Well guys , just when u thought MS was flooding with opinions on how to write a good resume and u wanted no more, guess what, HERE’S IS ANOTHER ONE !
but before u despise this as another smartass trying to make his point, I plead to you to consider this as an effort worth its while because THIS IS MY FIRST REVIEW ON MS.
having taken a cue from my dear friend achougoo on the same topic I wish to elaborate this a bit further. a resume does need to be written well and it is definitely a written picture of ur self.
but ask urself this simple question......what do u want ur employer to see in ur resume that will not be in the hundred others that he may get??
what is it that makes ur resume worth a second look?
the answer to this is as simple......u want to CREATE AN IMPACT !
what gives u an edge over many others , not only in a resume but in life as well is making an impact.
an architect by profession, it is but second nature to me to see that whatever I do is not just RIGHT but also NOTICED. because u may be right but how does one know that until u r noticed.
imagine the employer going thru thousands of applications and resumes in the same boring format. and suddenly he sees this resume which is, ’’different’’, and he instinctively picks it up. there u go, baby.....step one to the job!
this however does not mean that u print ur resume on flouroscent paper to catch his eye! ( ha! ha !)
but the format could be made much more interesting than the regular ’’ name....’’ ’’age....’’ ’’sex.....’’ format.
this calls for a joke wherein a surd fills up a form in this manner...
name - JASPAL SINGH
age - 35 yrs.
sex - TWICE A WEEK !!!
anyways, the name, address, phone nos and email could be in the from of a letterhead which not only gives a professional touch to the resume but also lends it a distinct class not to mention breaking away from the traditional format.
secondly, unless in special cases, ’’sex’’ and ’’languages known’’ are of little or no importance to an employer and is generally looked upon as a tool to lengthen a resume and effectively a waste of time to the employer.
a resume should be spic-n-span, to the point and accurate. it should have just the RIGHT amount of information required to bag that job, no less, and certainly, no more!
being different being the prime criteria, ur experience should also be put together in a lucid but attractive manner. now c’mon, so many people applying must have done the same thing as u in their last job, but if u put it such that it shows the company what they have missed in an empolyee so far, u’ve hit the nail in the head!
that call sfor u to do ur homework well, that is, u should know why on earth r u being hired in the first place, what does the company want u to do. it should end up in a way that u brag about how u r good at marketing when actually the company needs a good site manager.
marketing too is experience no doubt, but in this case, u r trying to sell a comb to a bald man, which won’t really work out.( unless of course, u r REAALLY good at marketing! )
and also, a little bit of glamour ain’t hurt nobody !!
laying out ur experience in the resume is well explained by my friend achougoo in his review and I do not wish to elaborate that since HE does it best.....even in real life !
now, an important part of the resume which u might have thought as useless, ur personal interests.
i mean, how does it bother my boss if I like to read and hate to swim.....if I love cycling but can’t sing to save my life!
this attitude ends up with this section being neglected or simply ..... overdone.
we end up writing in all the hobbies under the sun trying to pack our resume with an allrounder attitude.
but the intention behind this section should be to convince the employer what aspect of this hobby wil be useful to him. or what drove u towards this hobby and will benefit ur employer in having u work WITH him. ( point... always say work ’’ with ’’ you, not work ’’ for ’’ you.... that gives a sense of camaraderie rather than plain master-slave relations. u r a part of the firm, not a mere extension )
for example, reading habits could reflect a deep search for knowledge, trekking could mean the drive to take challenges head-on, cycling would mean the sheer need for speed in you, and so on!!
thus dear friends, I conclude that packing the PUNCH in ur resume is as important as putting in the right things in it!
so go ahead guys,
do it well, do it right,
do it now with all ur might!
and the job is surely yours !!!