Tips For Writing A Winning Job Resume

This is why your job resume is important: It is the first part of you a prospective employer will ever see. In this age of depressed economy and higher unemployment, you are likely to be competing against more applicants for any job. This stiff competition makes it important for you to understand how to make your job resume stand out. Of course, on the surface, it might seem like the only thing you can really do is list your previous jobs and hope for the best. But by taking this approach these days, you will be limiting yourself. Instead, you should learn how to make your resume stand out from those around it, creating the feeling with a prospective employer that they "have to" call you and bring you in for an interview.

When writing your resume, it is extremely important to consider its design. This might seem like an odd place to begin - after all, you are applying for a job, not applying to be a document designer - but you have to consider the prospective employer's perspective. The person reading your resume has likely been at their desk for hours, poring over a huge pile of resumes. According to studies, each resume gets about 15-20 seconds of attention the first time through the pile. If your resume has small font or very little white space, it will not make tired eyes feel very happy. Instead, design your resume with clear headings and lots of white space on the paper. You might even encourage the tired eyes to spend more than 15-20 seconds on their first glance at your resume if you make it inviting and relaxing for them!

The next step for setting you apart from other applicants is the section where you list your accomplishments and qualifications. Never fabricate this section, but make sure you dig deep to uncover things that might not have popped into your mind right away. Think about everything that might lead a prospective employer to pick up the phone and give you a call, and include all of it in this section!

Finally, your qualifications section will be extremely important in selling you to a prospective employer. Use this section to set yourself high above your competition - those faceless others who might be applying. This section should be thought of as an advertisement; you should use this section to convince the prospective employer of all the reasons why they should "buy" you.

Although searching for a job can be frightening in these uncertain times, knowing the steps to a winning resume can make it a whole lot easier.