WINNING RESUMES BLOG: April 2011

Do you know how to write a winning resume in 2012?

Today, there are 7.5 million fewer jobs and the competition is awesome. Can your resume compete successfully for a job and win?

Are you still struggling to choose a suitable resume Format? (My most popular blog article is about Choosing the Best Resume Format.) Have you written a Profile that impresses no one? Most profiles are worse than useless. As an executive, have you composed an 8-line Branding Statement that bores readers and does not "sell" you? Amateur resume writers like yourself need to wake up and smell the coffee before you lose another job opportunity.

If you have not written a resume that gets interviews in the past 12 months, you are probably an AMATEUR writer. Are you still copying blindly from sample resumes or resume books? What about getting someone else's opinion about your resume?

"My friend, neighbor, parent or manager said my resume was fine." You need to be aware of the dangers of amateur critiques. Everyone has an opinion about resumes, but most people know almost nothing about how to construct a resume that generates job interviews.

Critiques by people who are not resume professionals, will result in a bewildering array of ill-informed, contradictory opinions. However well-meaning these may be, they are more likely to confuse you than to inform you. Worse yet, they are more likely to harm your job search than to help it. At the very least, these amateur resume critiques are almost certain to waste your time.

NOWADAYS, YOU HAVE ONLY 15 SECONDS OR LESS TO IMPRESS A RECRUITER

In 2012, the chances are that you DON'T know how to sell yourself and your own "ingredients" in the BEST or most effective way -- on paper and in person.

If you graduated in English with a GPA of 4.0, you have already realized or discovered that resume writing is an art and that you need help.

If you are a Manager or Executive or Senior Executive who still writes your own resume or asks your spouse to help you with it, then it's time for you to do a serious reality check. Which of you claims to be the resume writing expert? You, yourself? Your husband? Your wife? Your significant other? Your secretary? Your daughter?

The stakes are very high. We are talking about marketing your value, getting hired and then earning $50,000 to $150,000 in your next job.

Would you go to a dentist who had only seen six patients? Would you hire an accountant who had only prepared seven tax returns to do your taxes? Would you rely on a rookie doctor, if you were only his or her tenth patient? Won't you get a second opinion or consult with a specialist?

SO WHY ARE YOU STUBBORNLY TRYING TO WRITE YOUR OWN JOB RESUME? How many successful ones have you created in a tough buyer's market like today? (It's not too difficult to write a basic resume when jobs are everywhere as they used to be.)

Do you feel that good English and writing skills are all you need to compose a "winning" resume or cover letter in 2012? Resumes and cover letters are intended to sell you to picky employers. Do you feel that all it takes to write them is a knowledge of English plus good writing skills? Sadly, this won't be enough to create a paper that impresses a busy reader.

I have often heard clients say something like: "Matthew, what should I include? What can I safely omit? What must I emphasize? How do I focus it? What is the best FORMAT for me to use?" And so on. Important decisions need to be made and a knowledge of good English and writing skills are only the basics!

Can you be OBJECTIVE about your own plusses and minuses? Probably not!

Can you analyze your own skills and strengths -- fairly and objectively? To find out what these might be, you would need to be able to see yourself as other people see you. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to do this on your own. Nearly impossible.

This is where a skilled, professional resume writer can help -- someone with strong analytical skills who has already uncovered the skills and strengths of hundreds of job seekers. Such a person will help you discover what you are able to offer that employers might also need in 2011. (Career changers and returning-to-work homemakers, please note!)

At my own resume service, Winning-Resumes.com, I have met with many job seekers like you. I have found your experiences to be truly amazing – you've built businesses, invented and patented things for cardiac stents, run amazing marketing campaigns, designed and built technologies that fly spaceships, and drones that bomb targets hundreds of miles away. Your stories are very impressive.

But what you haven't done, is qualify as a professional resume writer. And, unfortunately, it shows. YOUR RESUME IS WEAK AND NOT EFFECTIVE!

You see, a resume is a document that that has to sell you, not a document that tells about everything you've ever done. Just like an advertisement, you need to tell the recruiter or hiring manager what you can do for them. Today.

What I've discovered over the 24 years I have been in this business is that it takes a professional writer who is familiar with what recruiters are looking for, to turn your resume into a very effective advertisement or presentation of your skills, talents, abilities and background.

Only about 5% of the resumes I review get an "A" from me. The vast majority are "B"s and "C"s.

That's unfortunate, because when I meet you in person, I can see the confident look in your eye as well as the fire in your belly – all of the great talents that aren't exhibited very clearly in the typical resume.

In this economy, I have to tell you, recruiters have lots and lots of candidates to choose from. I have seen the average number of applicants per job increase from 15 per job two years ago to 46 today. And that extra competition means you have about 15 SECONDS to stand out – to ensure that your audience can find exactly what they need to know about you, and find it fast.

THOSE ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT 15 SECONDS IN YOUR JOB HUNT.

Are you going to leave your fate in the hands of an AMATEUR resume writer like yourself? Please get help from a first-class professional resume writer. Please E-mail or call me for a FREE consultation or chat.

mattgreene@aol.com Tel.: 1-718-436-3504