statement. These statements provide the 'magic' in your resume because when read together, a story about your strengths and skills begins to emerge. More instructions are below and a template can be found in Appendix II.

3. Define your top 3-5 strengths and skills.• This step will be made considerably easier when you have a bank of CAR

statements written. Your 3-5 top strengths will be used to create your resume 'focus' statement. Unlike 'objective' statements which tend to focus on what you are looking for, focus statements are about addressing the needs of the employer. These strengths and skills will also be required later in the Personal Branding process for writing your social media bios, website content, and for performing well in interviews.

4. Find current example of skills-based, chronological and combination resumes .• There are good examples online, and there are books with great examples for

sale or to borrow from your local library. Choose a format that is current, that you like and that you can easily reproduce yourself using your word processing software. You're aiming for something that you're comfortable with, is easy to read, and makes you stand out!

5. Format your Master Resume.• You've taken the time to create the content, now don't overlook actually

formatting your resume. It is also worthwhile to have someone do some editing and proofreading. Ditto for your targeted resumes. When an employer has to sift through hundreds of applications, even minor annoyances will shunt your application into the 'reject' pile.

Find an example of a combination resume at CampbellDuke.com/about.


Writing Challenge – Action – ResultStatementsRegardless of the resume format you choose, you will grab more attention with your skillsand experiences descriptors when they're written in the active voice, using powerful verbs.Challenge-Action-Result statements help us transform what can often be dull 'roles andresponsibilities' descriptions into vibrant, attention-grabbing declarations of our success!

By working through these statements, you'll be creating not just a stellar resume, but you'realso creating a bank of real-life examples that will become just the answers you'll need when you get into the interview process.

This is an example of how to take a standard resume 'roles and responsibilities' typestatement and rewrite it into a powerful CAR statement. Whenever possible, make sure toinclude hard numbers in your results statements. If you improved the company sales ordecreased costs – know and state by how much.

Standard Resume 'Role and Responsibility' Descriptor:• Stocked and tidied shelves, and assisted customers in their selection and purchase of

items.

This is a description taken from a resume of a young worker in his first retail job. While itappears in this example as one statement, there are really 4 main tasks he takes on in thisposition.

• Stocking and tidying shelves• Assisting customers with their purchases• Running the cash register – including handling cash, credit card and debit transactions• Advising customers on the care and cleaning of leather and other goods

Each of these responsibilities need to be written up using the Challenge-Action-Resultmethod outlined below. Once you have a handful of these done, a clear pattern begins to emerge and you'll see repetition of your strengths emerging.

Challenge Statement: What is the main challenge or benefit youencounter in this role?

Example: Stocking and tidying shelves is a job that not everybody likes, but it's important forthe store to run well. Stocking shelves gives me a chance to learn about the inventory, knowwhere everything is in the store, and learn more about the products so I can better helpcustomers. In a small repair shop with a lot of inventory, keeping the place tidy is importantso it doesn't look junky.


Action Statement: What actions did you take to address thechallenges?

Example: I made a special effort to replace items that customers had been looking at in atimely manner. It was important to me that items were put away and could be found easily byme and staff on other shifts and that the store appeared as neat as possible. I applied thisidea to the storage of items in the back-of-shop so that it was easier to figure out when toreorder and to find more boxes in the back if they were there.

Result Statement: What specific improvements were realized in theworkplace?

Example: I helped improve how we decide to reorder by having the shelf restockers keep alist that the owner could use for her own inventory and ordering. I did my part to help keep thestock organized and neatly displayed so that customers could find what they want and madeit easy for the sales staff to help customers find what they needed.

Rewrite As Single-Sentence CAR Statements:

Examples:• Improved the inventory and stock ordering procedure for the store's owner by giving

the sales staff an easy way to make note of items that needed reordering.• Increased customers' ability to easily find items by taking the restocking and shelf

tidying tasks seriously.

Notice that even in this simple example, the focus of these statements is on the value thisemployee brought to his previous employer.

These statements speak VOLUMES about your attitude in the workplace.

Using this CAR method helps you identify and pull out the real skills you were using in theworkplace.

Before• Stocked and tidied shelves, and assisted customers in their selection and purchase of

items.

After• Improved the inventory and stock ordering procedure for the store's owner by giving

the sales staff an easy way to make note of items that needed reordering.• Increased customers' ability to easily find items by taking the restocking and shelf

tidying tasks seriously.

The first example statement included at least 4 important and transferrable skills that werenot obvious to either the job seeker or anyone reading the resume. Even by only addressing


one of the 4 skills (stocking shelves), this job seeker now has a stronger resume and is in amuch better position to discuss these real life examples during an interview. The potentialemployer also gets a better picture of your 'soft skills' like attitude and work ethic and isconsiderably more likely to pick up the phone to set up an interview.

Organizing Your CAR Statement Sheets

You’ll find a CAR Statement sheet in Appendix II. For each ‘role and responsibility’ statementyou’ve written on your Master Resume, you’ll work through at least one CAR statementworksheet.

• Print out as many copies of Appendix II as you require.• Complete the Challenge-Action-Results statements for each ‘Role and• Responsibility’.• Choose one main skill for each sheet this becomes a ‘story’ that demonstrates that• particular skill.• Add the short CAR statement to the appropriate section of your master resume.• Take note of the skills that seem to be most prevalent these are the skills you’ll add

to the ‘Strengths/Skills’ section of your resume.• File the completed CAR sheet in the appropriate section of your portfolio.


Appendix I: Master Resume Templateyour name

Street Address | City, Province, Postal Code | T 5555551212| C 5555551313

Your website URL | Your matching email addressProfessional Online Profiles: LinkedIn.com/in/YourProfile; Facebook.com/YourPage

My Personal Brand Statement / Focus Statement(s)Find these on your 'Pink Sheet' and from your Professional Biography.

Strengths/SkillsWe work on determining your strengths and skills in more detail in the 'BUILD On Strength'program. You will also have a better idea of your strengths and skills after completing CARstatements for your work and volunteer experience – so come back to this section if needed.

Strength/Skill #1

Strength/Skill #2

Strength/Skill #3

Strength/Skill #4

Strength/Skill #5

Current/Past Community InvolvementList your current and (recently) past volunteer positions. Be mindful of which of these have helpedyou develop/ showcase your strength/skills. Collect any letters of recommendation or other itemsof proof of your involvement – either physical or digital for your portfolio.Organization:_______________________________ Dates:_______________________

Role/Responsibility:_________________________________________________________

Organization:________________________________ Dates:______________________

Role/Responsibility :_________________________________________________________






EducationList the formal education courses you have taken, in reverse-chronological order. This resumesection usually only contains secondary and formal postsecondary institutions you've attended. Ifyou haven't completed a diploma or degree, list the expected completion date or be clear abouthow many years you have completed. Keep copies of your transcripts in both hardcopy and digital.Institution:__________________________________ Dates:______________________

Course/Diploma/Degree & Extracurricular :______________________________________

Institution:__________________________________ Dates:______________________


Institution:__________________________________ Dates:______________________


Work ExperienceList here all previous positions you've held – even short term jobs or those you didn't particularlylike. Remember to focus on Challenge, Action and Result – use power words. Collect and keepcopies of letters of recommendation and thanks and store them in your portfolio.Company:__________________________________ Dates:______________________


Reference:_________________________________________________________________

Company:__________________________________ Dates:______________________


Reference:_________________________________________________________________

Company:__________________________________ Dates:______________________


Reference:_________________________________________________________________

Company:__________________________________ Dates:______________________


Reference:_________________________________________________________________


Appendix II: Writing CAR StatementsWrite a separate CAR statement for each 'Role and Responsibility' from the previous experience, currentcommunity involvement or past volunteer position on your master resume. When you’re finished, indicatewhich main skill this statement illustrates and add it to your master resume. File this sheet in the appropriateportfolio section.

Main Skills: Communication | Technological Literacy | Personal Skills &Values | Leadership, Teamwork, Management | Multicultural Understanding |Analytical/Research | Other:

Role/Responsibility Statement:____________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Challenge Faced In This Position:_________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Action(s) I Took:________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Result:________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

CAR Statements:_______________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________


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