Leadership

5 Ways to Improve Your Resume

By CC Holland

Updated on: March 16, 2009 / 3:20 PM EDT / MoneyWatch

And finally, wrapping up our job-search theme this week, the post you've all been waiting for: How to make the most out of your resume.

I'm sure you've heard plenty of stuff on this topic already, so let me boil it down to a few key suggestions -- including some that are off the beaten path.

1. Don't lie. Sure, it's tempting to fudge a little. But trust me -- either you'll get caught or karma will catch up to you. And consider this: while most resume-padders inflate their educational stats, the truth is, employers care more about job experience than education anyway. So why even take the risk?

2. Get rid of weak language. Six words or phrases that are resume-killers?

responsible for
experienced
excellent written communication skills
team player
detail oriented
successful

3. Focus on the last 10 years. Sure, you may have held a ton of jobs -- but it's the current ones that count most. List the others in an "Early Career" section.

4. Give a free sample. Imagine how effective you could be if you could show a prospective employer exactly what you could do for him, even before the interview. Guess what? You can. Create a new area of your resume called "Value Offered." Put it at the beginning of your resume, under your name. In two sentences (no more than three or four lines on the resume), state the value you are offering. It's a great replacement for the boring old "Career Objectives" section.

5. Consider reinventing the wheel. Ready to take a gamble by standing out? Then why not try creating a Working Resume, an idea coined by Nick Corcodilos? The Working Resume doesn't list your academic credentials or any of your prior employers. It doesn't show any of your past experience and it doesn't list any jobs you ever did. No accomplishments, no achievements or awards. Instead, it includes:

A clear picture of the business of the employer you want to work for
Proof of your understanding of the problems and challenges the employer faces
A plan describing how you would do the work the employer needs done
An estimate of what/how much you think you could add to the bottom line

In short, a Working Resume requires you do the job, not just apply for it. Interesting idea!

Got any other tips for improving your resume? Share them with other Team Taskmaster readers in the comments section.

(image by jm3 via Flickr, CC 2.0)