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10 RESUME DO'S AND DON'TS

Your resume is a history of your work and educational background and should typically be limited to no more than two pages.

Improve your chances of getting an interview by reviewing the following Resume Do's and Don'ts. While following these suggestions won't automatically guarantee that you'll get the job – it will point you in the right direction.

YOU ARE MORE THAN A JOB DESCRIPTION

Write your resume to sound like a series of job descriptions. You need to give the reader an idea of what you have done throughout your career, but you needn't list each and every detail of your job.

DO:

List your accomplishments along with facts to back them up. Saying you were responsible for a 10 percent growth in monthly sales is more impressive than simply stating that you managed a sales team. Indicating accomplishments in this way shows that you go above and beyond everyday tasks.

"COVER" YOUR ASSETS

DON'T:

Write in the first person.

Reserve this for your cover letter. Your resume is not a personal correspondence, and should not include words such as "I," "my," and "me." Save the first person pronouns for your cover letter.

DO:

Write an individualized cover letter for each job.

Every resume should be accompanied by a cover letter. This is your marketing tool to "sell yourself" and show, by using examples from your resume, why you are the ideal candidate for the job.

ACTION = VICTORY

DON'T:

Use passive language in describing your accomplishments.

DO:

Use action verbs to make a bold, strong statement.

Using words such as "coordinated," "achieved," and "implemented" helps to spice up your resume and makes it more interesting. Example: "Initiated strategies that successfully accomplished the company's goals" sounds better than "Made suggestions that helped the project do well."

DON'T:

Be repetitive.

You've found the ideal action words to describe your accomplishments, but don't "beat them to death."

DO:

Show variety in your choice of action words.

Use a thesaurus to discover synonyms or similar words to the ones you've already used to lend variety to your resume.

FOCUS ON THE PRIZE

DON'T:

Include unrelated and personal information.

As mentioned before, your resume should generally be no longer than two pages. Why waste the space to talk about your personal life, hobbies and other interests?

DO:

Consider your target.

Rewrite your resume —focusing on career goals and selectively portraying your credentials to win that interview.

"BIRDS OF A FEATHER…"

DON'T:

List every job you've worked at.

For example, if you previously worked as a server, it's not necessary to indicate this job if you are applying for office positions.

DO:

Use your resume to highlight previous jobs that are similar to the one that you want.

Listing similar jobs and accomplishments will indicate that you are familiar with this type of work and will also help to show relevancy and competence.

HOW TO BE SEEN AND HEARD

DON'T:

Use formatting improperly to make your resume stand out from the rest.

Create a clean, polished looking document, using consistent formatting for headings and bullet points. Unless you are applying for a highly creative position, stick to keeping your resume simple, bold and professional.

DO:

Use keywords.

Look through the job description and see which descriptive words are being used. Rewrite your resume including these same words. Since companies receive numerous resumes for job openings, many quickly scan them for relevancy. When you use the same words as in the job description, the likelihood of your resume being considered is greatly increased.

PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD, PROOFREAD

DON'T:

Count on spellcheckers to ensure that your meaning is clear. Proper noun misspellings and incorrect word usage are common. Because you're familiar with your resume, these mistakes may escape you.

DO:

Proofread your resume…several times.

If a typo or misspelling is found, many hiring managers won't even consider your resume. Ask a friend to review your resume before finally sending it out.

CASH IN ON EARNED CREDIT

DON'T:

Lie about your skills.

But don't be shy either.

DO:

Add your positive qualities to the summary section of your resume.

Do you pay strong attention to details? Are you tenacious? Do you work well with others? These "soft skills" are attributes that hiring managers want to know about you, and can effectively tell them about your work style and how well you will fit into the organization.

AGE RELEVANCY

DON'T:

List any jobs worked past 10 years.

Age discrimination becomes less of an issue when you consider that most employers usually focus only on the past 10 years of work history.

DO:

Summarize all relevant positions that are more than 10 years old.

Use dates to your advantage. These positions can be listed (without dates) in a special section at the end of your resume under the heading: Additional Work Experience or Early Career.

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We're searching for CareersUSA's next TEMP OF THE MONTH.

Nominate yourself or someone else that's deserving of this honor and if selected, they will be featured in our TEMP OF THE MONTH StaffFACTS column.

Enjoy the fame that comes after being chosen "CareersUSA's Idol."

Submit your entry telling us why you think this person should be considered CareersUSA's TEMP OF THE MONTH! Please also indicate which branch office this person is with, how long they have been with CareersUSA, and what current assignment they are working on.

Send all submissions to belster@careersusa.com

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Based on data from ASA quarterly surveys, the association estimates that America's staffing companies employed a total of 12.4 million temporary and contract workers during 2006, an increase of 300,000 over the previous year. Approximately 4.4 million of those employees secured permanent jobs.

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Temping Tales

Everyone has a story to tell or knows of someone who has a great story regarding their temping experiences – funny stories that still tickle your funny bone, or temping experiences that led them to their current significant other or career.

We'd love to hear about yours!

Email your stories to either belster@careersusa.com or awallace@careersusa.com.

We will select the best ones to feature in our next staffFACTS

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