Are you finding it challenging to grab employers’ attention with your resume? In today’s highly competitive job market, standing out is absolutely crucial.

The main purpose of your resume is to demonstrate that you are an excellent match for the job you’re applying for. Anything that increases this match is beneficial (as long as it’s truthful, of course). Conversely, anything that reduces this match decreases your chances of being hired.

Today, I’m going to share several straightforward yet highly effective strategies to help you make your resume shine brightly and increase your chances of landing the job you want.

1. Use the Right Tools and Format

When it comes to crafting your resume, simplicity is key. Using complex design tools like Canva might seem appealing, but they can clutter your resume with distracting graphics, unreadable formatting elements, or exotic fonts that cannot be displayed on a recruiter’s machine. It’s safer to stick with simple tools like Microsoft Word or Google Docs, and save your document in DOCX or PDF formats. Be cautious when exporting your resume and always check the end result before submitting your application to ensure formatting consistency. Sometimes you find missing or extra spaces between words after export that can make reading your resume difficult and can result in keywords not being recognized.

I’ve tried out various “resume writing tools,” too, but honestly, they just made the process more tedious. They claim to generate your resume for you, but in reality, you still must feed the tool with all the information which ultimately results in more work for you. Instead, I recommend using high-quality professional resume templates that you can easily customize for each job application. It’s simpler, more efficient, and you can edit your resume easily anytime.

2. Adjust Your Resume to the Correct Length

When it comes to resume length, there’s a lot of advice out there, with many “gurus” insisting on sticking to a single page. However, that’s not always necessary. Recruiters do need to scan through resumes quickly, but as long as your text is well-structured, length shouldn’t be a major issue.

If you’re just starting out in your career, fitting everything onto one page makes a lot of sense. But if you’ve built up significant experience over the years, it’s perfectly fine to have a longer resume spanning 4 or 5 pages.

It’s often best to begin with the most comprehensive version of your resume, and then tailor it to each specific job application. You can then condense older or less relevant experiences briefly, or omit them altogether if they’re not essential, as long as it won’t create gaps in your employment history.

3. Write a Clever Summary and Objective

When it comes to crafting your resume’s summary and objective sections, many opt for generic statements that attempt to encapsulate their entire persona and career aspirations. However, such an approach may not always work in your favor. In fact, it could even distract the recruiter and raise doubts whether you are the right fit. If your summary and objective don’t perfectly align with the job you’re applying for, you might find yourself eliminated.

Many people I have seen like to use a generic summary and career objective that sort of paints a complete picture about themselves as a person and where they are heading in life. However, such an approach won’t win you many points. It could even distract the recruiter. If your summary and objective does not 100% align with the job, you may be eliminated.

Instead, it’s wiser to tailor these sections of your resume to mirror the language used in the job advertisement. You can also leverage tools like ChatGPT to help you analyze the job description and generate some content suggestions for you. Here is a hypothetical example:

Here is a job advert excerpt:

Company: [A global hotel chain]

Job title: Admin Assistant

Job type: Full time, permanent

Who we are looking for: Are you a confident and experienced administrator, used to working in a busy and diverse office environment? Are you self motivated, organized and flexible in your work?

This is how you derive your summary:

“Experienced and confident administrator with a proven track record of success in diverse and fast-paced office environments. Highly self-motivated, organized, and flexible in managing various responsibilities.”

This is how you derive your objective:

“Looking for a permanent full-time administrative assistant position, ideally within a leading global brand in the hospitality industry.”

While it’s true that only a few human recruiters actually read these sections in depth, they can still play a crucial role, especially if the company is using Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). Crafting a tailored summary and objective can significantly improve your chances of matching with the job requirements.

4. Use the Right Keywords

When it comes to optimizing your resume for job applications, incorporating the right keywords is essential. Start by identifying nouns related to specific skills, knowledge, tools, certifications and other qualification requirements outlined in the job description. Pay close attention to action verbs that highlight key responsibilities or achievements, such as “managed,” “implemented,” “analyzed,” or “collaborated.” All of these words indicate important skills and competencies sought by employers, so be sure to include them in your resume.

It’s also important to be mindful of industry-specific terminology used in the job description. Different industries and companies may have their own jargon, so it’s essential to match this language in your resume. Failure to do so could result in the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) or even the human recruiter overlooking some of your key qualifications.

5. Use a Professional Resume Template

The easiest way to produce a solid resume is to start with a high-quality professional template. The internet is full of rather useless, would-be fancy-looking templates cluttered with rubbish that are sold for prices up to $59. Just forget about them, save your money, buy my book for just $3.99, register for my newsletter filled with career advice and job search tips and tricks and receive a clean, beautiful, professional, proven, recruiter and ATS-friendly resume template for free.

Conclusion

Crafting a standout resume doesn’t require rocket science, yet many people still fall into common pitfalls. By following my advice and avoiding these mistakes, you can stand out from the crowd and significantly increase your chances of securing your next job interview.

Good luck!

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