There’s no better feeling than a sense of security when it comes to your job. Being comfortable with your job is great, but what are you going to do if an unfortunate turn of events happens suddenly and you lose it? Having a career backup plan is important for all executives. Keeping in touch with the best executive resume writing service can help you keep your resume updated, but there are some other tips to consider as well when developing your backup plan.
Being Prepared Creates Flexibility
One of the first things you should do when thinking about a backup plan is saving as much money as you reasonably can. Having a few months of salary saved up can provide some time and flexibility to find a new job without having to rush into one. Whether you want to continue in the same industry or search for an executive job in another industry, having a nest egg to sit on will help you buy some time.
Learn Skills Outside of Your Industry
When you have multiple skills outside of the industry you currently work in, your executive bio will look even more impressive. Plus, there may come a time where your job starts getting stale and you want to pursue other opportunities. Becoming skilled in multiple areas can open the door to numerous opportunities and provide a solid backup plan if something happens with your current executive job.
Never Stop Networking
Networking is another key component of an executive career backup plan. You can spend a significant amount of time writing a professional resume, but if you can’t put your resume in the right hands, you may not see much success landing a new job. Whether it’s networking with other executives in your industry or professionals in different industries, being connected is a quality component of your backup plan.
Keep Your Resume Updated
In addition to your executive bio, you should always make an effort to update your resume frequently. You don’t want to be blind-sided by a layoff and not have an updated resume. It’s easier to update your resume as you learn new skills or gain new accomplishments, so check in with the best executive resume writing service often to ensure you’re ready if you ever need to use it. Professional Resume Services wants to help executives feel like they are not only comfortable with their jobs, but also have a backup plan in case something happens. You can never be too safe today, so feel free to contact us if you need help updating your resume or coming up with a career backup plan.
Making a mistake in your executive resume can be detrimental to your success in landing your next job. Even if you use the best executive resume format imaginable, a typographical errors shows you could lack attention to detail, which is an important characteristic of any executive. Proofreading your executive resume is essential, but proofreading it the right way is even more important. When you’re working on your resume for several hours, it’s easy to overlook a mistake. Here are some of the top ways you should proofread your resume.
Proofread Out Loud
When you read your resume out loud to yourself or to someone else, you’ll be able to identify some obvious issues. Whether the issues revolve around the overall flow of your resume or a word that simply doesn’t make sense, sometimes reading it out loud will help identify problems you overlook when reading it silently.
Don’t Skip Sections
The key to writing resumes that get you hired is to treat every section of your resume with equal importance. If you have a references section, proofread the phone numbers or other contact information. It’s easy to skip sections like this, but it will look unprofessional if your potential employer calls a wrong number when trying to reach your reference.
Have a Peer Review Your Resume
Your peers can play a big role in your effort to create resumes that get you hired. Ask a friend or family member you trust to look over your executive resume in detail. When you’ve looked at your resume for several hours over the course of a few days, sometimes it’s easy to overlook minor details. Having a peer review your resume can help identify these minor issues to clean up your resume overall.
Hire a Professional Resume Service
Hiring a quality professional resume writing service to proofread your resume should be your last step before finalizing your resume. But just because it’s the last step doesn’t mean it should be skipped. With the highly competitive job market today, having a professional proofread your resume can ensure it is in the best shape possible for improving your chances of getting an interview. At Professional Resume Services, we can help executives not only write their resumes, but proofread them and provide constructive criticism and suggestions to make it better. If you are pleased with your resume, but want another set of experienced eyes to review it, feel free to reach out to us at any time.
Switching careers is never easy. When you have years of experience in a certain industry and want to make a switch, just think about how much more competition you’ll have. However, sometimes a career switch is necessary from a personal and professional perspective. Writing an effective resume can help ease the transition, but there are several other tips to help you handle a career switch effectively.
Enhance Your Education
Depending on what career you are switching to, you may benefit from taking educational courses. Not only will this give you a deeper knowledge of your new career, but any executive resume service will tell you it will make your resume stand out more. Combining relevant education with your professional experience in your previous career could end up being more valuable than you initially think.
Charge Up Your Networking Efforts
You should have been networking in your previous career already. No matter how much you’ve networked in the past, a career switch is the perfect opportunity to put it into overdrive. Networking can help you improve your c-level personal branding to get you in the career you desire. Recruiters want to meet people with a variety of skills today. Even if you may not be experienced in a particular industry, you may have a skill they are looking for and not even know it until you network with them!
Consider How Current Skills Apply to a New Career
You may not believe your current skills transition into your potential new career, but you could be surprised. An executive resume service can help you highlight these skills on your resume so they will stand out. The key to writing an effective resume is showcasing skills that transition well to other industries. Recruiters look for those types of hard skills and soft skills, so be sure to incorporate them as much as possible.
Be Persistent, But Not Too Persistent
Never give up on your career switch efforts. Companies may not be hiring at the time you connect with them, but it doesn’t mean they will never be hiring. Check in with them frequently enough so they remember your name, but not so frequently where your name annoys them. At Professional Resume Services, we help executives switch careers every day. Whether it’s writing an effective resume, providing tips on improving c-level personal branding or learning how to effectively network, we are here for you every step of the way. Feel free to contact us if you need advice of any kind regarding your career switch.
Here Are Some Fresh Executive Job Search Tips for the New Season!
Being stuck without a job for an extended period of time can be stressful. Insanity is defined as doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. If your job search isn’t working out how you would like it to, consider using one of the top resume writing services to get you out of your rut. Not only can they help revamp your resume, but they can also give you some tips on how to approach your job search. In the meantime, here are some of our best new tips to help you with your executive job search this season.
Stay Active
When you’re in the midst of a job search, the last thing you want to do is stop networking or being active on social media. It can be easy to scratch these activities off your list when your job search isn’t going as planned, but that’s actually the worst thing you can do. Take on some volunteer opportunities or a short-term contract opportunity. When writing an effective resume, you want to show you made the effort to plug the holes between your employment.
Expand Your Job Search Criteria
It’s natural to be selective about your employment prospects when you first begin your job search. However, you have to expand your criteria eventually if it’s not working. This could include considering new positions or expanding your location options. Sometimes a big change may be the best thing for your career, especially if you’re in a stall with your search efforts.
Evaluate Your Job Search Strategy
It’s never a good idea to send your resume out to companies in bulk. Instead, focus on improving your c-level personal branding to make employers notice you more. This may include attending more networking events rather than submitting countless resumes. There are many different methods of going about a job search, so evaluate how yours is working and don’t be afraid to change it up.
Remember No Job is Perfect
One of the things top resume writing services will tell you is to always remember you will never find the perfect job. However, it doesn’t mean a particular job couldn’t turn into a perfect one later on. When you understand the perfect job probably won’t be out there on paper, you’ll have a better mindset about your job search. At Professional Resume Services, we help many executives on a daily basis with their job search strategies. If you need help writing an effective resume or just can’t get out of your job search rut, feel free to contact us at any time.
It’s widely understood that you have approximately six seconds to make an impression on a hiring manager with your resume—even for executives. The challenge is making the absolute most of those six seconds in creative ways without being too over the top. In some aspects, it’s good to have a traditional resume, but it won’t hurt to modernize it a bit. Of course, writing an effective resume in today’s competitive executive world can be difficult, so here are some tips for modernizing your resume for 2017.
Focus on the Top Third of the Page
This is a key factor for any resume, whether they’re traditional or modern. Modern resumes, however, allow for more creativity. For instance, consider adding a splash of color. When you talk to executive resume writers about the jobs you’re applying for, they may suggest using colors only for headings or in your personal information section, but not in your achievements. The top third of your resume is what recruiters see first, so it’s important for it to stand out.
Use the Right Amount of Creativity
Most professional resume writing services will tell you to avoid using vibrant colors for your resume if you’re applying for an executive position. If you overdo it, it will look like you’re applying for a graphics or marketing job. Executive recruiters tend to like traditional resume formats, so using the right amount of creativity to get noticed can be difficult. Instead of using bright colors, use different text sizes and bolding as an alternative.
Consider the ATS System
Many executive resume writers tend to shy away from a lot of creative things like tables, text boxes, charts and other similar objects. The reason is if an employer runs your resume through an ATS system, it may not be able to recognize keywords. You can still modernize your resume by using a larger text size, bolding, italics, underlining, highlighting and other features to highlight specific accomplishments. This will ensure your keywords remain intact and you’ll also have a resume that stands out among the rest. On the other hand, not all companies use an ATS system and you want to add a bit of formatting creativity to appeal to human eyes as well (i.e. human resources, recruiters, hiring managers, etc.). Writing an effective resume takes some time and skill, and that’s exactly where Professional Resume Services excels. If you’re looking to modernize your executive resume this year, feel free to contact us at any time.
Our Top Three Secrets Regarding the Job Hunting Process
Once you’ve made the decision to start your career or change careers, you’ve finished the easy part. Now the job hunting process begins, and it can be mentally and physically draining. The first thing you have to learn is the key to writing an effective resume in order to have a chance at landing the job you want. However, that’s not the only aspect of getting a job. With so many approaches and tactics candidates use to get recognized, you need to know the best ways to get noticed. Here are my top three secrets you need to know regarding the job hunting process.
Most Jobs Are Discovered By Networking
If you spend hours a day searching through online job boards, you are wasting a lot of time. Since employers receive hundreds or thousands of applications through online job boards, it’s a minor miracle if yours gets noticed. Your time may be better spent attending networking events for the career you want to pursue. Check out some professional resume writing services to have a top-notch resume ready to hand out to potential employers and recruiters. You will be surprised at how many jobs come from knowing someone within the industry rather than sending in a resume online or through email.
Employers Search Social Networks
Before you begin any sort of job search, you need to clean up your social media profiles. Most employers will search your name online to find out what you post and try to figure out your lifestyle. If you have embarrassing photos or post vulgar comments to your profile, you will quickly eliminate yourself from consideration. I can’t tell you how many rude political comments I’ve seen on FB and LinkedIn that will be an instant turnoff. Hold your tongue. You should also spend a decent amount of time on LinkedIn profile development. LinkedIn is a trusted source for recruiters, and they will use it more often than not. Use the platform as an opportunity to showcase your skills and add on to what your resume already says.
Recruiters Don’t Spend Much Time Reading Resumes
On average, a recruiter will spend about six seconds reading a resume. Because of this fact, the key to writing an effective resume is to make it stand out immediately. Don’t ramble on about your experience or accomplishments. Summarize them as much as possible in bullet points or another easy-to-read format. Use bold and underlined text to also draw the reader’s attention to the areas you want them to focus on. By following these tips, your resume will stand out.
If you’re going to spend a lot of time writing an effective resume, you might as well know the secrets to making it pop. You only have a few seconds to impress a recruiter before they move on to the next resume. Resume writing is an art not many people have mastered, but the ones who understand it will have a higher likelihood of landing the job they desire. Here are four ways you may not have known could help your resume stand out! Targeting Is Key Thebest resume writing service will advise you to target every aspect of your resume. Mention the specific job you’re applying for and your exact accomplishments. Avoid putting in accomplishments not relevant to the job you want, no matter how good it looks. The hiring manager is only interested in what you can do for them so they won’t care about a certain accomplishment if it doesn’t translate to their job. Repeat Keywords Keywords are tricky because you don’t always know which ones recruiters are looking for. Instead of being general about skills and accomplishments, be specific. A professional resume writing service can help you identify keywords based on the job you’re applying for. The more you use keywords throughout your resume, the more likely your resume will be noticed. Just be careful not to saturate your resume to the point where it reads unnaturally. Try checking out the job description you are looking at for more keywords. Tailor Your Resume to the Job You’re Searching For Anyprofessional resume writing service will tell you there’s nothing worse than using the same resume for different jobs. Recruiters can easily identify when someone just blindly sends their resume to them. Put in a few statements about how you will help their company based on your research about them. Showing you’ve researched the company and understand their needs will go a long way in making your resume stand out. Use a Performance Profile Your performance profile should show how your skills match the objectives of the company and the ability to do the job you’re applying for. A good tip is to look at the job and skill requirements on the job posting and incorporate those points in your performance profile. Many companies will use the keywords they’re looking for in their job description so that’s a great way to target your resume to the job and match your performance capabilities with their job opening. In today’s busy world, getting your resume to stand out among the rest can seem like an impossible task. By using these four tips, you should see more success.
Everything in today’s world is fast-paced, including the people who review resumes. If you want your executive resume to get noticed, something has to stand out immediately. The key to writing an effective resume is to ensure the reader finds exactly what they’re looking for in less than five seconds. A resume requiring more attention than that will likely be passed over. This is really the truth. I’ve talked with a few of my recruiter friends, and they said they just glance at it and don’t give it more than 15 seconds. By following these simple tips, you’ll be able to make your executive resume stand out in the modern job hunting world.
Capture the Reader’s Attention
Sometimes the best way to capture your reader’s attention is by making subtle changes to the standard resume. You could use a different font, as long as it’s still professional. You can use a bit of color, a graph, a chart, etc. to make it stand out. They’ve come a long way since I started out 17 years ago and all we could use was Times New Roman, 12 pt. Font. The top rated resume writing services can suggest different ways to make your resume pop, but these are just a couple of simple ideas to get you started.
Make Your Achievements Stand Out
Many people who review resumes start reading at the top of the page. They’ll generally skim down to find keywords or important phrases that meet their requirements. If you want to help them out, you could consider using bold or italics in those areas to make sure they grab the reader’s attention. Eliminate fluff to avoid making your resume too lengthy. If a recruiter is looking for a particular skill set, they want to find it in your resume immediately. Otherwise, they will quickly lose interest and move on to the next candidate, even if you are perfectly qualified for the job. Crisp and concise are the goals here.
Keywords Are Critical
This could be the same or different from the words you bolded in your resume. Since the vast majority of resumes are submitted online, companies will run them through software to find the keywords they’re looking for. If yours doesn’t have the words they want to see, you don’t stand a chance at getting an interview. When writing an effective resume, you need to ensure you use recognizable keywords. Depending on the type of executive job you’re applying for, the keywords you use may vary. Avoid using generic terms and phrases and you’ll stand a better chance of at least getting a human to look at your resume. The modern executive job market has never been more competitive. It’s critical to formulate the perfect resume to get any sort of recognition. Writing your resume is a critical first step in landing an interview so remember to refer to these tips when you get started.
