Is it the Right Time to Ask for a Raise?

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Going to your boss and asking for a raise is always a sensitive topic of discussion. But if you ask at the right time and do a little homework beforehand, then you can at least minimize some of the awkwardness. The point of asking for a raise is to tell your boss you believe you’ve gone above and beyond in your current role and believe you should be compensated accordingly. Or you may simply think you’re underpaid to do your day-to-day duties. Any executive resume writing service will tell you to proceed with caution when asking for a raise, and to consider waiting to do so until you’ve come across these situations.

When You’ve Added On Responsibilities

If your job responsibilities continue increasing, but your salary remains the same, there will probably come a time when you think you aren’t getting compensated fairly. Don’t ask for the raise upfront though. Wait until you’ve had some time to show the ability to handle these additional responsibilities. That way you have some backbone to your claims in asking for more money since you’ve proven to be able to handle them all.

Look At Your Company’s Recent Performance

When writing resumes and cover letters during the job searching process, you likely researched the performance of the company you currently work for. That research may have helped you land the job, just like the research could help you land a raise as well. No matter how many accomplishments you’ve had at your job, it’s never appropriate to ask for a raise if the company as a whole is performing poorly. On the other hand, if the company is performing well and you believe you contributed to the positive performance, talk it over with your boss and see if your performance merits getting a raise.

Consider Waiting Until Your Performance Review

Your executive resume writing service may suggest waiting until your annual performance review is approaching before bringing up the idea of a raise. So a few weeks ahead of your anticipated review, talk to your boss about a potential salary increase so they will take it into consideration while performing their assessment. Then you can wait for the answer during the actual review and can discuss further as needed.
At Professional Resume Services, we help executives create quality resumes and cover letters, enhance their LinkedIn profile and even provide tips on the best ways to handle sensitive subjects with your current employer. The hope is your employer will recognize great work when they see it and reward employees accordingly. However, there are different reasons and circumstances why that’s not always true. If you’re put in a spot where you think you need a raise and don’t know how to approach your boss, contact us for some helpful advice.

Is Your Executive Resume Stuck in the Stone Age?

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Some things simply go out of style, and your resume may be one of them. The best professional resume writers always see resumes that look like they were written 20 years ago. And if it’s clear to those professional writers, then you can guarantee it will be clear to a hiring manager as well. Not only will an old-looking resume potentially give away your age, but it could show you’re not quite caught up with the times and hurt your job candidacy as a result. Here are some of the most common things people still do on their resume that makes it look like it’s from the stone age.

Not Including Links To Social Media Accounts

The top resume writing services will always suggest including links to your social media accounts, assuming they’ve been cleaned up. Your LinkedIn profile definitely needs to be one of the links. You can consider incorporating Twitter, Facebook or other platforms if you use them to promote your personal brand or expertise, such as with original articles. Employers today want to know more about you than what’s on a resume and cover letter, so including these links is essential.

Not Conveying Your Personal Brand Clearly

When the best professional resume writers look at your resume, they need to see exactly what your personal brand is. Older resumes are typically generic and lack any type of branding throughout the content. Conveying your personal brand can be as simple as explaining your expertise, your overall views on workplace culture and what you believe in and stand for. Personal branding is not an optional component for resumes today.

Including An “Objective” Section

Every executive resume service today will delete an objective section if they see one on a resume. By submitting your resume to an employer, you are implying your objective, which is to get a job. You don’t need to reiterate it on your resume. Instead, use the space to show why you are the best candidate for the job. Hiring managers aren’t necessarily interested in what you want, but rather, want to know what you can do for them.

Including Your Street Address

Putting your street address at the top of your resume was acceptable more than a decade ago, but not today. The best professional resume writers will only include a name, phone number, email address and maybe a link to a LinkedIn profile. Anything more than that just clutters up the resume and is essentially useless to a hiring manager.
Professional Resume Services is here to help you modernize your resume to increase your chances of landing the interview you desire. Crafting the perfect resume can be difficult with the technology employers use to filter out resumes, but having a modern one is a great first step. If it’s been a while since you last created or updated your resume, feel free to contact us for an evaluation and see how we can help you modernize it.

writing an effective resume

There may come a time in your career when you’re ready for a change. Obvious challenges are present when making a career change, and none are more evident than trying to write resumes that get you hired. Some of your skills may transfer over to your new career, but many of them won’t. Your main goal should be to discuss in your resume which skills you can use from your previous career, as well as why you want to make the career change in the first place. Employers will have plenty of questions for you, but writing an effective resume can answer a few of them. Here are some tips to consider when writing a career changing resume.

Discuss Transferable Skills

Every company wants new employees to have a solid mix of technical skills as well as soft skills. Depending on the nature of your career change, some of your technical skills may not transfer over well. Instead, executive resume writing services may suggest focusing on soft skills like your personality, work ethic, leadership, communication and more. Strong soft skills are transferable to almost any profession, so clearly showing your strongest skills backed by examples will make the most significant impact.

Target The Company

The key to writing an effective resume is targeting the specific company you’re applying for and demonstrating your understanding of their needs. The same is true even if you’re going through a career change. While you may not have the hard skills listed in their job requirements right now, if you have a complete understanding of what the company’s overall needs and goals are, you can shift your resume to target those aspects. Using examples from past experiences to show how you helped previous companies meet their goals will show your track record of success. And when you show an understanding of the company’s goals, they’ll be more impressed that you’ve done your homework and will then know you’re serious about the career change.

Demonstrate Your Passion For The Career Change

Employers today don’t necessarily like taking chances on candidates. They would rather hire someone with the exact experience they desire in their industry. That’s why executive resume writing services will suggest writing your resume to show a clear passion for what you want to accomplish with your career change. Demonstrate how thoroughly you thought the career change through and why the position is exactly what you’re looking for. Employers will look for any reason to not hire a person in your position, but when you show your passion on paper, they’ll be more likely to at least give you the opportunity to interview.
Professional Resume Services knows how difficult it is to change careers. However, when you put forth the effort to write resumes that get you hired, the result is well worth the time and energy. Your resume always needs to be perfect regardless of the situation, and everything is magnified when you’re changing careers. Writing a career changing resume is tricky, so don’t hesitate to contact us if you need help getting started.

3 Reasons Why Setting Realistic Career Goals is Important

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Focusing on the goals you’ve set for yourself can keep you motivated even when times are tough. However, the top resume writing services always see people set unrealistic or overly-ambitious goals, which often ends up hurting them more than helping. One aspect of goal-setting everyone can benefit from is always looking at the end result of what you actually want to achieve. Most goals are based on money or production, but many people feel a hollow happiness when they’re actually achieved for several different reasons. Here are some of the main reasons why you should think about setting realistic career goals for yourself.

Work-Life Balance Is A Necessity

One of the main career goals proven to lead to happiness is having a good work-life balance. Besides, what good does a six figure salary do if you never have the time to enjoy the benefits? Everyone has different lifestyles, so if you live to work instead of work to live, then do what makes you happy. But when work begins taking a toll on you and is impacting your personal life in a negative way, then your executive resume writer may suggest reevaluating your goals and making adjustments as needed.

The Right Salary Expectations Will Make You Happier

Making your goals based around the amount of money you make usually won’t lead to genuine happiness. Money is necessary to live and get the things you want, but if you set unrealistic salary expectations, then the constant grind to achieve it will eventually catch up with you. Instead, every executive resume writer will suggest looking at your current finances, what possessions would make you happy and how much money you need to live comfortably. Taking the time to do so can be eye-opening in either a good way or a bad way. The main idea here is to not focus on the size of the paycheck solely, since long-term happiness usually doesn’t stem from it.

Love What You Do

If you dread the thought of getting up to go to work every morning, then it may be time to reevaluate your career goals. Sometimes the mental aspect of not liking your job will outweigh the size of the paycheck significantly. The happiest executives are the ones who base their goals off of enjoying what they do every day. This doesn’t mean you have to brush up your LinkedIn profile and start looking for a new job if you aren’t happy at your current one, but it may mean you need to set new goals and make little changes. Achieving goals is all about perspective and being realistic. Small victories throughout the course of your career make a big difference in having a positive mindset.
Professional Resume Services is one of the top resume writing services because we focus on every one of our clients as individuals. We understand everyone has different goals and are motivated differently, so we will adapt and cater to those needs and desires. If you struggle with setting attainable goals that will make you truly happy, we can help you think about certain aspects you may not have considered before. We are always available when you need us, so feel free to contact us when that time comes.

What to Do if You Have Employment Gaps in Your Executive Resume and LinkedIn Profile

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Believe it or not, it’s more common for people to have employment gaps on their resume and LinkedIn profile today than ever before. There are plenty of reasons for this as well. You may have taken time off to raise a family and are now ready to re-enter the workforce, had a change of heart about your career and took time to gain education and experience in other areas or for a different reason. If you’re in a situation where you have a glaring employment gap, not all is lost. Here are some things you can do to address these gaps and still find the job you desire.

Never Lie About Employment Gaps

Employers don’t necessarily like to see employment gaps on a resume, but the nature in which you address them can make the perception better or worse. Regardless of the reason for the time difference between jobs, you always have to be honest when asked a question about it. A potential employer will see right through you if you fabricate a story about the gap, and it could cost you the job. The best thing to do is be honest and talk about the learning experiences you had and how you’re a better employee because of it.

Try To Fill Those Gaps If Possible

An executive resume writer can make employment gaps less obvious on your resume without hiding them, but you shouldn’t rely on that. Instead, when you’re faced with an unemployment situation, make the most of it so you can easily justify the gap when the time comes. Consider taking online classes or certification courses, find temporary or volunteer work or do some freelance projects on your own. Your executive resume writer may not necessarily include these actions on your resume, but the potential employer will appreciate the fact you were working on your skills while unemployed.

Make Quality Connections And Demonstrate Your Expertise

Not having a job is a perfect opportunity to take the time to network and make quality professional connections. You never know when an opportunity will arise from talking to new people, so brush up your LinkedIn profile and start becoming more active. Networking both through LinkedIn and in person can be valuable. You have a great chance to demonstrate your expertise by producing valuable content and sharing it with like-minded individuals. Many times when your personal brand is obvious and a positive one, employers will brush off any potential issues regarding gaps in employment.
Professional Resume Services is more than just a professional resume writing service. We have some of the best writers who can make your resume look perfect, but we also want to help you in other aspects of your job search. This includes enhancing your LinkedIn profile, providing networking tips and much more. Be sure to reach out to us if you ever have any questions or concerns about your current or future career situation.

3 Strategies for a Successful Executive Job Search

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Going through an executive job search today is much different than it was a decade ago. The one thing that hasn’t changed is the need for a quality resume. With the competition and the tools used by companies to filter out resumes, many professionals rely on the best executive resume writers to help them out. In fact, this is one of the first things anyone should do to help get their job search started correctly. Once you have a perfect resume, you can incorporate these three strategies to give your job search efforts a boost.

Avoid Online Job Boards

It’s tempting to jump on online job boards after the best executive resume writers finish up your resume. However, even those resume writers will tell you it’s probably not the best idea. Online job boards often times have old job postings or inaccurate job descriptions, not to mention the hundreds or thousands of applicants they receive every single day. Your chances of even having your resume viewed with human eyes are slim-to-none. There’s nothing wrong with looking at online job boards to get an idea of what openings companies of interest may have, but actually applying for those jobs online isn’t usually the best option.
c-level personal branding

Incorporate Networking

Find local networking events and attend them regularly if you can. Start by brushing up your LinkedIn profile and connecting with people through it. You can even use your findings from online job boards to search for people who work at the companies that interest you. Many executives aren’t natural networkers, so starting off a conversation through LinkedIn is a great way to break the ice, make the face-to-face interactions much easier and define your c-level personal branding. Always have a business card ready and hand them out to the people you connect with the most.

Target Companies of Interest

Make a list of several companies you’re interested in working for, then do extensive research on them. The best executive resume writers will ask you what companies you believe you are a good fit for, so they can tailor your resume to them. Your list of companies can come from your networking efforts, online research, past co-workers and more. When you hand over a resume to a potential employer, they want to see what value you will bring to them. A general resume won’t give them the information they want to see, so targeting the company in your resume will yield the best results.
Professional Resume Services is here to help executives have a seamless job search. We understand going through a job search can be stressful, time consuming and sometimes frustrating. Whether you need tips on improving your c-level personal branding, updating your resume or anything else related to your search, always feel free to contact us at any time and we would be happy to help.

Feeling Distracted? Follow These Easy Productivity Tips

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Distractions are always plentiful, no matter where you work or what you do. Sometimes distractions can get to the point where your work day has ended and you realize you hardly got anything done. This is a real problem today, especially with the technology we have available to us. If your productivity takes a significant dip, then you may have to work with executive resume writing services pretty soon to help you find a new job. But before it gets to that point, here are a few tips to help boost your productivity and eliminate distractions.

linkedin profileIdentify Distractions And Eliminate Them

The first step in eliminating distractions is to identify them. You may be surprised at how much time you spend on your smartphone throughout the day. Some apps are available to help you track what you view on your phone and how much time you spend on it. The results can be astonishing sometimes. When you realize how much time you spend on social media, your LinkedIn profile or other apps, you can work to decrease it. If it means leaving your phone with a co-worker so you aren’t tempted to pick it up, then do so.

Become Task-Oriented

Some people work better when they have a list of tasks to get accomplished, and they can’t do anything else until each task is completed. This can help you stay focused on what you need to get done, and the list can be revised if you complete the tasks more quickly than you thought. Becoming task-oriented may take some time and effort if it’s not your current personality, but it can lead to more productive days at work.

Take Occasional Breaks

Sitting at your desk for several consecutive hours at a time isn’t always ideal. You’re bound to find something to distract you as you’re working, and those distractions may take up more time than you think. Instead, take a five or ten minute break every hour to simply walk around and clear your mind. Find someone to talk to in the breakroom or elsewhere to just have a friendly conversation, and maybe even work on your c-level personal branding. Breaks can help the mind refocus on the task you’re working on and be more productive as a result.

Change Up Your Routine

It’s easy to get into a daily routine if you have a 9-5 job. The same distractions could pop up every day, and if they are part of the routine, then they become part of what you expect to happen every day. Changing up your routine can be valuable to eliminate the usual distractions. If your routine is to check your email, social media accounts or other apps at a certain time, try disconnecting for a bit. You may find even subtle changes can help you become more productive overall.
Professional Resume Services provides executive resume writing services to help people land the best jobs possible. However, we are more than just that. We also enjoy helping people work on their c-level personal branding, optimize their LinkedIn profile and more. If you’ve been feeling distracted at work lately and don’t know how to become productive again, give us a call and we may be able to help you get motivated and back on track.

writing an effective resume

When you first sit down to write your resume from scratch, it’s normal to sit there for several minutes before you write your first word. Where to begin writing an effective resume is difficult, especially in today’s competitive world. But even if you have a resume you’ve used in the past, chances are some significant adjustments need to be made if you’re searching for a new job.
This brings up the point of targeting your resume to match the specific job description you’re looking at. You probably have heard from an executive resume service that it’s important to do so, but in what ways are you supposed to match them? Here are some tips to consider when writing your resume.

Focus on Keywords in The Job Description

The best professional resume writers will print out a job description, grab a highlighter and mark each keyword they can find. These keywords should describe the particular candidate the employer is looking for, as well as the strengths and skills you possess. Once you identify them all, plug them into your resume as high on the page as possible. Include as many keywords as you can, but be careful not to stuff too many of them in to make it sound unnatural.

Think About How A Potential Employer Reads Your Resume

It’s easy to talk about your past experiences and accomplishments. The biggest mistake professionals make is talking about previous achievements that aren’t relevant to the job they are applying for. When writing an effective resume, you have to write it while thinking about how a potential employer will read it. They want to see what value you bring to the table specifically for their company, and don’t necessarily care about anything else. By looking closely at the job description, the best professional resume writers can identify what’s appropriate to mention and what should be avoided.

Discover What You Truly Want From A Job

A common misconception about writing an effective resume is it should be more general instead of focused. The idea is the more general your resume is, the better your chances are of landing another open position, even if you don’t qualify for the one you really want. This can lead to a sloppy resume and an unfocused job search effort. Taking the time to truly discover what you want from a job, from a salary standpoint, cultural standpoint, work/life balance and more will help you target your resume.
Professional Resume Services is an executive resume service that helps professionals write resumes that stand out. We will always ask for the job description of any job you are interested in and tailor your resume to match it. Our professional resume writers have experience in many different industries, so never hesitate to contact us if you need assistance with yours.