Seven Steps to Successful Resume Writing

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Free Resume Articles : Seven Steps to Successful Resume Writing by Abegail

HOW can you get a good job if you take resume writing for granted?

If you don't know the ABCs of resume writing, how would you be able to prove to your prospective employers that you are what they are looking for: Imagine, you can't even present or advertise yourself through a resume?

Believe it or not, but learning the intricacies or resume writing can make a big difference in your career path. The resume that you make not only tells who you are in a nutshell�"it has also the power to magnetize job interviews or totally ruin your chances of having a brighter future!

Remember that resumes determine who among the hundreds of applicants that are applying for a particular position would get a job interview. If you don't want a human resource staff to either screen you out or throw your resume over the paper shredder again, then now is the right time to become skilled at resume writing.

The first rule in resume writing: What you think, you shouldn't only speak it out eloquently, but be able to write it down clearly as well. Use nothing but effective and understandable words possible.

Follow the KISS principle, which could either stand for Keep It Short but Striking or Keep It Short Stupid! Make your resume very readable as possible: Pack it with aplenty of white spaces to comfort the eyes of the recruiter who would read it. When it comes to resume writing, remember that "less is more."

Get rid of highfalutin words. Resume isn't a venue to be humble, but it's also not the proper place to inform an HR staff that your intelligence quotient is superior or above superior. Do not use terms or jargons that even a high school student won't understand.

Avoid the "I disease." One of the important protocols in resume writing is never include "I" from your sentences. Removing this pronoun prevents wordiness and saves space. But write from the first-person point of view, as if you are giving a direct report towards your target employer.

Be precise in describing work experiences and/or achievements. Stand out from the hundreds of candidates�"do not just be one of them! In resume writing, you can include facts and figures. Why say "supervised proofreaders when the supervisor isn't around," when you can tell "supervised 10 proofreaders in the absence of the supervisor?" The hiring staff must get to visualize your feats. Using words like "few," "many," "a couple of," "very," "much," "some," and so on is also a big no-no.

Use the active voice form of verb instead of passive voice. The former is shorter and more direct than the latter. What more, the active voice is more effective and forceful and tends to keep all the sentences clear and concise. Deleting helping verbs such as has, have, had, may and might as well as articles a, an and will also strengthen your resume writing skills. Be watchful of your verb tenses. It's common sense to say that all your previous duties and responsibilities should be in the past tense, and your current tasks and feats in the present tense or form. Wrong verb tenses are eyesores on resumes.

Proofread, proofread and proofread! Detect and correct all kinds of mistakes�"grammatical, misspelled words and typographical errors. If you aren't sure of your final output, you could ask a friend to proofread your resume for you.

About the Author
Abigail is a 26 year old who really loves writing. Experienced, versatile freelance editor able to transform lackluster writing into polished, effective communication tools. Skilled in Resume Writing, copy editing, developmental editing, proofreading, copywriting, and editorial production.

Source: Free resume writing, job resume information at goarticles.com