Other Opinions On Including Your Address
Some career experts recommend including your full address and zip code for many different reasons. One common reason is that some companies may favor hiring someone who has a shorter commute time, so if youâre close by you should say so.
In our opinion, you shouldnât put your full street address on a resume for this reason. Including your city, state, and zip code which will pretty much give away your commute time anyway, without giving up too much other information in the process.
A Short Memorable Resume Summary
Instead of a boring resume summary that looks like everyone elses, design a short, pithy summary that describes your career level and goals, along with an achievement or two followed by soft skills.
This hooks employers, and makes them eager to meet you. Try this formula for a powerful 2021 resume summary, with examples shown for each component:
Job Title & Span of Experience
- Division CFO Metals & Manufacturing
- High-performance team-building and mentoring producing next-generation leaders
- Aligning technology with business needs in nonprofit and healthcare environments
- Models strategic objectives against cost and economic constraints
Notable Achievements
- 172% revenue growth against downturn market
- Multimillion-dollar IT initiatives in cloud and digital transformation
- New OPEX controls enabling 32% lower spend in overseas production
Relevant Credentials
- Wharton Cybersecurity education
Then put it all together for a summary that wows employers in 2021:
Division CFO Metals and Manufacturing. Noted for high-performance team building and mentoring producing next-generation leaders. Models strategic objectives against cost and economic constraints. Led new OPEX controls enabling 32% lower spend in overseas production. TEDx speaker.
By including keywords, metrics, proper names, and distinguishing details in a concise and potent paragraph, your 2021 resume summary will be hard to resist.
When To Exclude Your Address Altogether
There are some instances when you shouldnât include any address at all. Some remote positions will not require an address from you during the application process, so there is often no need to include it. Look to the job description for requirements, such as preferred time zones or locations. Use that information to judge how specific you should be on your resume. For example:
-
Eastern time zone
-
Located in New York
-
US-based
You should also exclude your address when youâre not sure who will be looking at your resume; for example, when you post a resume online or submit it to any forum where people may pass it around. Even your city and zip code can be dangerous in the wrong hands, and you never know who will come across it online! Remove that information from your contact section, especially if youâre just looking for general feedback.
You May Like: Cna Objectives For Resume
In 2020 Your Resume Can Benefit From A Chart
If youve never used a visual element in your resume, youre not alone.;However, 2020 is the perfect time to upgrade your resume presentation.
A chart is one of the best ways to show your achievements,particularly if you led a long-term growth trend or saved costs at work.
As an example, this Business Development resume employs a growth performance chart to show multi-category revenue wins, allowing the reader to quickly skim for more detail.;This tutorial on charts in Microsoft Word can give you a quick-start lesson.
NOTE:; Youll want to put the chart in front of text that conveys the same data, enabling ATS systems to pick it up.
Top 5 Resume Formatting Tips
1.Keep your format simple: Remember, you have 10-20 seconds to snag a hiring managers attention. Presenting them with a resume thats overly crowded, hard to read, confusing or just plain messy isnt going to get you the jobits going to get you thrown out. Watch your spacing, font size and margins. Keep it legible!
2.Keep it professional: Avoid cute fonts, gimmicks, scented paper, glitter, odd shapes, or anything that could potentially make an employer look at your resume and question your sanity. Dont print on cheap paper. Show an employer youre serious about the job.
3.Focus on what you did for past employers, not just the job you held. Anyone can push a button. Why were you the best button pusher there was? What set you apart from every other button pusher who came before you and will come after you? Dont just outline the job description. What were your accomplishments while doing that job?
4.Make sure youre selecting the resume format that best reflects who you are, your work history, and the job youre applying for. Keep in mind employment gaps, career trajectory, where you are in your industry, and where you plan on going. Make sure youre selecting the right format resume .
Recommended Reading: Experience Cna Resume
Get Personal With A Profile Photo
It’s quite popular for 2020 resume design to feature a profile photo of some kind. This can be a great way to add a personal touch to your resume.;
Remember, this is your first impression, so your photo should suit the situation. If the position warrants a casual atmosphere, something fun or unconventional could work. Keep your resume’s objectives and the nature of the position at the forefront of your choices.
Customer Service Functional Resume Example
In this example, youll see that the experience section lists the years worked at the companies. This is a way to provide a high-level timeline that can help draw focus away from a gap. This person also includes an Areas of Experience section that gives a more detailed view of experiential skills. This can be a good opportunity to include skills relevant to the job description that may not fall into one of your themes.
James Kennedy
SummaryCustomer Service Representative with over three years of experience resolving complex customer inquiries. Passionate about building strong customer relationships, driving brand loyalty, and increasing customer engagement.
Area of ExperienceRetail Sales, Data Entry, Microsoft Office, Typing, Complaint resolution, Service-based selling, Fluency in French and Spanish
SkillsProcess Streamlining
Complaint ResolutionAnswered an average of 50+ calls per day from unsatisfied customers related to delays in shipment, order mistakes and lost orders. Achieved 97% average customer satisfaction rating, surpassing team goal by 12%.
Service-Based SellingConsistently exceeded application targets by 10%+ with innovative up-selling techniques. Pioneered development of an improved system for following up with unsatisfied customers, reducing customer churn by 6%.
ExperienceCloud Clearwater, 2017Customer Service Manager: Managed customer relationships via phone and email to obtain payments, resolve inquiries and up-sell programs.
Don’t Miss: Do You Put Clinical Experience On A Resume
What To Leave Off Your Resume
Did you notice that our revised sample resume omits John B. Does street address? Many applicants are only listing their city, state and ZIP code due to concerns about identity theft and thats okay.
Something else to exclude is the Professional References Available Upon Request line at the bottom. Thats obvious!
Also, once youve been working for more than five years, its not necessary to list every position from early on in your career; or even your graduation date; unless its relevant.
Think About The Specific Job Youre Applying To
One of my favorite tricks to help communicate that you are the perfect person for a job is to read the job description and list out key phrases. Then, when youre writing or editing your resume, find ways to incorporate those words and phrases from the desired job description into your resume. This can be super useful when a machine or human recruiter skims it.
Also Check: What Are Good Skills For A Resume
Skills Or Experience Repeated In Multiple Work Entries
Candidates with multiple jobs in the same line of work shouldntrepeatedly list the same skill on multiple times on their work history. Itcomes off as redundant.
It’s as if you’ve got no other impressive accomplishmentsto offer.
If your last two jobs included financial analysis, dont listthis skill on both employment entries. Choose the job where you had anachievement or significant project that involved financial analysis instead.Use the bullet points in other work entries to talk about your other skills.
What Is The Best Resume Layout
The first thing a job recruiter notices about any resume is the layout.;
Does it look organized or cluttered? Is it too short or too long? Is it boring and easy to ignore, or does it scream out Read me!?
Here are some of the best practices when it comes to your resume layout:
Resume Layout Must-Haves
1. One page in length. You should only go for 2 pages if you really, really believe that itll add significant value. HR managers in big firms get around 1,000+ resumes per month. Theyre not going to spend their valuable time reading your life story!
2. Clear section headings. Pick a heading and use it for all the section headers.
3. Ample white-space, especially around the margins.
4. Easy-to-read font. Wed recommend sticking to what stands out, but not too much. Do: Ubuntu, Roboto, Overpass, etc. Dont : Comic Sans
5. Pick the right font size. As a rule of thumb, go for 11 – 12 pt for normal text, and 14 – 16 pt for section titles.
6. As a rule of thumb, save your resume as PDF. Word is a popular alternative, but it has a good chance of messing up your resume formatting.
One more thing you need to consider in terms of resume layout is whether youre going for a traditional-looking free resume template or something a bit more modern:
If youre pursuing a career in a more traditional industry – legal, banking, finance, etc. – you might want to stick to the first.;
Don’t Miss: How To Copy And Paste Resume On Iphone
Replace Your Objective Statement With A Resume Summary
Many older resume templates prompt you to write an objective at the top of your resume. This was once a common practice, and if your resume is more than five years old, chances are good that you still have an objective statement lingering about. Try replacing it with an impactful summary statement. This is a brief overview of your top skills and experience that can quickly communicate to a recruiter who you are as an employee.
Job Titles In Your Professional Summary
The first line of your Professional Summary is the most effective area for communicating your expectations, so here you will list 3 to 5 job titles of jobs you would actually accept as your next job. Its important to note that these are the titles of the job you want next, not of the jobs you have had in the past, or the job you currently have. This is the Next Level section of your High Score Resume. Its where you inform recruiters and hiring managers of the job you desire and believe youre a good fit for.
Now its important to note that it does not matter that you have never actually had this job title in the past, but it ought to be a plausible Next Level in your professional career. Rather, youre advertising your ambition to the screener, the recruiter, or hiring manager looking to hire someone for that particular role and title.
Because there are no hard and fast rules that make it easy, youll use your business judgment to determine what qualifies as a suitable title for which you ought to be considered.
Examples of the first line of your professional summary are:
- VP, Marketing Director, Marketing Brand Marketing Leader CMOor
- Sales Representative | Business Development Executive | Account Executiveor
- Logistics Manager * Logistics Senior Manager * Operations Manager * Plant Supervisoror
- Financial Director Director, FP&A Credit Analyst Director, Planning
You May Like: How To List Courses On Resume
Wrap It Up With A Cover Letter
Phew! Almost done with ;how to write a resume. Just a little bit of editing and proofreading, picking the right resume template, and you should be able to click send, right?;
Not quite, at least we wouldnt recommend you sending it yet.;
The truth is that resumes are often put aside when not accompanied by a cover letter. It would be a shame if this happened to yours, especially after all the time youve spent on creating your resume.;
A good cover letter is a way to stand apart from the competition. Its where you can show your hiring manager you mean business. Here are 4 tips you can use while writing your cover letter:;
And if you really want a memorable cover letter, weve got you covered. In fact, were certain it will be the only cover letter guide youll ever need.;
The Best Resume Format Guide For 2021
By now, as a seasoned job hunter and student of The Interview Guys, you should know there are a few essentials you should have in your arsenal: business cards, a solid cover letter, your elevator pitch, and your well-formatted resume.
Hang on, havent we already gone over all this in that other article, How to Make a Resume 101?
Yesand no.
In that article we did go over how to write;a resume, but in this article, were;going to take you to the next step and focus specifically on one seemingly small but massively huge part of resume building: resume format and how to select which one is right for you in 2021.
FREE BONUS PDF CHECKLIST: Get our “Perfect Resume CHECKLIST” that gives you a handy 38-point Checklist that will let you craft the perfect resume.
Don’t Miss: What To Put On A Resume With No Job Experience
The Abbreviation Cv Can Be Found Literally Meaning Life Story
What should my resume look like in 2020. Professional font, such as cambria, calibri, georgia, or verdana. An exception would be if you are job searching in a country other than the u.s. Create a professional resume in just 15 minutes, easy
Just like your experiences, you should only include the skills that are most relevant to the job in question and are most impressive. Education, productivity, and unlimited abilities. Don’t use more than one colour on your cv.
Here are several examples of the best resume fonts: You can add more context later in a cover letter or an interview, but your resume should have only. Harness this new partiality to using data as proof by including some in your resume.
Sentences should be concise and clear. Lots of white space to give readers some breathing room. If you think data is on its way to ruling the world, youre not far off:
Ad top resume builder, build a perfect resume with ease. Also, leave some blank space between various sections of the resume’s text, so several distinct chunks of information can be seen. As you get your resume ready for a job search, take a look at our library of resume templates, and make sure to follow our design tips below.
The colour you use should not be too loud and bright. Your cv should be simple and sober. In 2020, you can no longer list your job descriptions and call it a day.
Where photos are the norm on cvs. (learn more about resume skills here: Ad top resume builder, build a perfect resume with ease.
Adding Negative Or Questionable Work Experience
Dont ever include employers who fired you for poor performance,attendance issues, or personal matters.;
If you were let go as part of alay-off, thats okay because companies understand things like this happen.
Information about how and why you were let go will surface oncean employer does a background check on you, so theres no sense including jobsyou were terminated from. However, if you just didnt get along with yourprevious boss but left the company in good standing, that’s okay. Just put another colleague or supervisor as reference.
Don’t Miss: How Do You Format A Cover Letter For A Resume
How To Get Your Resume Noticed
Eye-tracking research has shown that an HR professional will review your resume for a mere seven seconds, and companies are increasingly using automation to screen resumes.
- The days of sending a generic CV are out. You need to;be able to stand out and make the connection that lands an interview.
- Experts share five fresh and practical ways you can do this: 1) Outsmart the robots; 2) Show off your skills; 3) Dont restrict your work experience to just work; 4) Let the numbers do the talking; and 5) Keep your cover letter personal.
Where your work meets your life. See more from Ascend here.
How long does it take a recruiter to decide if youre right for a job? Its actually around seven seconds, according to eye-tracking research. To put that into perspective, close your eyes and take two deep breaths. Thats the time, on average, hiring managers spend skimming your resume, sizing up your history, hopes, and dreams before either tossing it into the trash or moving you to the next round of the application process.
For those of us just entering the workforce or looking to make a career transition, one thing is clear: We need to find ways to stand out and fast. While there is a plethora of guidance on the Internet surrounding how to be a great candidate, it can be contradictory or confusing depending on where and when you look.
Here is what Ive learned:
Top It Off With Some Skills And Interests
The skills section of a resume gets a bad rap, but its just as important as the rest of the stuff you include. Its a quick list a recruiter can scan to see if your skill set aligns with what theyre hiring for. And its super ATS-friendly because it allows you to add in keywords the machine is scanning for.
Usually this section goes at the bottom of your resume, but in special casessuch as a skills-based resume or when someones switching fieldsyou may place it further up.
What exactly do you throw in here? Youll want to list any hard skills and applications youre familiar with , and, if relevant, your level of expertise. Avoid including soft skills here, like time management or public speakingsave those for your bullet points instead.
Be strategic when filling in your skills. Dont list things you actually couldnt do at a high competence level , and maybe nix skills that are completely irrelevant to the job you want. For example, you may not even need to include Excel if youre applying for say, a design position, unless its listed as a job requirement.
Recommended Reading: How To Mention Programming Languages In Resume