5 Resume Improvements

There are many ways to tell if your resume will be a success when it gets to the hiring manager's desk. One of the best of these techniques is to read it as if it were not your own work. Would you be compelled to read it if you weren't the author?

If you answer "no" to that question, it's time to make some improvements.

It's important to note that your resume doesn't need to be a full-on disaster to warrant tweaking. The smallest errors can cost you the job, as unfair as that seems. The nature of today's job market means that a candidate who has an application that is just a little more polished than yours will ultimately be more attractive to the employer.

Improvements to your resume don't necessarily need to come from major overhauls. Instead, they can come from a series of smaller tweaks. Here are five tips for implementing these changes:

• Don't rely on the computer's spell check. These programs, while helpful, can aren't foolproof. Read over your resume with your own eyes before sending it. You should also have someone else check it, as you will not always have the most accurate perspective of your own work.
• Organize your work history so that your most recent jobs are listed at the top. This style is preferred by most employers, as it makes it easier for them to determine where you worked and when.
• Eliminate all unnecessary words and simplify your language. For example, personal pronouns such as "I," "my," and "me" are not needed since it is clear that your resume is about you.
• Review your formatting to make sure that it is easy to read. Bold, italicize, or underline key points, and create a bulleted list for your job functions.
• You can sometimes miss awkward sounding sentences if you just read your work to yourself. That's why you should read your resume aloud, as it will help you identify passages that need improvement or clarification.

3 Cover Letter Rules

One of the things that I agonized over the most over during the job search was cover letters. If I wasn't having a tough time figuring out a unique way to express why I was a good fit for the job, I was experiencing fatigue from writing so many of them.

Yes, most job seekers will agree that cover letters are a bit of a pain. They are also extremely important; maybe even more so than your resumé.

There's no such thing as a perfect cover letter, but there are some rules you should follow that will make it easier. I learned these as I went along, and they made things a little easier for me. Hopefully they will do the same for you.

• Start Early: Instead of waiting until the last minute to bang out your cover letter, take some time to figure out what you want to say. The purpose of this document is to raise your job application above the competition, so sending something that is hastily written only will serve to undermine your cause.
• Be Unique: Don't simply mimic what you say in your resumé. Choose one of your skills and expand on it, explaining exactly why it makes you a great fit for the job. Above all, make sure your passion for the position shines through your writing.
• Know Your Norms: Most job descriptions will let you know how you should send your cover letter. If that is not the case, get in touch with your networking contacts to determine whether the organization wants candidates to submit applications as an attachment or in the body of the e-mail. This is a lot more important than you think, as it can determine whether your message makes it through the employer's filters.

4 Creative Additions To Your Resume

Everyone knows the standard things to include in a resume: Relevant work experience, skills, and education. But did you know there are some other additions you can add? Below are four of them, along with explanations of why they are important:

• Volunteer Work: This is especially relevant for nonprofit jobs. It shows that you have a passion for a cause and are willing to put in hard work to get the job done. Long-term volunteer work is the most impressive, but you can list short-term projects.
• Professional Hobbies: The word "professional" is key here. You shouldn't list "Dungeons and Dragons" in your resume, but you can mention activities that are relevant to the job for which you are applying. For example, if you are applying for an IT position, you could list computer programming as a hobby.
• Experiences: Feel free to list experiences that have shaped your life, such as a study abroad. This is important as it gives the employer an idea of the kind of things you do with extended periods of free time. These types of experiences are ideal if you need to fill gaps in your employment.
• Interests:  This will show that you are an individual who is well-rounded and has a fresh prospective. Organizations want people who have a broad range of interests, not someone who is one-dimensional.

Have any other ideas of things you can include in a resume? Feel free to list them in our comments section.

How To Blow Them Away During Your Next Job Interview

Job interviews are all about first impressions. You have only one shot to impress hiring managers enough so that they will either hire you or call you in for a second interview. Fail to do that and you'll be on your way to filling out yet another application.

Employers are understandably picky about who they want to hire, so it's important that you stand out among the other candidates they see. Here some tips to make them say "wow" at the end of the interview:

• Make Your Resume Clear and Concise: You'd be surprised how many applicants send in cluttered resumes. It makes a world of difference to a hiring manager when they get applications that don't leave them confused.
• Dress to Impress: It doesn't matter what the atmosphere of the organization is: You should always come to the interview dressed professionally. That means no jeans or sneakers. I would avoid wearing colors that are too bright, as that can come off as a little over-the-top;.
• Be Punctual: Arrive at the office exactly when you are asked. Nothing makes a worse first impression than being late, but being too early can be a bad thing as well. It can make employers feel like they have to rush through what they are doing in order to attend to you.
• Come Prepared With Questions: Interviewers like candidates who show interest in their organization. Even if they aren't ground-breaking questions, it's worth asking.
• Say "Thanks:" Send a thank-you letter after the interview is over. Make sure to once again express your interest in the job in your note.

Don't Lie In Your Resume

There's sometimes a distinction made between lying and stretching the truth. This is never the case when it comes to your resume, however. Whether you are just embellishing a little bit or telling a real whopper, it's never appropriate to misrepresent yourself to an employer.

Aside from the obvious reason that it's just not right to lie about something you know is wrong, stretching the truth about your employment history can come back to haunt you. Telling an organization that you are capable of doing something you are not can lead to a quick exit from the job when it is discovered you can't do the work. This is not only bad for you short-term, but can also impact your ability to get jobs in the future.

It's not good to embellish about anything, but here are some of the worst items to lie about in your resume:

• Job Duration: It's better to address frequent turnover in employment rather than hide it by only listing the years you worked rather than the months. There are plenty of reasons that you might have had multiple jobs in a short period of time, and employers will appreciate your honesty.
• Skills: There's nothing more embarrassing than claiming you are an expert at something only to have your co-workers find out you are far from that. Word of this kind of lie can spread pretty quickly around the industry, making it hard for you to get jobs in the future.
• Education: If you didn't graduate for whatever reason, list the amount of credits you received and your class standing. Include a parenthetical note explaining why you didn't complete your degree.
• Residence: Don't use your friend's address in Florida if there is absolutely no way you can get there by the next day for interview. This is only appropriate if you are staying at this person's house for the weekend and in that case, you need to mention that in your application.

The Worst Things To Include In Your Resume

Everyone wants their resume to stand out from the competition -- that is, unless it's for the wrong reasons.

Job seekers sometimes struggle with how much information to include in their resumes. They wonder whether it's better to have too much information rather than too little. The answer is simple: You shouldn't be worried about how much information you have, only if that information is relevant and appropriate.

Here are four things that you should avoid including at all costs, no matter what the length of your resume is:

• Personal Information: Employers don't need to know whether you are married or any other personal details. You can, however, include URLs to a website or blog that you created that has relevance to the position for which you are applying.
• Salary Requirements: Unless the job description specifically asks for your salary range, this information is best left for later in the hiring process. If you are asked, be as broad as possible.
• Unrelated Experience: Think carefully about the work/volunteer experience you list in your resume. Only jobs or activities that have relevance to the position in question should be mentioned.
• Your Weaknesses: Focus only on your strengths. You'll probably be asked about your weaknesses if you get a job interview, but that answer can be saved until the question is actually asked.

Stop Over-Thinking The Job Search

It's hard enough to get a job in these difficult economic conditions. Don't make it even harder by over-thinking yourself out of potentially good situations.

With the job market the way it is right now, it can be pretty easy to believe you need to be pretty clever to get that nonprofit job. What you really need is impressive accomplishments and the right set of skills; being smarter than the competition won't make getting hired anymore likely.

So the next time you are filling out your resume and cover letter, avoid the following mistakes:

• Resting On Your Laurels: Sure, you've done some pretty impressive things in your past career. But that won't help you one bit today. This is not to say your experience won't help you -- it will. It's just that you will also need to convince hiring managers that you have what it takes to help them in the future.
• Too Much Information: Don't overload employers with information that has no relevance to the position. Be absolutely certain what you are including is necessary before putting it into your application.
• Trying To Outwit the Employer: Despite what you have heard, the job search is not a battle. You don't need to defeat your interviewer in a game of wits to get hired. Think about the best ways you can show recruiters that you are the right for the job, not how you can trick them into hiring you.
• "I Don't Need Help:" Don't be afraid to ask for help from your friends, family, or colleagues. It's not a sign of weakness to get assistance from those who have your best interest in mind.
• "I Don't Need Social Media:" Actually, you do. Recruiters use social media a lot these days to help them gauge applicants. If you haven't already, give yourself an online presence on sites like Facebook or Google+.

What's The Buzz On Resume Buzzwords?

It wasn't too long ago that a great resume just included your employment history and various accomplishments. These days it's a little more complicated.  If you send a resume to an employer today, you're going to find yourself in the rejected pile pretty quickly.

Today's modern resume must hit a number points, referred to as "buzzwords," to be considered successful. The first one is quantifying your accomplishments. Drop words like "streamlined," "enhanced" in favor of more specific examples that give a better indication of your impact (i.e., "Increased revenue by X amount in my first year"). This will back up your claims and give the hiring manager a better idea of how you could help the organization.

The next buzzword employers look for is some variation of "outside-the-box thinker." This one is a little tricky because it can lose all meaning if you don't explain what makes your thinking so unique. Anyone can say they are creative, so you have to put some weight behind your words. For example, explain how you define "outside-the-box," and how it has impacted your work.

Including any references to volunteering or community service will greatly help your cause with nonprofits. You should explain what you learned during these activities, and how these experiences will help you in the future. Don't worry if it was some time ago; every little bit of information counts.

Are there any other buzzwords you think are important? Let us know what they are, and why you think they make a difference for resumes.

Proofreading Your Cover Letter

All job seekers know they have to proofread their resume and cover letter before sending them out to employers.  But do you know the correct way to do this?

There are actually multiple different ways to check a document for mistakes, and some are more effective than others.  If all you are doing is reading over your cover letter once and calling it a day, you are probably leaving some costly mistakes behind.  Here are some effective ways to make sure you don't spoil a perfectly good application with sloppy errors:

• Print your cover letter out instead of reading it on the screen.  It's easier to catch errors reading on a plain piece of paper than a bright screen.  It also helps to print your cover letter out in a larger than normal font.
• It can be awkward sometimes, but try reading it out loud.  The ear often catches mistakes that the eyes don't see.
• Speaking of which, have someone read your cover letter over for you.  An outside observer will not only catch typos you may have missed, they will also be a better judge of awkward or confusing sentences.  Things that make sense in our own heads can be confusing to other people.
• Make sure your punctuation is consistent if you have any bulleted items.  For example, if you use a period in one bullet, make sure you use them in the others.

Do you have any tips of your own to help the proofreading process?  Feel free to share them with us.

E-Mailing Your Resume

Every nonprofit job application you find is going to ask you to e-mail your resume, but they don't always tell you how to e-mail it.  This begs the question: Is it better to send your resume as an attachment or paste it into the e-mail body?

It's hard to find much agreement on this question.  Some job search experts will tell you that an attachment is more professional, while others will caution that some e-mail programs will block all incoming attachments.  Personally, I think attachments are the best choice.  If an employer doesn't want your resume to be an attachment, they will more than likely mention it in the job application.

If you do plan to put your resume in the body of the e-mail, there are some guidelines you should follow.  First, make sure you start your message off with a brief introduction.  This should be no more than two to three paragraphs.  It's a little bit jarring to start an e-mail off with your resume and no explanation of who you are and why you are communicating with them.  Think of it as a shorter version of a cover letter.

Once you are done with your introduction, indicate that you have pasted your resume below your name and contact information.  Concerned with how to format the text?  Here are some suggestions that will make your resume look professional and keep it out of the spam folder:

• Some e-mail programs are only able to receive plain-text e-mail, so avoid any fancy formatting.
• Keep your lines short -- between 45 and 60 characters.
• Use the space bar for indenting, not tab.
• Don't use exclamation points are all caps.  These are two criteria that spam filters check.
• Avoid the use of bold or italic tags.  Use asterisks or rows of equal signs for your headings instead.

Resume Red Flags

There are a lot of things in a resume that can automatically disqualify a candidate: Consistent spelling errors, lack of necessary experience, etc.  But what about those resumes that are near perfect except for one or two red flags?

 Life as a hiring manager is tough work and the last thing you want is more grey area when deciding which candidates to pursue.  Resume red flags could turn out to be no big deal, or they could be an indication of a larger flaw in the job applicant.  It's up to you to do a thorough screening of the candidate to figure out what the situation is.

In their book "The Big Book of HR," Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem list four red flags to look out for when reviewing resumes:

• No dates of employment -- just organizations listed with job duties.
• Gaps in employment (unless these are explained in the resume/cover letter).
• Frequent job changes to positions of lesser responsibility.
• Lists of accomplishments that can't be linked to specific jobs.

Mitchell and Gamlem write that you should immediately highlight these issues while doing a phone screen with candidates.  This will help you to better evaluate them for the position.  It may turn out that they had a perfectly acceptable reason for taking a lesser position (family issues etc).  On the other hand, it could be an indication that they have a history of taking the path of least resistance.  Whatever the case may be, it's important to get to the bottom of it.

10 Steps To A Modern Resume

Does your resume feel old?  Does it produce dust when you touch it?  Then it's time to do some updating to bring it into the 21st century.

Resumes are a lot different than they were years ago.  If you don't get with the times, you'll find your application resume collecting more dust.  Thanks to new conventions and the rise of applicant tracking software (ATS), employers are more strict than ever about which resumes make it past the sniff test.

Nervous?  Not to worry, there are plenty of easy ways to get your resume up to date.  Here are 10 tips to get you on track:

• Include a professional or executive summary at the top of your resume, followed by a bulleted list of qualifications and achievements.
• Don't use abbreviations.  An ATS is unlikely to have them programmed into its list of job key words.
• Speaking of key words, it's not enough to just litter them throughout your resume.  Frame them with material that demonstrates your expertise in the subject.
• Don't include any graphics, logos, or other pictures.
• Avoid the use of exclamation points or all-caps letters.  Use only standard capitalization.
• Mention if you are being referred to the organization by a current employee.
• Put your contact information, including phone number and e-mail, at the top of the page.  It's easier to miss at the bottom.
• Order your previous work experience by most recent.  Employers are more interested in the work you have done recently.
• Your dates should be in the month/year format.  Specific days are not necessary.
• The length of your resume should be based on the amount of experience you have.  For example, a recent college graduate's resume shouldn't be more than a page or two.

Personalize Your Cover Letter

There's one rule of thumb to follow when writing a cover letter for a nonprofit job: Be unique.  The less generic your letter is, the better chance it has of being read.

The temptation to write a generic cover letter is great.  This method increases productivity, but it also leads to worse results.  Think about it from the employer's perspective: They receive hundreds, if not thousands, of resumes everyday, and most of them probably categorized as generic.  A job application that has a vanilla cover letter or resume will almost always go into the "rejected" pile.

One person's generic is another's unique, so how can you be sure that your cover letter rings true to an organization?  I have one word for you: Personalization.  Here are some tips to make your letter more unique for each job:

• Instead of addressing the cover letter to unnamed "hiring managers," find out their name.  Avoid "To Whom It May Concern" openings at all costs.
• Don't just say you've done something, show specific examples of your accomplishments.  Make sure these anecdotes are used to show strength in an area that employer identified as a need.  This will prove that you read their job description thoroughly.
• Don't leave out any specific instructions from the job description.  There's no better way to write a generic cover letter than ignoring specific requests from the employer.
• List your interest in the specific job for which you are applying.  It might sound obvious, but many job seekers list skills in their cover letter that have nothing to do with the job in question.  This makes it seem like you simply copied a previous letter.

Explaining Short Employment Stints On A Resume

Any good hiring manager is going to raise their eyebrows a little bit when they see short employment stints on a job applicant's resume.  They have reason to be skeptical, but there are often good explanations behind this.  It's all a matter of explaining it properly.

You have probably worked somewhere that you left for a simple reason: You hated it.  It may be the truth, but this is one of those times where the truth is going to hurt you.  If you take a much deeper look, you will discover more professional reasons to explain why you left a company.  Instead of ragging on your former employer, use these positive answers and techniques to ease a hiring manager's fears:

• "The job wasn't suited to my needs professionally."
• "I was offered a much better opportunity."
• "X organization was a fantastic place to work, and I enjoyed the short period I was there.  Unfortunately, the direction of the organization changed not long after I got there, and I just felt it was time to move on."
• Here's another good tip: Bring up the issue before the interviewer does, but remember to not be defensive.
• You can also bring this up before the interview by including a detailed explanation in your cover letter.

Job seekers are judged, fairly or unfairly, on the words that come out of their mouths.  Don't ruin a potentially good opportunity by coming off as negative or petty.

Applicant Tracking Software And Your Job Application

Applicant Tracking Software (ATS) has revolutionized the way employers scan through resumes and cover letters.  No longer do they have parse through every single application.  ATSes do all the work for them.  This makes life a lot easier for employers, but it can leave job seekers in the dark if they aren't prepared.

As you are probably aware, the two main parts of your job application are your resume and cover letter.  If you want these documents to be get through the ATS, you are going to have to tailor them.  This means making use of job key words in your resume.  These key words can be found by going through the job description.  You then need to sprinkle these in through your resume (Note: Make sure it's not at random.  It has to make sense).  Examples of key words depend on the type of job for which you are applying.  For instance, a resume for a fundraising job should include words like "development" or "developing relationships."

Cover letters are handled a little differently by ATSes.  Very few of these programs are able to scan cover letters as an attachment.  They treat the body of your e-mail as the cover letter instead, so it's imperative that you write it there.  When creating your cover letter, think of it as an additional medium to list more key words and skills that you weren't able to fit into your resume.  The more key words an ATS finds, the higher it will rank your application. And that means it has a much better chance of getting into the hands of an actual human.  Imagine that!

One thing to keep in mind: Not all ATSes keyword-search cover letters, so don't spend too much time tailoring it towards them.  The majority of your energy should be spent making your resume as ATS-friendly as possible.

Resume Editing Tips

There comes a point in the life of every job seeker when they need to re-write their resume.  Maybe you aren't getting sufficient responses to your job applications or maybe you just feel like it's time to change things up.  Whatever the reason, you should make sure you follow proper resume editing guidelines before you get started.

Spelling and grammar are two of the most important things to check over when re-doing your resume, but you should also pay attention to stylistic issues.  What kind of font are you using?  It should be something readable and eye-catching.  That's why sticking with your word processor's default font (usually Times New Roman) is not the best of ideas.  There's only so many times a hiring manager can see that style before the words start to blur together.  Try using a font like Arial, which is easy to read and comes out cleanly in a fax or photocopy.  Feel free to be even more creative, but avoid crazy fonts.  Apologies to fans of Comic Sans.

You should next look at the layout of your resume content.  How are you listing your job descriptions?  You should make sure they are listed with the job title first.  For example:

Director of Marketing: Generic Marketing Organization, Inc, April 2007-Present

Some variation of that style is likely to get you the most success.  Remember, it's most important that recruiters know what kind of work you did before everything else.  When writing the descriptions of each job, you should use active verbs to describe your accomplishments.  So instead of saying "Responsible for developing marketing strategies" you should say "Developed marketing strategies."  Using an active verb format makes gives the reader a stronger sense of what you achieved.

Here are some final tips:

• If you don't have a lot of nonprofit work experience, lead with your education.
• List your contact information in large, bold font at the top of your resume.  Don't assume the employer will get your information from your cover letter.
• List all your skills that apply to nonprofit work.

Evaluating Résumé Length

Put yourself in the shoes of a hiring manager for a second.  You receive countless résumés every single day, and need to read every single one carefully.  Now think about what you might feel if you came across a resume of more than three pages.

There was a time when it was not unusual for resume length to be very long, but those days have passed.  A modern résumé should be no longer than three pages.  Any more than that and you risk getting placed in the "rejected" pile.  Although boring an employer is part of the problem, a long résumé will also make you seem long-winded.  And if you are applying for a job like a grant writer, it's even more important to show you can be concise.

You need to be concise, but that doesn't mean you can simply shorten your résumé and call it a day.  You are going about this the wrong way if all you do is list your previous work experience.  In a previous blog post, I wrote about things you need to include in your nonprofit résumé.  You should look over that post to see what you absolutely need to include before you start cutting things left and right.  The most important thing to remember is to tailor your resume to the job you are applying.  Cut out anything that holds no relevance to the position.

As for the final length of your résumé, it all depends on your level of experience.  Use the following guidelines to help you:

• College graduate: No more than one page.
• Moderately experienced worker (5+ years): No more than two pages.
• Extremely experienced worker (15+ years): No more than three pages.

If you want even more résumé advice, be sure to check out the career resources section on The Nonprofit Jobseeker.

Things Your Nonprofit Resume Doesn't Need

When preparing your nonprofit resume, you probably already have a good idea of what you need to include.  But do you know what you should leave out?

You need to include a lot of information in your resume.  You simply can't risk including unnecessary information or you will risk losing your reader.  Being able to present information in a concise manner is one of the many things an employer will look for when deciding which candidate they want to learn more about.  That's where knowing what information to leave out comes in handy.   Consider leaving the following items out of your resume:

• References: If you suspect an employer will want references, leave a note at the end of your resume saying that they will be provided upon request.  Employers conduct thorough background checks these days, so references are not always needed.  Read our article on getting references if you are asked for them.
• A Photograph: It may seem like a nice touch, but including a picture of yourself is really just a waste of space.  You're going to be hired based on your abilities, not your physical appearance.
• An Objective Statement: Most job seekers still feel the need to include this, but it's not necessary anymore.  Instead of writing a paragraph on why you should be hired, list off a few of your traits that will make you desirable for the position.

Writing A Nonprofit Resume

Nonprofits and for-profits seem like they couldn't be more different.  In reality, they are more similar than you think.  The current trend in the sector is for organizations to be run more like a traditional business.  That's why you are seeing more colleges offer degrees in nonprofit management. 

Differences do still remain, especially when it comes to the hiring process.  This is clearly illustrated when it comes to resume writing.  Although the basic idea is the same, nonprofits will be looking for slightly different attributes than a for-profit company.  If you really want to catch the eye of your favorite organization, you are going to need to know how to write the ideal nonprofit resume.

• If you have previously worked in the for-profit sector, make sure you identify how your skills in that field can be adapted to the nonprofit world.  A great example of this can be found in this sample resume posted by Bridgestar.  Notice how the applicant emphasizes skills like marketing, management, and leadership?  These are all things that are useful for nonprofits.
• Also note that the above resume separates the applicants nonprofit experience from her for-profit work.
• Volunteer work is usually considered irrelevant when writing a resume for a standard corporation.  This is hardly the case for nonprofits.  If you have any experience volunteering, make sure you list it in your employment history.
• The above applies if you have ever served on a board or committee before.
• Make sure you remove any jargon that might be unfamiliar to those outside of the corporate bubble.  Your language should be professional, but you shouldn't use language that is only relevant to those in your previous field.  You will be dealing with many different backgrounds if you work in the nonprofit sector, so there is no need to try and impress people with your vocabulary.
• You should emphasize your ability to do many different jobs.  Though it's not always the case, most nonprofits will not fill their employees into specialized roles.  This is especially true the smaller the organization is.
• As I mentioned in the opening, you shouldn't hesitate to emphasize any business management experience you have. 

This might seem a little overwhelming, but you will soon find it's not a big deal to re-work your resume for the nonprofit sector.  They might be very different from for-profits, but they aren't so different that none of your previous skills won't be transferrable.

Job Board Tips

Online job boards are a job seeker's main destination for finding high quality positions.  While wanted ads in the local paper still have their place, most people find it much easier to browse for work on the Internet.  But ease of use can often lead to careless mistakes that will set you back in your job search.  In order to get the most out of job boards, you should follow these tips:

• Don't apply for jobs that are more than a couple of weeks old.  Employers can sometimes forget to take down jobs that have already been filled.  Besides, you have a better chance of hearing back about a job that has just recently been posted.
• Ignore nationwide listings.  It's hard enough to get a job when everyone in your city is scrambling for it.  Think about how hard it will be when the whole country wants it.
• Don't forget to post your resume to the board.  Sometimes job seekers wonder why this is necessary. After all, aren't you already attaching it to every job application you fill out?  Posting your resume allows employers who are members of the site to see your qualifications.  There's nothing wrong with having more exposure.
• Update your profile weekly.  More activity equals better results.  Even if you don't have any new information to add, you can update your resume with new job keywords that will attract employers.