How To Write A Resume - Skills And Experience Section

Fact #1: Most resume's are boring. The averagewere given 10 others too?
resume reads like an outline for a term paper.Why did they give you those extra jobs?
A,B,C, 1,2,3. BORING.Were you were more efficient than your
Fact #2: Most of us are not born writers andco-workers?
writing about ourselves is extremely hard.Did you create a special tracking spreadsheet?
So how do you outline all your great skills andBecause you were more organized?
assets in an interesting (if not exciting andDid you train any other employees? Even just
dynamic) way? In this article we'll give you athrough mentoring?
resume sample to get you started. Let's beginDid you reorganize something or streamline it in
with the basics and perhaps if you discover thesome way?
"hidden writer" within you might work up toFor instance, A long, long time ago I reorganized
exciting and dynamic.an entire filing system and created a color-coded
Professional Experiencekey for it. This saved people a lot of work trying
The experience section is where you really get toto find the right files. You bet I mentioned that on
shine. This is where you break out what you didmy resume for future executive assistant
for your last employer(s) and tell that prospectivepositions!
new employer exactly what an awesomeNOBODY just sits like a lump and does only what
employee you're going to be.they are initially hired for. We always take on
This is also where most people fall really flat. Byextra jobs. Problem is that after a while we are
just outlining job duties in a paragraph (typedso comfortable doing them we forgot that we
letters, managed inventory, made coffee, ranweren't originally HIRED to do those.
errands, shot myself in the head from boredom . .So, think hard about what you started out doing
. ) you are virtually guaranteeing that yourand what was added to your position and think
resume will be put in the "round file."about how you can "brag" about it.
Before you begin grab a pen and paper and doSKILLS
some real, deep down, thinking about your lastSkills can be broken out in two ways. You can
job. Were you given goals to achieve? Did youuse them to brag about yourself more by stating
exceed them? Did you do anything above andthings you've achieved. For instance:
beyond? Where and how did you "stand out?" DidSuccessfully managed 15 accounting employees
your prior job contain elements that the newprocessing over $1 million dollars a day in billing.
employer is looking for? For instance, if you didOr you can actually list your skills:
the payroll for your last employer is the newMS Office • QuickBooks • Photoshop •
employer looking for someone experienced inABC Accounting Program
payroll?And then list your certificates:
Resume Sample Of A BAD Experience Section"HR1 Certificate"
"General bookkeeper for small construction"Certified bookkeeper through the ABC College of
company."Accounting"
"Managed day to day activities and schedules."Education should be kept simple:
"Reconciled books and did payroll. Paid quarterlyIf you have a college degree then don't list your
taxes."high school. That's implied.
"Kept track of inventory and supplies."Spell out the name of your college. With the
"Paid bills."hundreds of colleges out there it's impossible for
Why is this bad? Because while you MAY haveeveryone to know their initials. Plus it just looks
done all those things, you don't tell the employermore professional.
how you stood out from the crowd! Lots ofDO NOT exaggerate or lie about your education.
people have the skills outlined above. What canMost companies hire professional background
you bring to the job that someone else mightchecking companies and you WILL be found out.
not?You do not need to put the year you graduated
Resume Sample Of A GOOD Experience Sectiondown (this gives them a hint at your age) but you
"Maintained all accounting and bookkeeping recordsmay have to list it on the background check
for multiple construction sites."information if you're hired.
"Implemented new cost accounting and inventoryDO NOT list your GPA - unless you're fresh out
control that saved the company $1 million dollarsof college and the job you're applying for is in the
on one single construction site alone."field you studied.
"Generated payroll for over 100 employees in 5DO NOT list college clubs or activities unless they
states."apply to the job or show some sort of leadership
"Maintained accurate books and paid quarterlyability (for instance being on the student
taxes - that used to be done by professional CPAgovernment or donating your time to, or founding
firm."a charity)
"Created new cost-accounting system thatBe careful to not list any political activities you
tracked all costs associated with construction sitemight have been involved in. You never know the
and saved company over $100,000 by eliminatingpolitics of the person you'll be interviewing with so
duplicate reimbursements to construction sites."don't give them an opportunity to exclude you
Use action words and positive phrases. In thebefore interviewing you.
sample resume piece above "Saved, ImplementedSo that's it in a nutshell! I hope these resume
and Created" are a few action words ansamples have helped. Now sit down with a pad
employer might look twice at.and paper and put your thinking cap on! You know
At this point you're probably saying, "but I didn'tyou were a stellar employee, now all you have to
do anything special at my job." Well, yes - you diddo is make your resume show it!
(unless you're a slug, then I highly suggest youPlease keep in mind that these lessons are for
start thinking about how you might performthe person just entering the job market or in
above and beyond at your next position). Mostentry-level or lower-level management. If you've
people get "writers block" when it comes tobeen in the workforce for a while and are on the
bragging about themselves. Don't be nervous.rise in your field then you definitely will want to
Take a breath and start thinking.consider hiring a professional resume writing
Were you hired for one job and before long youservice.