One of the most well-known sticking points when trying to get a good job is trying to craft the perfect resume. When it comes to moving up in the world, it can seem daunting to massage your work history into a reasonable-looking resume. After all, how are you supposed to get into the kind of job you want if your work history is a bit underwhelming?
Today, we’ll help you find the little ways to bring your resume up to a great standard so you can land that job you want. Presentation is everything!
Don’t Lie
This one should go without saying, but let’s circle back and review before we move on. You should not, under any circumstances, lie on your resume. Bold-faced, provable lies on a resume are kryptonite for getting a decent job. Any recruiter could easily discover if your work history isn’t what you say it is, and this is a surefire way to have your resume tossed into the waste bin.
Whether you’re just entering the job market or have years of job history, you need to be honest on your resume. Lying just creates problems for yourself down the line, and isn’t worth the trouble it’ll bring you.
Present the Truth in a Favorable Light
This is the hard part. When you’re writing your resume, if it’s less than ideal for landing a solid new job, you might need to present the truth in a more favorable light. Maybe, instead of describing a job as “grocery bagger” you use the term “customer service specialist”. While this isn’t lying, it presents your experience in a way that can be more eye-catching and flattering to your job history.
Likewise, if you had a job position that saw you overseeing more responsibilities than the employer reflected in the job description, have your resume reflect that. If you were given responsibilities that should have been manager-level, say you have leadership experience involving managerial tasks. This is the truth, but it might be missed if you write a strictly job title-based resume.
Make it Pretty
Recruiters are people, too, and people like slick, attractive designs. While we like to hope people judge job histories and resumes based on their merit, two similar resumes of varying quality of appearance could be decided based on which one looks better.
So, make sure you’ve got no typos or grammatical errors, and make sure the resume is stylish, eye-catching, and professional. That way, you stand the best chance of being picked over similarly-qualified peers.
