We all do it, but it doesn’t make it okay. Know your worth and true value, and don’t sell yourself short on your resume! What does this mean? This means that you need to evaluate your skills and achievements to ensure that you’re truly highlighting your worth on your resume.
Make a List of Your Strengths
A key factor in any resume is a skills matrix at the top. Studies show that hiring managers and recruiters look at individual resumes for an average of 6 seconds each. Make sure that the first thing they notice is all of your strengths! By creating a skills matrix at the top of your resume, you will ensure that someone can look at your document and quickly tell what skills you possess. If you know that you aren’t great or could use some work in a certain area, don’t include it. You want this list to highlight only your strongest areas so that an employer or hiring manager focuses on your strengths and not your weaknesses.
By omitting areas that you need to work on, you will only draw attention to what you’re good at.
Make a List of Your Accomplishments
Anyone can claim that they are a great employee, but very few people can actually show it. Don’t sell yourself short on your resume, and show potential employers all of your accomplishments and achievements. Provide evidence to your claims so that they can see exactly what you can bring to the table and how you will be beneficial if hired.
Have you increased sales? Have you been recognized for your success? Have you implemented process improvements or cost cutting techniques? Whatever you have done to improve your company and/or department, you want to show it on your resume.
The more numbers and specific metrics you can include, the better! Don’t be afraid to calculate numbers from your own data. As long as you can prove your calculations, you can use them on your resume.
Take a Critical Look at Your Resume
When writing your resume, take a critical look at it and ask yourself these questions:
- Does your document have strong metrics, facts, and achievements?
- Do your qualifications/skills directly align with those in the job description you’re applying to?
- Is your document easily skimmable and can the reader easily pick out your strengths and achievements?
If you can’t answer “yes” to all of these questions, it may be time to rework your resume. Ask friends and industry professionals for their opinion to see what their take on your resume is. Take those notes and use them to your advantage. If you feel completely overwhelmed, reach out to a certified professional resume writer. (That’s me!) Having a 3rd party go over and/or write your resume will help because they can be objective, and have no problem highlighting your skills and qualifications, whereas many people struggle with writing/talking about themselves.
The Goal of a Resume
Many people think that the goal of a resume is to get you a job, but the real goal of a resume is to get you an interview. A resume alone can’t land you a job, but it can intrigue others to want to learn more about you. Think of your resume like a movie trailer. Highlight all of your accomplishments to persuade people to want to learn more (in an interview).
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People often under represent what they can do and all that they’ve accomplished in their career, making it hard to obtain desired jobs. Don’t sell yourself short on your resume, and create a document that celebrates all you can do! Sit down, take inventory or your skills and achievements, and show potential employers why they should hire you.