Writing or updating your resume can seem daunting, but it is possible to improve your resume with just a few easy tweaks. Making these simple adjustments and additions to your document can make your resume more reader friendly, more effective, and help you better articulate your value through your document!
Write an impactful headline
If you only take one action to improve your resume in 30 minutes or less, write an impactful headline. Use the job you’re interested in applying to in order to integrate the right keywords and create the right focus for your document. Your headlining statement should state who you are, what you do, and related accomplishments. Any time you can integrate a notable metric or piece of information into your headline, do it. For example, if you’ve been recognized for your achievements in the field, consider using the phrase “award winning” in your headline. If you have generated a valuable partnership or increased business performance, integrate that metric as well.
Here’s an example of an impactful headlining statement for a legal resume:
Award winning legal executive with 20+ years of litigation experience leading global teams and advising on innovative risk management solutions in a multibillion dollar organization.”
An impactful headline for a business development resume might look like this:
Accomplished business development leader delivering engaging sales presentations and building strategic partnerships to drive billion dollar growth in the global retail apparel market.”
Move Your Skills to the Top
When you want to improve your resume quickly, simply rearranging the format and putting your skills at the top of the document immediately increases the effectiveness of your document. Recruiters look at each resume for an average of six seconds each. That means you have six seconds to show that you are qualified and what you can bring to the table. When you put a skills matrix up at the top, this immediately shows the reader exactly what you have to offer and highlights that you are qualified for the position right off the bat.
The quicker you grab someone’s attention and articulate your value as a candidate, the more effective your document will be. Time is money, so it’s important to show that you have the qualifications required for the role you’re applying for within the top third of your document. This reduces the time that a reader has to spend reviewing your document to determine if you’re qualified for a role.
Add Certifications and Specialized Training
Including relevant certifications and specialized training can quickly improve your resume and highlight your value. Even if you don’t have specific certifications but you’ve had internal training, (i.e. courses you’ve taken at work on how to use onsite equipment, management training, HR training, etc.) include that in your resume. This will help an employer see how you align with the position you’re applying for. When hiring managers are comparing candidates, sometimes small details such as certifications and/or specialized training can make all the difference. If you’ve taken the time to further educate yourself in your field, this shows motivation and ambition which are important traits to highlight on your resume.
In addition to this, certifications and specialized training can help increase the amount of related keywords in your document. For example, if you’re interested in an entry level HR job but don’t have any on-site HR experience, consider taking an online tutorial such as Human Resources Foundations or Human Resources: Understanding HR Systems Features and Benefits. Taking related courses and adding the course information to your resume helps by showing your ambition, showing your familiarity with a subject, and adding keywords to help you make it past an applicant tracking system (ATS).
Add Metrics
One of the most common mistakes people make when writing a resume is that they include generic job descriptions that are not unique to their actual accomplishments. If you want to improve your resume quickly and create more effective job descriptions, it is important to add metrics and achievements.
The goal is to highlight what you’ve achieved so a reader can see what you’ve accomplished and envision what you could accomplish in the role you’re applying for.
Struggling with how to integrate this information? It’s not as difficult as it seems. Consider the following questions:
- How many people do you work with and/or manage?
- Did you increase productivity or sales by a percentage or dollar amount?
- Did you save the company money?
- Did you secure any partnerships?
- Did you get awarded or recognized for anything?
- Did you work with any big budget or notable clients or partners?
Click here to read more about how to quantify your achievements on your resume.
Check For Typos, Grammar Issues, and Spelling Errors
Your resume should be free of spelling and grammatical errors. It’s as simple as that. Incorrect spelling, grammar, and typos could cost you the job. Why? Because it shows that you didn’t thoroughly go over your resume, and that you may lack attention to detail.
When you spend so much time working on and crafting a document, it’s easy to glaze over and miss errors. The best way to check for errors is to give yourself some time away from the document and look at it in a new light. If you’ve been working endlessly on your resume, give yourself some time away from it. Either sleep on it or give yourself an hour away if you’re in a time crunch. Fresh eyes will always catch something new.
Additionally, review your resume in a different way. My two best suggestions for this are to print out your document and go over it on paper instead of on a screen, and then read it from the bottom up. By switching up the order you read the document in, you’ll be able to catch more errors because your eyes will see the text differently. This is something I learned in my exam to become a certified professional resume writer, so trust me when I tell you this tactic works!