Why a Great Resume Could Change Your Life
Whether it is fair or not, for purposes of your job search, you are what your resume says you are. This is true at least until you have the first face-to-face meeting with a potential employer. Your resume will either pry doors open or make sure that they remain closed. Therefore, when you put your best possible foot forward, it will help you take the first step towards getting a job that can change your life.
The Importance of the Resume
Your resume is most often the first thing that potential employers will see when they are evaluating your candidacy. You will only get a handful of seconds of a recruiter’s time and then they will move on to the next candidate. Really, you only get a few blinks of an eye to make the right impression. Therefore, your story must jump off the page, while remaining within the proper bounds of the resume. If there is anything about your resume that is not right, the recruiter will put it down and never look at it again. Simply stated, this is the absolute key to getting in the door. While it seems unfair that your entire life is boiled down to an 8 by 11 piece of paper, it is the way of the world in the job market and that is not changing. However, once you master the paradigm, more of the world can become yours.
Your One Page Advertisement
The resume is the story of your life. Having a better story to tell will help sell you better. Think of yourself as a company and your resume as an advertisement for you. If your marketing campaign is compelling, it automatically follows that you are more marketable. A great resume makes the difference between someone who is sought after and someone who must pound the door down to enter the room. When you have a compelling resume, it knocks the door down for you. The four corners of one or two pieces of paper largely control your future prospects of professional success. Now, imagine how your career would benefit if you had the best possible advertising campaign on your side. It is definitely worth taking the time to learn more about writing the best resume possible.
What Happens When You Have a Great Resume
When you are able to impress someone with your resume, it ultimately leads to better things. Contacts beget contacts so, when you have a great story on the page, people will want to talk to you. Even if they cannot give you a job, they may refer you to others who may be interested. It is often said that the job market is like a game of dominoes, and all it takes if for the first domino to fall. A solid resume will be the key to knocking down the first domino. People who have a “buzz” around them become hot prospects. Recruiters tend to be interested in those people who draw a lot of professional attention. Recruiters are able to sense candidates who have no other options and tend to avoid them. Therefore, a great resume will get people talking about you like they never were before.