Tips and Suggestions for Writing a Resume

Handsome resumes are back. Thanks to new technology which retains the original document, formatted resumes with embellishments like boldface, italics, fancy fonts and bullets are back in style.

It's important to note that the use of online screening before your resume is rated is growing. Applicants are flooding mail boxes whether or not their resume bears any resemblance to the job's requirements, so, companies are increasingly using automated systems to screen resumes prior to sending them to recruiters and hiring managers.

It's helpful to take a few tests on company career portals where you don't want to work to gain experience taking tests and increasing your comfort level.

Choose your resume format wisely. Use a format that highlights your strengths and hides your shortcomings. If you use the format provided by the job search sites, then you don’t need so much editing and rearranging the elements of your resume. It also helps because as long as your resume complies with the standard format, the automated search system used by employers will not rule your resume out. And if you choose to make a separate resume for your personal face-to-face job applications, write it until it's right. Think, write, think some more, rewrite, proofread, get feedback and rewrite.

Market your resume by targeting a job market, making a list of job leads, creating mix and match resumes and cover letters and determining your online resume strategy. This is one trick that so many have found useful which some say is cheating – it’s dressing up your resume, meaning, once you have found a potential job to apply for, then make your resume and put on your strengths that will match the qualifications required by the job, just about 100%. Simple, right?

Another tip I found is to send your resume so it arrives on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. Monday's are busy and Friday's are termination days. But if the job listing says it’s urgent then maybe you should send your application as early as you can so that the HR officer can review it as soon as possible.

Post on specialty web sites also because these sites will have more focused job listings.