9 things to do before you write that resume- The JobNetwork

9 things to do before you write that resume- The JobNetworkSo, youve found that job posting that looks a little too good to be true. You want to put your best foot forward, but you havent even gotten your resume in order. Sound familiar? googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) Since your resume is your potential employers first impression of you, resume writing is a serious task one that cant be started without getting your life together first.Heres what you should do before you start writing your resume1. Introspection is keyBefore you even set pen to paper (or really, in this day and age, boot up your laptop), you first have to decide what it is youre aiming for. This applies to both new job landseekers and to those who simply wish to embark on a new phase of their career. Do you have a goal in mind for what you want to do with your life or where you want your career to go?If you need some help discovering your career path, check out these ap proaches? Search your soul Set some time aside to ask yourself important questions about where you would like your career to go. Brainstorm what you enjoy doing, think through your priorities, or ask yourself questions like where you would like to see yourself in ten years. The conclusions you arrive at will be instrumental in helping you find your way.? Take a test If youre interested to see if there are any options that you havent previously considered, there are plenty of free career tests online, such as Sokanus Career Test or the O*NET Interest Profiler, which is created by the U.S. Departement of Labor. In these tests, you answer a set of questions and see if your interests or rolleality are suited for a certain career path. After that, you can research your results and see if its what you want.? Talk to a professional If you feel that talking to an unbiased professional would benefit you, seeking guidance from a career counselor may be a good move. A career counselors job is to guide you through your career choices. He or she may first find out mora about you and your interests, and then give you suggestions based on what he or she knows about you and her expertise on the salaries and skills required for various fields. Though this option costs between $75.00 to over $1,200.00 per hour-long session, some colleges offer free counseling to alumni, so be sure to explore your options thoroughly.Once you decide on your path, it will be easier to see what assets you have that will take you where you wish to go.2. Gather your informationIf you already have a dream job in mind, great The next step is figuring out what an employer in that field is looking for in an ideal candidate and preparing accordingly. According tothis article by Workopolis, only 2% of job seekers make it to the interview, with a well-crafted application being what elevates you to the top 2% of contenders. Therefore, having a resume that provides a lot of targeted information clearly and co ncisely is one of the best ways to make the strongest impression possible.To create a competitive resume, be sure to take a stroll down memory lane and compile these important tidbits ? Relevant previous work experience, including specific dates of employment. ? Pertinent certifications, licenses and awards, honors, and activities. ? A list of your publications. ? Your GPA, but only include this if its above a 3.0.Once you get all this information together, you can use it to build the case that you are exactly what your would-be employer is looking for.3. Ready your portfolio, website, and/or LinkedIn profileWhether its a hard copy binder or online, a portfolio is a collection of your best work that your potential employer can peruse to determine if you have the skills they are looking for. Its a valuable tool, providing incontrovertible evidence that youre the real deal, and bedrngnis overselling yourself. Depending on the industry youre hoping to enter, particularly if its arts re lated, a portfolio may even be required.A personal website often serves the saatkorn purpose as an online portfolio, with mora biographical information in the form of an About section, and some additional features, such as a blog and contact page. Having a personal website greatly increases your visibility, and is known to impress would-be employers when he or she Googles you. So, if you have one, make sure that its up-to-date before including it on your resume.Finally, in this age of social media, your LinkedIn profile is quickly becoming a must-have on your resume. Therefore, an important step to preparing your resume is optimizing your LinkedIn. Although the information on both your resume and LinkedIn profile may seem similar, make sure that its not identical. Think of your LinkedIn as an additional opportunity to showcase yourself, so dont waste it4. Brainstorm your skillsNow that you have your past accomplishments laid out in front of you, its time to analyze the concrete skil ls that led to your success.For first time job seekers If this is your first-ever resume, start by thinking about your achievements from school or other endeavors. If youre a student, were you on the executive board for a club? If youre a stay-at-home mother, did you run a fundraiser? Maybe you can even leverage your travels by emphasizing the skills you gained. Even if these are not jobs per se, they require certain skills to pull off, skills that you can put on your resume. For job seekers who have gone through the grind before If this isnt your first job, that means you must have some work experience you can glean skills from. If your previous job is similar to the one youre seeking, then this part should be fairly easy because you already know the skills necessary for success.However, if your next job is in a completelynew field, identifying and convincingly presenting transferable skills between jobs will be your fruchtwein critical and difficult task. Nevertheless, doing so w ill make you a much stronger candidate. Dont forget soft skillsWhen assembling your list of skills, in addition to the more technical hard skills, such as typing or operating certain machinery, dont forget to work in soft skills that may not be so obvious at first, such as people skills or leadership skills. If you can show that you are a well-rounded individual with the appropriate skills, it will convince your would-be employer that this job is right up your alley and that you are the best person for the job.5. Check in with your referencesThis tip is a matter of courtesy. Although a list of references is not customarily part of the resume, its a resource that should be available upon request. Therefore, before crafting your resume, it may also be a good idea to take a moment and ponder who would make an appropriate reference.Before you list names and contact info of your references, however, you should remember to make sure that the people youre volunteering are okay with your po tential employer contacting them. Not only are you showing your references that you respect them and dont come off entitled to their good reviews, but asking for their permission ensures that your references arent taken by surprise when they are contacted by your would-be employer. After all, you want your reference to be prepared when the call comesTo make sure that you get the best possible recommendation, your reference should know what you are applying for and you should remind them of what you did while working under him or her. If possible, provide a template highlighting what you would most like the reference to emphasize. Even if you are the best job candidate, if your potential employer can sense that your references are caught off guard or dont really know who you are or what you did, that reflects badly on you. You come off as disrespectful and unorganized, two strikes against you that will turn off any would-be employers.6. Determine what format works best for youResumes usually fall under one of three formats reverse chronological, functional, or a combination of both. Each of these formats has their own advantages and disadvantages. You should choose accordingly, depending on which format presents your character and professional background in the most positive light.Heres a quick explanation of the differences between the three formats? Reverse chronological With this format, since your work experience is listed in reverse chronological order, would-be employers can easily discern upward mobility with your roles and responsibilities, making you a highly attractive candidate. However, despite being the most common format, it puts applicants who have a work gemeinsame agrarpolitik or who dont have as much work experience at a disadvantage, since your experience is front and center.? Functional Since functional resumes lead with the skills section and gloss over your past jobs, its good for applicants who would like to conceal a gap in their work experience, such as a stay-at-home mother returning to the workforce. Since functional resumes arent as common, hiring managers sometimes interpret it as a red flag, so be sure to back up your resume with a compelling cover letter and be ready to field questions about it in the interview.? Combination Another format that puts the skills section first, this format is ideal for applicants who are going for a very technical job or one who might be seeking to switch fields. After all, this format emphasizes your skills, which may be transferrable, and draws attention away from your work experience, which may not directly correlate with the job youre applying for. A mischung of both of the preceding ones, this format could be the perfect fit for your career path. However, since this format still has your work history in it, it is unable to conceal work gaps, so if you have any, you should choose a different format.Before you start writing, make sure you take a good look at your career up until now and choose the format that will best showcase it.7. Its all in the wordsWord choice for your resume is also of critical importance. For one, most companies now run resumes through an Applicant Tracking ordnungsprinzip (ATS) that will scan your resume for relevant keywords. If your resume doesnt hit enough of the keywords, your resume may never even reach human eyes before its summarily rejected.However, if your resume does reach a human, one thing you dont want crossing his or her mind is this is boring. Bear in mind that its likely that he or she has probably at least skimmed through hundreds of resumes before yours, so if your resume doesnt stick out or command a presence, it wont leave much of an impression.Heres how you can ensure that your word choice makes your resume stand out from the rest? Research, research, research A quick search of similar job postings should inform you what keywords have direct bearing on your industry. Work these into your resume, but d ont go overboard. Dont forget to catch related keywords, as well.? Ready a list of action verbs Action verbs are important tools to have readily accessible because they vividly describe your actions and dont take up as much space as passive voice. They also make you sound more authoritative, since you are actively implementing duties, instead of the duties passively happening to you. Employers love assertive resumes because they are more inclined to entrust you with important tasks.? Dust off your thesaurus Making use of a thesaurus will keep you from the monotony of repetition, thus keeping the hiring manager engaged. So, even if you have all this experience and know-how, it wont amount to much if you cant frame it with descriptive and powerful words that will resonate with your would-be employer.With the perfect words at your fingertips, you can weave them all together to compose a resume that will earn the approval of both the robots and the hiring manager.8. Style countsThis i s one of those steps that seems trivial compared to the others. However, the font you choose can factor into your potential employers first impression of you. Choosing a silly font is going to make you stand out, but not in a way that you may want. Instead, fonts that convey reliability and trustworthiness are your best bet.Likewise, you want to help out your would-be employer as much as you can, so you should prioritize readability for your resume over something ostentatious. Depending on the typeface, something too flashy can obscure or distract from your message. If you want some suggestions on fonts that have proven to be well-liked by recruiters, take a look at this list of best fonts to use on your resume.9. Be prepared to kill your darlingsPhoto of William Faulkner by Carl familienkutsche Vechten Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto of William Faulkner by Carl Van Vechten Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsNo matter how long and illustrious your career, your resume shou ld not be a document that rambles on and on. If you consider the hundreds of resumes hiring managers have to power through, its natural that they wouldnt spend more than six seconds on each resume, as this study by The Ladders. This leads to an old adage that your resume shouldnt exceed a single page, which still holds true today. Therefore, you should approach writing with the mindset be concise.If you find yourself hesitating, take some advice from a famous writer, William Faulkner, and be prepared to kill your darlings. While this advice sounds extreme, what Faulkner really means is that you should be mentally ready to cut stuff out of your writing, even if you take great pride in writing it.This idea can also be applied to resume writing. Maybe you have a fondness for that first job you ever took or that high school club you participated in. However, if neither of these are pertinent to the job you are seeking, its best to just trim out the unnecessary information or reword it m ore efficiently.Wrapping things up Sitting down and writing your resume isnt something you should approach haphazardly. Being mentally prepared and having all the appropriate information ready will result in a better looking and better received resume, making the job hunting process all the more smooth. So, dont be afraid to take your time and brainstorm awayAbout the authorLauren McAdams is a hiring manager, career consultant, and lead writer at ResumeCompanion.com. Shes been quoted by sites like Forbes, Fox Business, and TechRepublic, and her resume templates and career advice on Resume Companion have helped hundreds of applicants find their dream jobs. When shes not busy enriching the lives of job seekers, shes either sipping on coffee or a glass of wine depending on the time of day of course.

Weve Got a New Look (And Youll Love What It Can Do For Your Career)

Weve Got a New Look (And Youll Love What It Can Do For Your Career) No two women have the same career paths or needs. Thats why were so excited to announce a new Fairygodboss experience thats uniquely customized for you.Weve just launched a new site navigation layout and infinite scroll feed that make it simple to find the fruchtwein valuable parts of our platform. FGBers can now navigate to their network, jobs, and all of the free databases and resources offered on Fairygodboss more easily. If youre a desktop user, youll see a new left rail that allows you to follow the Fairygodboss Feed topics youre most interested in, as well as select companies and jobs to follow.Meanwhile, your desktop right rail will feature trending content, company reviews and jobs that reflect your interests and needs. If youre on the move, youll also notice these customizations on mobile. By clicking Me, youll be able to update your profile, manage connections, browse and save jobs, and personalize your Fai rygodboss Feed.Even better? Our new infinite scroll functionality lets you browse conversations, companies, and career opportunities on Fairygodboss without limit. (Because who has time for those?)

33Across Gives Back To Veterans

33Across Gives Back To Veterans Below is an article originally written by Erica Roane at PowerToFly Partner 33Across, and published on May 4, 2018. Go to 33Across page on PowerToFly to see their open positions and learn more.Its always better to give than to receive, especially when it comes to our veterans. While 33Across is a company invested in all things technology, we also understand the importance of giving back to the community.Last week our CRO Miles Dennison supported The Home Depot during the their 2018 absatzwirtschaft Foundation Event. Miles, alongside other volunteers, made improvements at The Yountville Veterans Home. The team renovated the kitchen as well as installed a new batting cage for the residents. If youre looking for more ways to get involved in your community and would like to learn more about The Home Depot Foundation please click here.