While no one intentionally wants to sell themselves short, it is unfortunately a common aspect of human behavior. This isn’t always the result of low self-esteem. Sometimes this happens as a result of developing bad habits and getting stuck in them for too long. Case in point: your resume. Quite a few people struggle with their job search for months, only to visit
professional resume writers and learn their resume is the majority of the problem! Your resume is supposed to help your chances of finding work, not hinder it! Here are a few ways you can help yourself.
Don’t View Your Accomplishments Through the Wrong Lens
Many people think of their accomplishments from previous jobs as being the general responsibilities associated with them. This is not only false, but downplays your own unique skills tremendously. Never list your basic duties under your accomplishments! Rather, think about what you did for the position that no one else could.
Think about what impact you left upon the previous companies you’ve worked for and anything you’ve received commendation for. This is worth mentioning. It provides potential employers with an excellent picture of what kind of employee you’ll be and why you’re worth bringing aboard over everyone else looking for the same position.
Adopt More Efficient Means of Looking for Work
If you’re looking at specific companies to work for, simply filling out their online job application won’t do you any favors. You have to hit them where it counts! It’s easier than you think to find out who’s in charge of hiring at your desired workplace. All it takes, in fact, is a bit of googling!
You can then contact them by email. What should you put in this email? A cover letter appealing to the company and its needs is a great place to start! Before you start penning this email, be sure to look carefully over the job listing you’ve found for a second time. You’ll want to be sure to hit a majority of the points featured on it. Remember you can always turn to a
cover letter writing service for help with this task.
Keep Your Skills in Mind
Skills are becoming more important than ever to today’s job market, meaning you’ll have to have a clear idea of what your individual skills are and how they can apply to your industry of choice. If you aren’t sure what these skills are, you run the risk of marketing yourself inefficiently to employers and being passed over for a valuable opportunity. Too many job seekers are unable to properly identify what qualifies as a skill. Luckily, you can rely on
top rated resume writing services to help you hash out the best way to frame your skill set.
At Professional Resume Services, we believe you deserve the best job available for your level of expertise and experience. This is why we work closely with job seekers to ensure their resume adequately reflects their potential as employees and appeals to industry recruiters. Don’t hesitate to
reach out to us to help improve your resume and display your full potential!
Resumes are hard work. As one of the leading teams of
executive resume writers, we’ve witnessed this fact up close several times over and we understand. It’s tricky to know just how to market yourself and appeal to potential employers, regardless of what industry you’re in. To help make it easier, we’ve put together this list of potentially great additions to your resume that could be of interest to a recruiter!
1. Qualifications
This could be a great piece of information to list about yourself as an alternative to the “objective” section of your resume. This is a surefire way to appeal to employers because it gives them an idea of what you’re capable of right away and reveals the most important aspects of what makes you hire-able.
Depending on what the job posting says, you may want to go into more detail with this section. Consider including how long you’ve utilized this particular skill in the workforce, as well as anything else that will help you look especially qualified, such as any related professional skills.
2. Titles
When you’re listing out your prior work experience on your
executive resume bio, don’t skirt around your position there! Titles are an extremely important indicator of your status within the company and could generate further interest from a recruiter. They also give potential employers a better idea of what your responsibilities were at your previous jobs and what they can expect from you should they hire you to work for them.
3. Details and Numbers
Specificity can catch an employer’s eye, not just in the realm of job titles, but also in terms of your responsibilities and accomplishments while there. Don’t be afraid to brag a little, but be sure to stay truthful! Include precise numbers when talking about how you’ve made a difference in your previous positions. This includes percentages and other quantifiers. Recruiters will latch on to this and keep it in mind.
4. Languages
While bilingualism wasn’t necessarily as desired in the past, it is becoming increasingly important to today’s recruiters, especially as industries across the board become increasingly international. If you speak any additional languages, it may be a good idea to include them on your resume, depending on what your field is. Though it’s a small detail, it could create an important tipping point as far as whether you’re called in for an interview or not.
5. Education
Again, adding in your education depends largely on the type of job you’re applying for and, potentially, how long you’ve been out of school. Your educational history will be more important if you’re a recent graduate as opposed to a seasoned professional who earned their last degree 15 years ago. However, if the job you’re applying for wants a degree of a certain type, it may be a good idea to include your degree information if it matches, regardless of how long it’s been since you received it.
While these suggestions aren’t guaranteed to get you hired, they could serve as an eye-catching factor for an employer. Of course, to make your resume a true standout, you’ll want to turn to the
best resume writing service available. Never hesitate to
get in touch and learn the newest tips and tricks for fine-tuning your resume!
The differences in resume formatting seem to be a little-known fact among job hunters. Most people have learned to write out a resume in one way or another and learn about any alternative methods later on in life, either when they no longer are submitting resumes to recruiters or are in the throes of a job search. Currently, there are two types of resume formats: functional and chronological. Both of them have their advantages. It will serve any
executive resume writer well to know about both formats in order to decide which will better suit their needs.
Functional Resumes
You can think of a functional resume as something of a professional showcase. It is meant to underline what you can do. In other words, it’s about the experiences you’ve had and the skills you’ve gathered and developed. These two elements of your career history should receive the most focus on this type of resume. While chronological information can still be included, it should be kept brief and be written last.
Generally, you will write a functional resume so each skill you’d like to discuss serves as a header. You can then devote a few lines underneath to discuss what this skill entailed and how you’ve utilized it throughout your career positions. You will also have to talk a little bit about yourself at the top of the page, mainly about your academic and career history. Again, this should also be brief.
This format may prove useful for some executives in the middle of switching careers. However, it isn’t the best executive resume format in the eyes of hiring managers and recruiters. Using a functional resume may give off the impression you have large gaps in your work or academic history or you otherwise have some other detractor from your hireability you don’t want to divulge.
Chronological Resumes
Unlike functional resumes, chronological resumes basically serve as a timeline of your career history. Resumes of this type list out your full work history from your newest position to your oldest, as well as a bit about your skill set and similar information. Under each position you list, you’ll also include a bit about the tasks you fulfilled, along with any accolades you’ve earned while there.
Those with a lot of experience in their chosen field will find this resume format the most helpful, as will newly graduated college students. Recruiters will also find this format much easier to sort through and read. However, this type of resume can be misleading when it comes to shorter career positions you’ve held, and your skills will be downplayed considerably.
We consider this to be the most useful resume format because it displays all important information up front with no risk of miscommunication. It is especially useful for downplaying any existing gaps in your work history. Every recruiter and hiring manager will recognize and accept this format so you’re far less likely to hurt your chances of gaining their interest. We recommend making chronological resumes your first choice!
Writing a resume is understandably tough. However, picking the right format can help move things along. If you’re still unsure of the best way to organize your resume, you can always consult the best resume writing services for suggestions on which resume format to use! Be sure to get in touch to get the help you need and land the job of your dreams!
In today’s increasingly digitized world, the resume is becoming more important than ever before. Your resume is one of the first ways potential employers get to know you, after all, which means it needs to be as polished as possible in order to make a good impression. However, crafting an excellent resume can be tricky, even if (or perhaps especially if) you have a lot of experience under your belt. If this is the case, let us offer you a few tips on how to achieve the best executive resume format and really “wow” your potential and future employers!
Research the Best Keywords
You’ve likely noticed how rapidly keywords are growing in significance in the business world. It turns out keywords are just as important to personal marketing as it is to commercial marketing. But just what are the best keywords to use?
Specific job titles are a great place to start. Use any and every high ranking position you’ve held in the past on your resume to help catch an employer’s eye. This is one of the easiest and best ways to display your credentials. Additionally, anything you frequently performed or used on the average work day, from PC programs to basic duties, are fair game. You’ll also want to give employers a clear image of what your previous positions entailed and what they can expect from you if you’re hired. The idea is to be very detailed since you don’t know what keywords will prompt a prospective employer to look at your resume.
Have a Point
There are very few instances where people like rambling. Don’t lose sight of the point of your resume as you write. While this may sound obvious, it is very easy to get lost in the slew of details you’ll need to include and forget to get to the heart of the matter. The most important goal of your executive bio is to get hired for the job you want. Showcase who you are and what you can do for the company you want to work for by listing your skills and strengths with relevance to the company’s needs. Before you even start on your resume, we recommend scoping out the industry so you can fine-tune your expectations and objectives.
Be Brief
You want to detail your expertise on a point-by-point basis. Being concise will automatically score you points with an employer because this shows you understand and respect that they have one minute—at the most—to review your resume. This will also help them to understand more about you as a professional in that amount of time.
You can accomplish this by writing out a summarizing paragraph on your resume’s first page. If you need help properly paring down your credentials down to a short paragraph, you can turn to a cover letter writing service for help.
If you’ve followed us for a while, or just have ample knowledge of how job searching and the professional world work, then you know the importance of crafting a personal brand. This is how you appeal to other professionals, especially those who may hire you to work for them later on. The main issue for anyone attempting c-level personal branding, however, is figuring out how to go about it efficiently. In this blog, we’ll give you a few tips on how to brand yourself efficiently and catch the eye of recruiters in an instant!
Include Your Accomplishments
While this goes without saying, your accomplishments within your industry will be some of the most important elements of your personal brand and should not be ignored. The key aspect here is how you incorporate them. You don’t want to splay them all out like playing cards strewn on a table. Rather, you can frame them in a way that appeals more readily to employers.
For a few ideas on how to do this, you can always rely on a team of the best executive resume writers in your area or do a bit of independent research. While you should strive to keep your entire resume brief, you can add a bit of color to your stories by describing them in the form of a (very) brief story—three lines maximum, to be precise.
Think About How You’ve Contributed to Your Industry
This part of brand construction may prove a bit challenging, but it is the perfect method of showing any recruiter or hiring agent how you are a valuable employee. By creating your personal brand, you are effectively telling other professionals a story. Make it appealing by getting to the meat of the action! This means displaying your contributions to the past companies you’ve worked for. It may help to follow the C-A-R formula for these contribution stories, ‘C-A-R’ meaning Challenge, Action and Result. Think about what was being asked of you at the time, how you completed the task at hand and what happened afterward.
Research as Much as Possible
Oftentimes catching a glimpse of others’ work and ideas can help inspire you. If you’re stumped as to how to start or flesh out your personal brand, looking at how others have constructed theirs can give you a boost. We don’t mean lifting someone else’s work entirely, however! Writing an effective resume means showcasing your own strengths and individualizing yourself. Copying someone else entirely defeats the purpose.
As you surf through your Google results and check out what other people are doing, be sure to evaluate your own methods and ideas. How can you apply what they’re doing to your own strengths and accomplishments? Think about how you have influenced your previous employers in ways no one else did. This will help you figure out how to brand yourself well.
Additionally, it may help to get in touch with a professional resume writer to learn what you can do to better market yourself. You may come away with a new perspective toward your career and professional potential that you’ve never considered before, one that will wow employers on the spot!
When you’re in the middle of a job hunt, it can be hard to know which resources to focus on most and which are worth your while. While the Internet—and especially social media—has been brushed off in the past as a means of finding work, it now can serve as an extremely valuable tool during your job search efforts. Here’s how you can make the most of it!
1. Communicate
Social media is just that: social! Now is a prime opportunity to try and reach out to other people in your industry. Many of today’s social media platforms feature chat rooms about a myriad of subjects. You can easily find one related to your chosen industry and get to know other professionals in your area of expertise. They can help point you in the right direction as far as who’s hiring and what’s going on in your field.
2. Take Advantage of Popular Social Media Platforms
Thanks to their widespread usage, you may have come to associate the most popular social media sites, like LinkedIn and Facebook, as either purely for socialization and fun, or are simply skeptical as to whether they can really help you during your job search. As it turns out, this is one situation where you should truly believe the hype!
While sites Twitter, Facebook and others like it are most commonly used for social networking, you don’t want to discount the networking aspect. If you play your cards right and focus your efforts on business, you can use your social media accounts to forge worthwhile connections that can lead you to better job opportunities. Now would be a great time to create your LinkedIn profile if you haven’t already.
3. Google Yourself
While this may sound a bit vain, you’ll want to Google yourself before you set up any social media accounts just for the sake of seeing what comes up. Letting this go unchecked means you risk the chance of potential employers running into something unsavory when (and not if!) they look you up. You’re better off playing it safe and checking up on what’s associated with you on the Internet. Otherwise, it could end up costing you valuable job opportunities.
4. Be Direct
You don’t need to be discreet about your job search! Let those close to you know you’re in the midst of a hunt. You’ll need all the help you can get, and you never know where great connections will come from! Even if they don’t know any people who can directly provide you with work, they’ll be able to keep a look out for opportunities for you.
5. Focus on Networking
One of the best and most important aspects of any social media platform is its ability to quickly and easily put you in contact with millions of people, regardless of location. Be sure to use this to advantage! This will a key element to your Facebook and LinkedIn profile development. By researching the higher ups of the companies you’re interested in working for, you’ll know how to frame your social media accounts to better appeal to them. It will also be easier for you to get in touch with them and make a good impression.
We hope these tips will help you utilize social media far more easily as you look for your next career position. Of course, if you find yourself overwhelmed or confused, you can always turn to LinkedIn profile writing services to help you make the most of professional social media usage. Don’t hesitate to turn to your nearest resume writing service for your other job search needs!
While social media is a relatively new development, it has made waves around the world thanks to its exceptionally wide reach. It can now be used to influence the world, whether it’s through helping others form lasting friendships or simply staying in touch with those they love, inspire political change or even communicate consumer needs to businesses across the globe. Anyone in the middle of a job search can benefit from social media to land the perfect new job. Here’s what you can do to boost your success!
Utilize Your Options Well
While social media is an amazing means of connecting with employers and fellow professionals, you can’t try the spaghetti method by throwing options wildly and going with whatever adheres. You have to plan exactly how to use your social media profiles to their fullest and stay diligent with it. Creating a
LinkedIn profile is a good place to start because it will put you in touch with millions of professionals in your industry, as well as businesses looking for someone with your talents. You’ll ultimately want to sign up with more than one service because this will give you the chance to collect a greater number of opportunities and news about jobs available to you out there.
We must highlight the fact maintaining any kind of social media presence takes time and investment. For instance, while writing a tweet may take up only 140 characters, you have to plan how to use those characters as efficiently as possible to market yourself. Before you even think of signing up for that first account, you’ll want to consider how you’ll go about advertising yourself and which channels will serve you best for this goal.
Don’t Discount Social Media Entirely
Quite a few people still dismiss social media as a vapid pastime with no hope of generating serious forms of engagement. As time has repeatedly proven, however, this viewpoint is several shades of wrong. Millions of businesses in this day and age have caught on to the social media wave and are using it to reach out to more consumers than ever before. In fact, many of today’s job board sites also have social media accounts you can follow so you can stay on top of opportunities to apply.
If businesses and job boards can take proper advantage of it, so can you! Proper
LinkedIn profile development will be key to establishing your professional online presence so you’ll want to get on-board with what social media can offer you and reap the benefits of those opportunities.
Take Advantage of the ‘Social’ Aspect of Social Media
There’s no point in using any social media platform for your job search if all you’re planning to do is push out posts and never interact with anyone. Reaching out to other professionals can help you stay in the know as far as what today’s job boards are posting. You’ll soon find a wealth of opportunities pooling toward you from across the web, likely from job boards you’ve never heard of before!
If the idea of social media intimidates you, you aren’t alone. You can depend on a
LinkedIn profile writing service to help you get started. We recommend to
get in touch with your nearest resume writing service and start learning the ropes today!
Career changes are becoming increasingly common in today’s ever-shifting world, especially as people with multiple skills and access to different, better options are leaving less fulfilling careers to move toward new opportunities. No matter who you are and how secure you are in this decision, switching to a new field can be incredibly daunting. This holds especially true if you’ve spent several years within your old field and are just now gaining the chance and confidence to move onto the new. How can you market yourself and get your foot in the door? Will any of your old experiences and skill sets help you gain the job you want?
Luckily, there are a few things you can do to help boost your chances of successfully breaking into a new industry.
1. Don’t Forget Your “Extracurriculars”
Not every experience included on your resumes and cover letters has to be on the job. As long as it applies in some shape or form to the jobs you’re applying for and the industry you’re trying to get a foothold in, it will appeal to potential employers. You can include such things as internships and organizations, among others.
2. Rewrites Are Likely
After spending so much time building up your resume for your current field, it may feel like a waste to scrap it and start anew for a job change. However, it’s worth it for a variety of reasons. Each job you’ll apply to will have different interests and needs, which you will have to analyze in terms of how well you’ll fit. Tailoring your resume to different jobs makes sense because it gives employers a sharp idea of how well you’ll fit in with the company. If this idea seems daunting to you, you can always turn to a professional resume writing service for ways to rewrite your resume effectively!
3. Keep It Brief
You may feel tempted to pad your resume if you don’t have quite enough experience in your new field. Don’t! You have merely a few seconds to catch a potential employer’s attention, and overloading them with information about your experiences, whether true or embellished, is just the right way to turn them off completely. Make the most of your resume by including only the most important experiences and other bits of professional information.
4. Format Your Resume Properly
Not even the most spectacular resume will make the cut if there are noticeable formatting errors. The good news is you have a bit of wiggle room when it comes to acceptable resume formats. There are letter resumes, which amount stylistically to experience-based cover letters; functional resumes, which focus on any skills you have in relation to your chosen field; and chronological resumes, which organize your experiences from newest to oldest. Feel free to pick whichever format is right for you!
No matter what field you’re trying to enter, you can rely on top rated resume writing services to help you craft an appealing resume! Don’t hesitate to get in touch to learn how you can improve your prospects and earn the job you deserve.
