NY Resume Writing

And it is not only information on past jobs you have to be careful about. Do not give false information about your education, no matter how badly you want the job!
One man wrote on his résumé that he graduated from Baruch College and started working at a firm. When his boss called the college to confirm that his employee received the degree, Baruch’s administration said he did not graduate. The boss asked his employee about this and the man confessed he just needed four more credits to get his degree and showed the boss documentation. However, to the boss, a lie is a lie and the man was fired. The employee should have clearly stated that he would be graduating soon instead of saying he already had a degree. The man was fired because if he lied on his résumé, what else would he lie about? The employer confided to me that had the man only been honest with him from the beginning, there is a good chance the fact that he was 4 credits shy, might have been overlooked.

When people come into the office, they wonder if freelance work is good to put on the résumé. Although permanent work experience is obviously better, freelance work can give a good impression to employers. By holding temporary jobs, one allows hiring managers to see that you are at least doing something for the time being. For example, if you graduated in May 2009 and you have not done anything since then, employers will not like that. They may even ask you what you have been doing the past several months. You do not want to say you were at home looking for jobs. This makes you look inactive and incompetent. Employers like seeing the effort you put into working–from internships to temporary jobs. Also, you can always try your best to find something within your previous temporary jobs that relates to the current job you are applying for. For instance, in every job, you do use communication skills, multitasking skills, or computer skills. Do not ever back away from a valuable offer, as little as it may seem, because the more experience you have, the more likely you will be able to find a job.

It can be so difficult to write your own résumé.  Most agree that résumés should be no more than one page but that one page has to give employers a reason why they should consider you for an interview. On a daily basis, when I look at résumés, I often see verbose sentences or big paragraphs underneath the job title. Résumés are only looked at for a minute or less. You want to be as brief and concise as possible.  Use bullet points and start out with an action verb or adjective that will describe what you have done in your past job. In this way, you aren’t just simply repeating the same things over and over. You don’t want to write in the first person, as this looks unprofessional. It is also good to be specific in that one sentence about what you did. In other words, you don’t want to say, “Led team.” You want to say something like “Led team that researches the financial status of the corporation.” You can’t just put any words down on your résumé and think that it will be acceptable! Words may not have wings, but they do have a big impact on whether or not employers want to hire you.

On a daily basis, people come in for jobs.  They present very professionally and they have great résumés.  However, when we call them back for jobs, their voicemail picks up and we must listen to 5 minutes of rap music before being able to leave a message.  This is extremely unprofessional, as no employer cares if BIG PIMPIN’ is your theme song.  Just have a simple message stating your name, and confirming your phone number.  Remember to speak clearly and slowly because the employer will think about how you will sound on the phone when you are a representative of their company.  Keep your personal music selections to yourself.  If you don’t face the music, you may be facing the unemployment line!

On a daily basis, I have people come in looking for jobs that are not ready for their interview. When I ask people questions regarding their past positions, they are hesitant to answers questions that should be rote for any interview- like why did you leave your last job, or how much salary were you earning.  However, some come in and tell outright lies and display false information on their résumé. You do not want to lie on your résumé! In fact, that is where most of the interviewer’s questions come from. Don’t put false jobs on your résumé and risk the interviewer asking you for a reference. However, it is not only information on past jobs you have to be careful about. You cannot give false information regarding your education. One man wrote on his résumé that he graduated from Baruch College and started working at a firm. When his boss called the college to confirm that his employee received the degree, Baruch’s administration said he did not graduate. When the boss asked his employee about this, the man said he needed only four more credits. However, a lie is a lie and the employee should have clearly stated that he would be graduating soon instead of saying he already had a degree. The man was fired because if he lied on his resume, what else would he lie about?  If he had only been honest with his employer from the beginning, there is a good chance the fact that he was 4 credits shy, might have been overlooked. Another point that is often underestimated is that it is a small world! You may meet a hiring manager who graduated from your college or worked at your previous job. The hiring manager will easily catch if you are lying or not. The moral is that lies spread quickly and telling the truth can be as simple as putting boots on!  Honesty brings rewards–perhaps even employment!

On a daily basis, you try your best to look good. Whether it’s with meeting with friends or going out on a date, you put your best foot forward, both physically and mentally. Why not do the same thing for your résumé? You want to stand out when you go on an interview…even more so than just a casual outing. Brag a little! You dress professionally so why not dress up your résumé. Your résumé shows your ability to be professional (in terms of the format you use) as well as your education and experiences in the workforce. The résumé shows who you are as a person to the employer and you want to have one that plumps up your aptitude. That not only includes the format, but also how you specifically word your tasks from previous jobs. You want to stand out by highlighting what you did.  Use strong action verbs or adjectives to describe your responsibilities. You may have a generic résumé, but that is what many people have and there are so many others that are applying for the same jobs. Take the time out to look online for help on writing a résumé or get books on résumé /cover letters. Also you can get a professional résumé writer to help you! Don’t be just any turkey…spread out your peacock feathers and show these employers what you’ve got!

On a daily basis people come in to apply for Administrative jobs with résumés that highlights their retail experience more than their Administrative experience.  When applying for jobs, you do not want to have one generic résumé! People often know that highlighting the job qualifications through past work experiences can really help boost your chances for getting the job, however the experience must be relevant. For example, as a retail clerk it is very important that you be comfortable using a cash register, but someone hiring for an Administrative job could care less about your aptitude with registers!  You want to gear your résumé towards each job separately, because each job may have a different skill set that they require. This will give you the best chance of finding employment.

On a daily basis, people come in with their résumés to apply for jobs. When my administrative assistant goes to the waiting room to collect the résumés she already knows which ones will be employed. Some of the résumés cannot even be accepted simply because they are too long. People think that they have to put down ALL their experiences and skills. When they do that, their résumés end up being more than one page. Interviewers briefly scan over the résumé taking less than a minute to figure out if you are qualified for the job.

Résumés should be only one page, unless you have more than ten years of experience! Even if you have worked many years, you should keep your résumé as brief as possible, highlighting only the jobs and skills that are relevant. You can figure out what to put on your résumé depending on the job you are applying for. You will not have to put down all of your work experience since job descriptions vary, even if the jobs are similar.  For example, if a job post focuses on research and technology, you want to list the work experience and skills you have that are related to those areas. You don’t have to list that you worked at the local café or a dental office.

It can be overwhelming for employers to find that instead of having a one-page résumé, they have to flip through five pages of work experience to find the skills they are interested in. Sometimes what makes a résumé very long is the way it is formatted. People will write sentences describing their responsibilities and daily tasks rather than bullet point adjectives and strong action verbs to show their skills. You want to show your intelligence through your résumé. By being too wordy, having sentences under each job description, and most importantly- putting down past jobs that are not relevant to what you are applying to can cause an employer to underestimate you. By being able to show your academic achievements, your work experiences and your skills in a consistent manner and professional format, brevity can cause your intelligence to glow!

On a daily basis, we get résumés from individuals applying for professional office jobs who have their photographs on their résumé. This is not necessary and not appropriate. Unless you are applying for an acting gig, modeling job, or position in the hospitality industry a photo is NOT needed. In fact, it makes you appear as if you are a vain person, saying: “Look how attractive I am!”

In today’s job market, employers are very conscious of being discriminatory. If they receive a résumé that has a picture on it, they may reject it immediately. You are providing room for bias.

With the economical problems that we are now facing, you want to send out the best résumé you can. Pictures do make your résumé stand out, but it gives your potential employer a bad impression of you. Employers may also assume that you do not have experience. Using the experience that you have, make yourself stand out by using creative words that highlight your skills and computer knowledge. After all, true beauty lies within knowledge and experience.

People come in everyday inquiring about jobs. However, many people either do not have a résumé or have to update it. Without a professional résumé, you cannot get a job, I tell them. They say they do not know how to create a résumé, nor do they have the money to get the résumé done. There are thousands of people applying for the same job you want. Don’t you want your résumé to be the best one out there?

Even though it is wise to save your money during these tough economic times, you have to think about the future in certain situations–especially when it comes to applying for jobs. For example, if you just graduated college and you have to pay $150 to get your résumé fixed, you should do it. If you pay that amount and receive a professional résumé, you will most likely end up getting a permanent job for $30,000! In the short-run, you may feel like you spent too much money, but when you start getting paid, it will all be worth it.

If you need your résumé to be fixed, we can do that for you! Call Millennium Personnel today at  (212) 244-2777 and speak to our staff about how we can give you a résumé that will land you your dream job. Remember, all it takes is the first impression…give employers a reason to hire you!