The most critical thing when writinga resume is to write the resume the HR person wants to read. Every person who has ever posted a job or everwritten a job description has an idea of the perfect resume for that role. Theproblem, as I’m sure you’re aware for the job seekers, is that the hiringmanagers get so many applications that they need to know that this is the rightresume within 30 seconds. I’ve written before many times about the black holeof resume submissions and I have no doubt if you’re reading this blog you’refamiliar with that experience; sending out countless resumes but getting noresponse.
I’m going to give you the best way to get the hiring managerto say yes the second they see your resume. But I warn you it’s very timeconsuming and of course won’t always work. It’s four simple words: Reverse Write Your Resume.
Here’s what you do:
On half your screen put up a blankword document, and on the other side of the screen pop open a job description.You’re going to write your resume over from scratch forgetting everythingyou’ve ever done before; you’re going to ignore all the rules of resume writingyou’ve learned; You’re going to delete from your memory bank all your favoritesentences from your resume; you’re going to stop and truly read this jobdescription.
Think about it! How often do youreally read a job description? How often do you take the time to analyze themindset of the person writing the job description? Do they use long sentencesor short sentences? Do they use a lot of adjectives or are they terse? Do theyemphasize culture, performance, past experience, or future goals?
Don’t get bogged down in the psychobabblebut start making assumptions about the person who wrote this job description.Now be a sales person and write your resume in a similar tone. If they use longsentences, use long sentences. If they use short sentences, use short sentences.Pick up on the cues.
Once you have a sense of themindset of your targeted reader, you are going to do something very simple andit is going to take you 50% of the way there. Put down your first line of yourprofessional headline in big bold font and make it the job title of the jobyou’re applying for. If the job is a certified public accountant, you want “Certified Public Accountant” to be themost prominent line on your resume. Just by doing that you’ve made it so easyfor the hiring manager to decide that your resume is worth reading.
You’re well on your way now! I understand this first step is timeconsuming so I’ll give you some time to complete it before we move on to attackthe oh so sneaky ‘sub-headline.’ Be sure to post some killer headlines below inthe comment section.
Sean Weinberg is the COO and co-founder of RezScore, a free web application that reads, analyzes, and grades resumes – instantly. Also the founder of Freedom Resumes, Sean has dedicated his career to helping job seekers write the best possible resumes.
Posted at 09:15 AM in Advice, Applying, Career | Permalink | |
| | Digg This Comments The Most Effective Way to Target Your Resume - Part I The most critical thing when writinga resume is to write the resume the HR person wants to read. Every person who has ever posted a job or everwritten a job description has an idea of the perfect resume for that role. Theproblem, as I’m sure you’re aware for the job seekers, is that the hiringmanagers get so many applications that they need to know that this is the rightresume within 30 seconds. I’ve written before many times about the black holeof resume submissions and I have no doubt if you’re reading this blog you’refamiliar with that experience; sending out countless resumes but getting noresponse.
I’m going to give you the best way to get the hiring managerto say yes the second they see your resume. But I warn you it’s very timeconsuming and of course won’t always work. It’s four simple words: Reverse Write Your Resume.
Here’s what you do:
On half your screen put up a blankword document, and on the other side of the screen pop open a job description.You’re going to write your resume over from scratch forgetting everythingyou’ve ever done before; you’re going to ignore all the rules of resume writingyou’ve learned; You’re going to delete from your memory bank all your favoritesentences from your resume; you’re going to stop and truly read this jobdescription.
Think about it! How often do youreally read a job description? How often do you take the time to analyze themindset of the person writing the job description? Do they use long sentencesor short sentences? Do they use a lot of adjectives or are they terse? Do theyemphasize culture, performance, past experience, or future goals?
Don’t get bogged down in the psychobabblebut start making assumptions about the person who wrote this job description.Now be a sales person and write your resume in a similar tone. If they use longsentences, use long sentences. If they use short sentences, use short sentences.Pick up on the cues.
Once you have a sense of themindset of your targeted reader, you are going to do something very simple andit is going to take you 50% of the way there. Put down your first line of yourprofessional headline in big bold font and make it the job title of the jobyou’re applying for. If the job is a certified public accountant, you want “Certified Public Accountant” to be themost prominent line on your resume. Just by doing that you’ve made it so easyfor the hiring manager to decide that your resume is worth reading.
You’re well on your way now! I understand this first step is timeconsuming so I’ll give you some time to complete it before we move on to attackthe oh so sneaky ‘sub-headline.’ Be sure to post some killer headlines below inthe comment section.
Sean Weinberg is the COO and co-founder of RezScore, a free web application that reads, analyzes, and grades resumes – instantly. Also the founder of Freedom Resumes, Sean has dedicated his career to helping job seekers write the best possible resumes.
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