We all recognize how important it is to make a good first impression when applying for a job. The way your resume looks, the content that it contains, and the way that it is presented to a potential employer could be the difference between getting your resume read, or tossed into the trash. If you are serious about changing careers or finding a new job, then it is vital that you have a resume that represents the best you have to offer.
While it is possible for you to write your own resume, it’s not always as easy as it sounds. It is hard to get a resume that is completely perfect, especially if you don’t have the skills or expertise to know what should be on your resume, or how your it should be formatted to truly market your achievements and career history.
Consider hiring a professional resume writer. Although people may be put off having a resume written for them because of the price, in today’s competitive job market, a quality, professionally-written resume is may be your best bet in scoring an interview.
Most professional resume writing services offer a complete resume package for the price. Not only will the service craft a great resume for you, they will also take care of things such as the cover letter, the thank you letter. Furthermore, a professional resume writer will also provide all of these documents in different formats so you can use them whether you want to apply for a job online or through other channels.
Presenting a high-quality resume to a potential employer gives you the best chance of achieving success in your job search!
Many job seekers assume that if they follow online templates that you can easily put together your own resume and that it will be good enough for you to be able to land the perfect job. However, if you are new to the job market, or, getting ready to make a career change, you need to understand that resumes aren’t just a piece of paper you cut and paste your career history on.
Rather than trying to get by with a substandard resume, you are much better off hiring a professional. When you hire a company to write your resume, you will get a writers who can use their expertise to make sure that everything is perfect. Experienced resume writers are skilled in knowing what employers look for in a resume, as well as can tell you the best format to represent your career history and objective. Professional resume writers know the information that needs to be included on your resume, as well as information that should be left off.
With so many resume writing services available online, it is easy to think that you can just select any one of them to create your resume. Be careful. Your resume is your first step in getting you in the door to a new career. Before you pay for their services, always ask for the writer’s credentials, as well as for references from former clients. You want a service with writers who will understand your goals, optimize your career highlights, and commit to writing you a resume that will market your value and generate interviews.
We all know the importance of a decent cover letter and why we need to use it to sell yourself when applying for a job. However, if you aren’t careful, you could make some of the most common mistakes made and that is going to harm your chances of being successful when applying for a job.
One of the biggest mistakes that people make when writing their own cover letter is giving away too much information and being too truthful. Although no one is suggesting that you should lie on your cover letter there is a possibility that you can give too much away and put them off of hiring you.
For example, writing something like “I know I don’t have much experience, but I am a quick learner” is going to do you no favors. The whole point of your resume and cover letter is to sell yourself, not to give them a reason to move you off of the “to hire/to interview” list. Another example is telling the reader (who you don’t know) the reason why you left every job, OR what has been happening in your personal life. If you have a major job gap, it’s a good idea to touch on it briefly i.e. “After taking time off to raise a family…” or “After taking a year-long personal sabbatical…” You don’t ‘need to tell the reader that you were going through a messy divorce or needed to take time off work to decompress. Some things are better left unsaid. What you say could work against you.
Rather than concentrate on the negatives, turn it into something positive – so, for example, “Based on my unique experiences, I know I would be a valuable asset to your team,” or something similar will work for you. You are telling them that you feel you would fit in and that you are already considering the team that you are likely to work with.
Remain positive and show them why you would are the right choice for the position. Including these assets in the cover letter will help you be as successful as possible when it comes to finding your perfect job.
Many people feel that consulting job hunting resources and looking for a new job are things that only people who are unemployed should be doing. It is often assumed that the only time you need to be aware of what jobs are on the market and the opportunities that are available for you when you don’t already have a job.
Quite the contrary. Experts agree that it is a good practice to always keep an eye out for job opportunities, as well as the average rate of pay for jobs you may be interested in. Of course this isn’t something that you’ll want to do every day, but staying in the loop with jobs and salary changes in your industry could eventually help you move up the corporate ladder.
By keeping apprised of trends in job openings and salaries in your industry, you can ensure that you’re getting the best salary for your value, and that you are aware of changes in skills and experience needed for certain jobs. In addition, this knowledge could also give you great bargaining power when the time comes to negotiate your next salary increase!
While you may be happily employed today, we all know that with our country’s current economic situation, people are still continuing to lose their jobs everyday and are finding themselves actively searching for a new job. Job hunting doesn’t have to consume a lot of time, you just need to keep your resume current with your most recent employment history and achievements, know the best job search resources for your industry, and be willing to network with colleagues and friends in other companies who may know of opportunities for someone with your skills and expertise.
Being prepared for your job search will result in a a more effective, targeted search, and ultimately success!
While references are not generally included on your resume anymore, the truth is that before you are given any job vacancy you will usually be asked to provide references to speak on your behalf.
If you have been in the job market for awhile, you ask the last people that supervisors or colleagues you have worked with provide a reference. However, if you have been studying or simply haven’t made a step up the career ladder it can be hard to know who to choose.
Here are some good suggestions that will serve you well:
- If you are a recent graduate, or new to the job market, you will need to choose your references carefully. Choosing professors or advisors as a reference is acceptable. If you have never held a job before (i.e. a high school student looking for their first job), ask other career professionals, teachers or coaches who know your character and work ethic.
- If you have been involved with community service groups or other organizations, ask the leader of the group/organization to provide you with a reference. You should also remember to include relevant volunteer work on your resume, especially if you are new to the job market, because your involvement shows that you have the ability to work with others to complete projects and achieve goals.
- People you have worked for, even if you didn’t realize it. If you had a paper route, babysat for the neighbor’s children or even ran the school snack shop, these are all examples of employment and your willingness to work hard.
- Instead of including references on your resume, have a separate reference page (formatted to match your resume) prepared to leave with employers, should they ask when you’re applying. Be sure to have your reference’s phone and email information.
One final tip-always ASK a person to be a reference for you-don’t just put their name and information down. You don’t want a friend/colleague getting a call from your potential employer and then acting like they don’t know what the employer is talking about and/or have no idea what they should be saying on your behalf. Tell your references what types of job you’re applying for as well as well as what company/hiring manager may be calling for them for information. Communication is key in making sure your references give the right impression of you to potential employers.
We all know the importance of having a professional resume when it comes to applying for jobs and helping to find our way up the career ladder. When it comes to the content that needs to be included in our resume there are loads of places you can look for help and advice with what to include and how to lay it out. At the end of the day, the look of your resume is important because it is all about creating the right impression and giving yourself the best possible chance of job success.
One thing that many people don’t give consideration to is the contact information that we include on this and the impression that can give our potential employer. The biggest downfall for this is the email address that we choose to put on our resume.
Many of us have a personal email address that we have had for a number of years, maybe even dating back as far as our teenage years. There are different trends for setting up an email address, but it stands to reason that anything like “VodkaLover@email.com” or “SexyGal@email.com” aren’t really suitable for a professional resume. As your contact information is the first thing an employer will see on your resume, having a silly email address will get you judged immediately, and could prevent you from getting an interview.
Be safe and professional. Create a free email address along the lines of “firstname.lastname@email.com” to use as a contact address on your professional resume. Using your actual name, rather than a silly email address will give the reader a much better first impression.
When it comes to job hunting there are two ways that you can approach it. Most people assume that standard job hunting is the best way to find their perfect job. This means that a majority of people feel that simply checking job websites and classified ads a few times a week is enough to bag them the job position they’re dreaming of. Sadly, this isn’t usually the case.
The job market is tough and competition for the jobs that are available is fierce. If you truly want to be successful in your job hunt then you need to up your game and do everything you can to make it happen.
When you’re seeking help with your job search, it is important to do so from every angle – getting help with writing your resume, distributing it to the right places, and soliciting advice on where to look for jobs in your industry. It is essential that you look for opportunities in industry specific job boards, as opposed to just generic job websites, so you’re not wasting time going through job vacancies that aren’t suited to your qualifications. Contacting professional placement agencies or recruiters may also give you insight as to what openings are out there for a candidate with your skills and experience.
There are plenty of ways to get help with your job search. You just need to be diligent in pursuing the job services and/or recruiting firms that are the best match for your career objectives.
Take a look at your resume with fresh eyes – can you honestly say that it is written well enough to get an employer’s interest? It is easy to forget just how many people you may be up against when it comes to applying for a job and just how tough the competition to be. The person in charge of deciding who goes through to the interview stage of a job application process is probably going to be reading loads of different resumes over a short period of time. You need to make sure that your resume stands out for all the right reasons and commands attention.
Although what your resume says and the skills that it showcases are important, you need to give careful consideration to the layout of your resume. People will take one glance at your resume and will know immediately whether or not they are interested in reading more about you. It might not seem fair, but at the end of the day first impressions count, so you need to make sure that the first impression your resume gives is a good one.
There are many standard templates you can use as part of a word processing program and if you are after a standard resume, then this will suit you perfectly well. What it won’t help you do is create a resume to get excited about or something that is going to make sure that people pay attention to you. You need to ensure your resume is created in a manner that will make the reader stop and pull your resume out of the pile.
If you are serious about job hunting and making sure that you have the best chance of job success, you may want to consider hiring a professional resume writer to ensure that your resume is creative and flawless. Professional resume writers are trained to highlight your best skills and achievements, as well as can write your resume so that it markets you, and shows employers the value you can offer their company. Remember, the first step to your next career is getting your resume read by employers-will your resume stand out above the rest?
