Finding a Job: The Resume

by Lee Hudspeth
(This article appears in The Naked PC #6.03, January 30, 2003)

** 04. Finding a Job: The Resume (by Lee Hudspeth) This article is not a listing or analysis of all the components, styles, bells, and whistles related to a resume. It is a sharing of my observations about resumes, some valuable tips, and some online resources that I've found helpful. In my experience, a resume is certainly a necessary document in the process of finding a job, but a common mistake folks make is in figuring they are somehow done once they get their resume typed up and spell-checked. The resume is a tool for putting your name, objective, background, and accomplishments into circulation, but there are many other key milestones in any job search campaign. The resume itself is never done, you can always improve it (but don't over-tweak), and your search isn't done until you get way past the resume stage into the interview, negotiation, and acceptance stages. I recommend that you get your resume finished to a level you're comfortable with, carefully proof it yourself, offer it to at least five other diverse people for review, revise as appropriate based on reviewer feedback, and only then begin to circulate it. Guess what? You're still not done. You need to get feedback from more people as you go along (that's part of networking and interviewing: getting explicit feedback about various aspects of your campaign, including your resume). As you gather that feedback, if you feel your resume can be improved, then change it. Tip: Although eventually your resume will "settle down" I recommend you keep each version of your resume as a separate Word document so you can quickly compare and contrast the versions as you go along. There are various ways to do this, the simplest one is to just append an easily sorted date string like "_2003-01-30" to the filename (the yyyy-mm-dd format sorts best), e.g., "Fred Smith's resume_2003-01-30.doc". You can add other text to the filename to distinguish one type or style of resume from another. Once you've moved to a newer version, set the prior version read- only so you don't accidentally delete it: in Windows Explorer, right-click the filename, Properties, check the Read-only check box, OK. Be merciless about typographical and grammatical errors; there's absolutely no excuse for an error in a resume. Part of what you'll need for your resume is the type of factual and historical information I described in my #5.26 article "Finding a Job: The Application". Equally, if perhaps not more important, is a list of your accomplishments so that you can seed them tactically into the resume. There's an art to scratching your head to recall your best work, and how to present it in such a way that the listener gets excited and begins to see how you can and will be a positive contribution to her/his organization. More to come in future installments on this topic... the first step is to write everything down in a brainstorm "memory jog" format, starting with the projects and experiences that represent your best work. Once you've got a complete list, for each item write a short story that tells the concrete things you did to cause change and improvement on dimensions that are measurable and have impact to an employer. You can ask close friends and colleagues to describe they have observed in you, either traits or concrete accomplishments, to help jog your own memory and get the creative juices flowing. Here is an assortment of helpful resume tips I've run across: * Don't display the year for a degree earned. That information isn't necessary and tips off your age. * Don't waste space by putting "Resume" at the top of your resume. Put your name at the top. * Probably no surprise here: shorter is better. If you really need a second page, fine, but make two pages the limit. * If you feel you need to display employment dates, only show the years. * Don't list hobbies. Irrelevant. * Leave references off of your resume. When requested, you can provide them separately from your resume. Don't write "references available upon request" because it's obvious and the comment wastes space. These are some good resume resources: * "Documents (Resume, capsule bio, letters)" by Gary Ames, Managing Director, ActiveJobSearch.com (see the related table of contents for Ames' compelling and informative content about how to conduct an effective job search campaign). I highly recommend this material. http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/603/tr.cgi?lee1 * JobStar--Resumes & Cover Letters: http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/603/tr.cgi?lee2 * Resume writing services: http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/603/tr.cgi?lee3 * Resume distribution: http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/603/tr.cgi?lee4 (c) 2003, Lee Hudspeth You can reach Lee Hudspeth at: mailto:LeeHudspeth@TheNakedPC.com

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