10 Tips for Writing a Good Resume

Writing a good resume takes time, patience and a willingness to revise, rework and edit. There are also ten basic tips for writing a good resume that are simple, easy to follow and important in the final product. By following these ten tips for writing a good resume you can be assured that your resume will be noticed and reviewed by employers.

1. Make the resume look appealing to the reader. While this may seem straight forward, most resumes are cramped, difficult to read, overflowing with detail and illogical in their development.

2. Keep to the basics. Don’t add a bunch of information that is not relevant to the position you are apply for. Most resumes are designed for a blanket type application; this often means that you are unable to highlight the specific skills that match this one job. Writing a good resume may mean changing your resume slightly for each application, rather than just changing the covering letter.

3. Have an interesting, factual and informative covering letter. Specify your qualifications, education and experience without just summarizing the whole resume. The covering letter should lead the employer to want to read the whole resume.

4. Use white space as much as text. White space can break up the points, help to highlight information, and make the resume easy to read and stylish without all the additional lines, shading and graphics seen on some contemporary types of resumes.

5. Double check spelling and grammar; then check again. There is nothing worse or worse looking than spelling something wrong on your resume or covering letter. This includes the employers name, business name or any other information.

6. Never use technical jargon or any type of industry or local slang on a resume. You have been a manager, not a boss.

7. Use bullets and phrases to minimize the amount of reading required by the employer. Shorten to the minimum number of words while still giving a clear picture.

8. Writing a good resume includes doing a bit of research on the company. By knowing some of the company mission statements or goals you can incorporate these into your resume if possible.

9. Use a plain, typeface font, never a decorative or whimsical font. This can send the wrong message or decrease the readability of the resume.

10. Avoid making your resume too long. Two pages is considered a good maximum, but for professionals that have extensive experience this may simply not be enough room. Writing a good resume is more focused on the need to provide relevant information rather than a specific page number.

Using the above 10 tips will help with writing a good resume. There is additional information on the internet, in books, or even through resume service to help you develop a resume you can be proud of. Bring your career to the next level.