In recent years, customer resumes look much better than the ones I saw in the early and mid-’90s. Some, however, are the result of filling out a Microsoft-provided resume template. Respectfully they are horrible. To overcome that default, try a few questions like the following before you create or review your document. In no special order, they are:
- Describe the job title (in as few words as possible – I’ll explain that later) and the industry you think is a best fit for your background, experience, and existing education, training, and certifications.
- How do you feel about your current resume, if you have one? What is your “expiration date” information? Don’t be shy: most resumes are old and out of date.
- Have you ever used a book on how to write a resume? (e.g,Resume writing for Do you know who? or not send a resume?) Have you ever had relocation assistance?
- Where are you in your career? Loss of work? Are you looking to earn more money where you are now? Or do you want to get out of where you are now, but are afraid to change jobs in this economy?
- What is the “geography” of your search? Can you move? If you stand still, how many minutes or miles are you willing to trade?
- What is missing from your resume? For example, do you have a job gap because you were in school or stopped working to raise a child?
- Have you ever been fired, laid off, or left a job suddenly?
- What rules do you think absolutely must be followed when preparing a resume or the sun will not rise in the morning?
- What is the best way to make your resume “pop out”?
- What are the best ways to look for work?
- If you’ve been using your existing resume in your search, have you gotten any interviews?
- What do you think is holding you back from getting a really well-paying job in the company or industry you’ve targeted?
- How important is it to know the requirements of the new job and what are you willing to do to get them if you don’t have them now?
Promise kept – Why reduce the job title to a few words? You may want to insert the job title as a title, yes a title, in an 18 point font at the top of the resume and below your name and contact details.