Blog
Debra Wheatman, President of Careers Done Write, provides expert insight to the job search process that puts your career in gear with tips for interviewing, networking, job search strategies and how to create a winning resume and cover letter.
Resume Help: More Accomplishments, Less Attributes
Today we are looking at a portion of Mark’s resume. He’s an accomplished executive at a pharmaceutical company, leading an international staff and managing products that generate millions of dollars over the product’s lifespan. In Mark’s first draft, he squandered valuable space to communicate his attributes. He also starts many of his bulleted points…
Resume Help: Formatting Your Professional Experience
Today we are reviewing the professional experience section of a resume for a financial manager, Andrew. Andrew’s resume is very similar to many resumes. He provided a list of his routine job functions. In some cases he simply listed two-word phrases to describe a function. He also has a few formatting issues to clean-up to…
Resume Help: Is It Resume-Worthy?
Do you ever wonder which of your affiliations and community service activities should be included on your resume? Today’s candidate, Sophia, struggled with the same issue. Her philosophy was, “When in doubt just add it.” There are reasons why that is not a wise decision. Some affiliations and service activities are considered inappropriate for the…
Resume Help: How to Craft an Accomplishment Statement
The lack of powerful accomplishment statements is the most common resume shortcoming. If a candidate does not include relevant and compelling accomplishments on his resume, his chances of earning interviews are diminished. A hiring employer may receive hundreds of resumes. The resumes lacking accomplishments will be cast aside. In most cases, the resume is the…
Resume Help: Editing Your Profile
Mina has several good concepts in her profile area. However, the entire profile area requires a thorough edit. Additionally, updating the style of her resume is important. As a graphic designer, she will be judged by the appearance of her resume. Today, we will tackle the issue of editing the content. The profile statement…
Resume Help: What is Important to the Reader
When I first read Mark’s resume I was not certain what type of position he was seeking. Is he a salesperson who specializes in personal services to celebrities? Is he providing these services himself? He states in his third line that he provided services. What is his goal? Is he seeking a personal services assistant…
Resume Help: Don’t Make Assumptions
Cecile presented her resume to me for a quick review. She was frustrated because she was getting zero responses to her resume. After reviewing with Cecile, I asked a few questions about her history to gather more details. Her response was, “Anyone in my market will know what that means” and “If someone sees that…
Resume Help: How to List Citations on Your Resume
Today, Petra wrote me asking how to include citations on her resume. If you are in an academic or scientific career, citing your research, publications, posters, and presentations is important. To establish yourself as a professional, you must properly organize and present this information. Below is an example of a citation before and after we…
Resume Help: Mundane to Marvelous
If your resume is one of hundreds of resumes that a screener must sift through for a single job opening, the last thing you want is to be in the grey abyss of mediocrity. That is the case with today’s candidate, Henry. It is highly unlikely that this mundane resume would generate interest. We can…
Resume Help: Why Some Non-Traditional Techniques Don’t Work
Today we are looking a non-traditional resume sent to us by Kelvin. It is non-traditional but not in a good way; it is not creative or edgy. Kelvin’s first mistake was using an obscure software application to create his resume. Upon opening the file, I found spacing issues that make it tough to read. That…