The following illustrates how to approach the resume writing process:

A job seeker has a 25-year sketchy background that includes several career transitions. Career choices range from her early beginnings as a music education teacher to her business partnership in video production which is ongoing and sporadic to her more recent experience in retail sales. In between, she raised her children and obtained a bachelor’s degree in media production. Additional experience includes office managerial positions and part-time evening work as a dispatcher for an alarm company that she is not sure about listing it on her resume.

She is now looking to leverage her career in a position with a TV video production company so she can explore a position where her eclectic background in managing a similar business will be utilized and developed. So how should she do her resume? She has decided to target a position as a senior technician and work her way up the ranks. She is very confident and knows that this foot-in-the-door position will launch her new career. The emphasis will be placed on her work producing independent films, her technical expertise, (retail) business management and music education experience.

First section: OBJECTIVE STATEMENT (Title Objective)

Unlike an objective statement, a title objective consists of a few words that serve as a headliner to brands the job seeker and express their objective.

This is done best if the job seeker is experienced in that occupational discipline. Using a title objective rather than a sentence-style objective statement is much more direct and very powerful.

If a job seeker is transitioning to a new career, the use of a title objective can be initially misleading. It is helpful to preface the title objective with a statement such as “Target Position” or “Position of Interest”. This is how this section should look:

TARGET POSITION: SENIOR TECHNICIAN, TV PRODUCTION

Second Section: PROFILE

Unlike the Summary of Qualifications section, a profile is a paragraph that is more of a bio rather than a few simple sentences. It tells a story and is much stronger in language. The goal is the same, in that it still conveys the scope of experience, skills, credentials and attributes relevant to the position of interest. You do not need to use the actual word Profile as you would use Summary of Qualifications in our first example. This is how the first two sections should look when combined:

TARGET POSITION: SENIOR TECHNICIAN, TV PRODUCTION

Multi-talented business management professional with a strong career path that combines music education, business ownership in media and video production, and business management. Strong team leader and client consultant known for ability to develop scalable solutions that dramatically improve efficiency and productivity through management of project specifications, timelines, resources, and budget requirements from point of planning through production.

Third section: PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Sometimes a chronological resume will not work because the most recent experience is not the most relevant experience. So, a combination resume is the strategy that should be used. The combination format combines the elements of a functional (skills based) and chronological format. Professional Experience will be the main category, followed by sub-categories that are appropriately named according to the function or job title. These will be Video Production, Music Education, and Business Management (Retail).

Notice how the category is not called Retail Sales Management. Rather, “retail” is given a backseat because it is not the focus as much as the business management end of what this job seeker does. But, before we even get to that point, a chronology of employment will be listed first. This is how the section should look:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Managing Partner, Video Production Studios, Town, X/XX – Present

Video Production Operations

VIDEO PRODUCTION

* Direct the hiring, training, supervision, and evaluation of a production staff and volunteers.

* Fully coordinate the logistical operations of program productions.

* Conceptualized, developed, and produced 30-minute interview and music shows.

* Supervised and approved show format, host, theme song, and casting.

* Plan and organize the scheduling of program channels and the casting of community events.

* Oversee the implementation of all technical requirements and conduct group-training sessions.

* Manage projects and technical teams and program schedules.

* Direct stage productions, conduct orchestras, create, edit, and produce videos.

* Build and administer system networks and handle all aspects of creative technical writing.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

* Served as a team member responsible for developing and implementing business plans.

* Executed the distribution and promotion of all new product lines.

* Led the market push of six new products from conception to completion.

* Coordinated the design of graphics to created product branding.

* Directed product production, achieving a year-over-year cost savings of 25 percent.

* Produced voice-overs, audio calls, and on-camera product introductions.

* Trained video editors and operations staff in the delivery of scripts.

* Managed weekly status meetings to instill uniform vision of product development.

* Reduced defect reductions from 15 percent per unit to less than 4 percent per unit.

Fourth Section: EDUCATION

Often, highly experience or more senior-level professionals have graduated over ten years ago. They do not want to emphasize their age or to show that their education was so far back. So, the best thing to do is omit the date. Since their experience far outweighs their education, they do not need to list their GPA either. The best approach is to keep it as simple as possible. This is how the section should look:

EDUCATION

Music Conservatory, Town, XX

Bachelor of Arts in Music

Fifth Section: COMPUTER SKILLS

In some cases, there is specialized software in addition to the usual MS Word and Excel. It is a good idea either list them first or use subcategories so the technical software stands out.

If there is a series of applications that all start with Adobe, Microsoft or Apple, it is a good idea to list Adobe or Microsoft once, followed by the specific software from that company. When using this approach, keep the group together on their own line or separated by a semi-colon. This is how the section should look:

COMPUTER SKILLS

Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Image Ready;

Apple Final Cut, Live Type, Motion, and Soundtrack; MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

Are you struggling to write your resume and promote yourself effectively in your job search? Here are five prevalent resume writing myths and mistakes to avoid that you must be aware of.

1) Myth: Resumes should be only one, or at the most, two pages.

In most cases, this is true. It is the rare reviewer of resumes who, when being completely honest, will tell you that he or she spends more than a few seconds in the first review of a resume. Unless your resume captures immediate attention through an eye-appealing design and succinct, compelling language, your resume will be screened out after just 15 seconds. With this reality in mind, imagine the thoughts of the reviewer when he or she receives a four- or five-page resume, with another 100 resumes waiting for review right behind it. Clearly, the odds of your resume capturing attention and being read increase when the length is limited to one or two pages.

Are there exceptions to this rule? Absolutely!

While it is true that with each additional page you reduce your chances of your resume being read thoroughly, for many executives, contract workers, consultants, and technical professionals it is unrealistic and nearly impossible to compress years of experience into one or two pages. When attempted, important achievements are left out to make room for a full chronology of the career history and education. What is left is a boring listing of companies, positions, and dates that are virtually guaranteed to turn off the reader and land your resume in the circular file.

A better strategy is to write your resume with exactly as much detail as is needed to persuasively convince the reader that you are the ideal candidate to solve his or her problems – to compel the reader to pick up the phone and call you for an interview. While this is sometimes a difficult balance to strike, you should edit your resume with a very discriminating eye toward reducing unnecessary wordiness. Every word in your resume should have a purpose. Items that can be presented as a list – continuing education courses, technical summaries, associations and memberships, etc. – can often be included in an addendum that may or may not be used as appropriate. Within the resume, use succinct, dynamic, action-oriented language to convey your ability to add value to the reader’s company and you will capture and hold attention through three or even more pages.

2) Myth: All resumes should include a clearly stated objective.

It is essential that your resume is audience-focused – it must succinctly communicate that you understand the employer’s needs and that you are uniquely qualified to meet those needs. While the use of an objective is a controversial issue, at its basis, an objective tells the reader what you want from him or her (focused on YOUR needs rather than the employers’). A popular and often more effective alternative to the objective, the qualifications summary, allows you to establish focus for the resume while summarizing the key qualifications and value you offer the employer. This is a subtle but critical difference – one that may weigh heavily in opening the door to an interview. While an objective is both appropriate and effective in some cases, for example, career changers or new graduates with little or no work experience in the targeted field, experiment with the qualifications summary as a strong alternative.

3) Myth: Resumes should thoroughly describe the responsibilities of each position.

The absolute most important element of your resume is your value proposition. Your unique ability to solve business problems, meet challenging goals, and produce desired results should be the focus of your qualifications summary (see above) and this focus should be supported by proof throughout your career. How better to do this than through achievement-oriented, results-focused descriptions of your career history? While employers and recruiters will want to know the scope of your position (number of direct reports, amounts of budgets managed, areas of management authority, etc.) this is most effectively communicated within the context of the challenges you faced, the actions you took, and the results of your actions. “Responsibilities” only tell the reader what you were supposed to do, not what you actually did do. Use powerful, active language to concisely tell the reader the “story” behind your most recent or relevant positions. By documenting your consistent ability to produce results and solve problems you will demonstrate your ability to produce similar results in the future.

4) Myth: Resumes should include only the last ten years of experience.

Content of your resume should be strategically selected to support your focus and value proposition. While it is true that readers of your resume will be most interested in your most recent experience, there is often value in including experience further back in your history. Perhaps your early career includes work for well-known, prestigious companies. Perhaps you want to document the full scope of your cross-industry experience, much of which occurred in your early career. Perhaps you believe some valuable networking opportunities may come out of your experience 15 or 20 years ago. Or perhaps your most impressive accomplishments were in a position you held 12 years ago. In any case, if your career history is lengthy, it will be apparent to the reader that your career did not suddenly materialize ten years ago, so there is little harm and many benefits to summarizing this early experience. Of course, this does not mean that you must give equal page weight to your early career. If you feel early dates will be used to screen you out, subtly leave them out of your early career summary. If some early career positions have more strategic relevance than others, give them more emphasis in your summary. Think carefully about the content of your resume. If there is solid reasoning behind your desire to present early experience, than do so.

5) Myth: Resumes should include personal information, to indicate the many dimensions to your life and interests.

There is no way to predict the personal biases of the individuals who will read your resume. The first and primary way that an employer uses a resume is to screen candidates out; don’t give them any reason! Professional memberships and related volunteer work should often be included but religious affiliations, family status, social club memberships, and hobbies have no place on a resume. The only exception to this is when you are preparing a resume specifically written to appeal to a single individual who you are absolutely certain would be fascinated in your piloting license or passion for golf. Even then, be careful; you never know where your resume will be passed. However, if you are certain that your personal information will help you to break the ice and build rapport, you may have a valid reason for including it.

1. Including an objective statement that tells the reader what you want.

If there is one major rule to keep in mind as you write your resume, it is that all of the content should be written to be employer-centered. Objective statements that tell the reader what you want are inherently self-centered. The more modern way of providing focus for your resume is to include a summary or profile section. A profile is fundamentally different from an objective in that it is employer-centered, conveying to the reader what you offer them, rather than what you want from them.

2. Writing your resume to be intentionally broad in scope.

Many people will write a broad resume out of fear that focusing too precisely will exclude them from certain opportunities. Unfortunately, this strategy almost always backfires. Resume readers are notoriously lazy and give your resume only a few seconds at most before making the decision to screen it out or screen it in. If you are lucky you have 15 seconds to clearly convey your focus (level and type of position you are seeking) and how you would add value within their organization. If your focus is ambiguous and you haven’t made it crystal clear how you will “fit” in the company, you certainly expect the reader to make the effort to figure it out.

3. Including a generic profile/summary statement.

While it has become common and even expected that your resume will include a profile/summary statement, far too often they are just generic statements that do nothing to differentiate the individual from their competition in the job market. What is it that differentiates you and make your contributions to the companies you have worked for better and unique than your peers? What is the value proposition that you are making to the reader of your resume? What sets you apart from the competition and what uniquely qualifies you to meet the needs and solves the problems of the employer? Additionally, it isn’t enough to tell a reader that you have certain abilities or traits; you must show them through examples of past achievements. Prove impact! Forget about cliches and jargon. Soft skills are often important, but even those should be backed up by specific accomplishments that illustrate them.

4. Describing your job scope and responsibilities in detail.

Think about it: Being “responsible for” doing something certainly doesn’t mean a person does it. What a person is supposed to do and what they actually do are two different things. Many people make the mistake of selling features (responsibilities) rather than benefits (achievements/results) in their resume. It is very important to place the emphasis on achievements, quantifying results whenever possible. Document the ways in which your work have benefited your employers and quantify whenever possible. By including past achievements and results, you demonstrate your future potential. Always remember, you won’t get hired for what you know how to do, you will get hired for what you do with what you know how to do.

5. Focusing solely on the achievement and forgetting about the results.

Just telling the reader that you have achievements isn’t very effective unless you present them in terms of the results and benefits they have produced for past employers. You should always try to think in terms of the “so what” of your achievement. What did you improve, save, increase, enhance, etc? What impact did the work you do have on the companies? At the root, every single job is designed to solve a problem, save money, make money, or improve efficiency. It is crucial that you understand and be able to communicate the impact of your performance. Whenever you can do so, you should use numbers to illustrate your results, but even if you are unable to quantify achievements, the emphasis should still be on the results/benefits of your work.

6. Writing an autobiographical style resume.

Your resume is a marketing document. It is not an autobiography. While the decision about how far back to date your resume really depends on the individual circumstances, generally it is standard to go back 10-20 years. If experience earlier than that is still relevant, you can always summarize it in a couple of sentences without the use of dates. Always think in terms of relevance and impact. Does a particular piece of data or achievement support your personal brand and value proposition? Does it help promote your qualifications in relation to your current career goals? If not, you probably should not include it. In fact, by including irrelevant data, you dilute your focus and make the recipient wonder if you truly understand the position you are targeting. If you feel really strongly that particular data may be relevant to at least SOME recipients, you can always create an addendum that you choose to use selectively.

7. Including personal information.

If your resume is meant for the U.S. market, it should not include a photo, your birth date, mention of unrelated hobbies or interests, info about your family, info that reveals your religion, or any other similarly personal data. Including such data in a resume meant for the U.S. market may actually eliminate you from consideration, as hiring decision-makers may be concerned about discrimination suits.

8. Using a template design for your resume.

You should never use a template to create a resume. Your resume should be uniquely designed to highlight your unique qualifications and selling point and to set you apart from other candidates. If you use a template (or a format that looks like a template), you ensure that your resume will simply blend in with all the rest. To really compel action, your resume MUST attract immediate attention and present an unquestionably professional appearance. Create an eye-catching design, but forego the templates!

9. Using the same structure and resume writing techniques that you were taught in college ten years ago.

A common error made by experienced professionals is overemphasis of education. As an experienced professional your history of accomplishments and proven ability to produce and deliver results is far more important than your degrees. Only new graduates with very little or no experience should list education at the beginning of the resume. The most important thing is that you prioritize and organize your selling points, listing categories of primary importance first. The best structure in almost all circumstances is a combination reverse chronological order. This includes a profile/summary section, a reverse chronology of your work history and achievements, education, and other qualifications such as professional affiliations.

10. Listing all your achievements in a section separate from your career history.

It is critical to show progression and a consistent, repeated ability to produce results. By listing your achievements separately from your career history, you lose this. Go ahead and use specific achievements to illustrate the value proposition and personal branding that you convey in your profile. In fact, it is crucial that you do so. But, for the most part, the majority of your achievements are best presented within the chronological and situational context in which they happened. In other words, go ahead and include a SUMMARY of achievements that are selected to illustrate your value proposition and brand, but the body of your resume should also include achievements and results that illustrate your impact in each company or each position.

Do you still feel at a loss about how to improve your resume, even after reading these tips? If so, consider hiring a professional resume writer. Hiring a resume writer is an investment, but it is an investment that will often pay you back many times over by dramatically shortening your job search, positioning you to win coveted positions, and preparing you with the pitch you need to negotiate top compensation.