Is your resume BORING? Here is a resume checklist to help determine if you have said way too much and if the “HR Lady” is snoring on the other end.

1. Checklist To Determine If
Your Resume Is Boring
Original article by Rosa Elizabeth Vargas

2. Does your resume...
Does your resume resemble a checklist, to-do
list, a laundry list? Have you desperately tried
to convince your prospective employers of your
qualifications by including everything but the
kitchen sink on your resume?

3. Don’t.
Believe me, hiring managers know what a job
description is... they have seen thousands of
resumes.

4. While the HR/hiring authority’s goal is to screen
resumes and identify qualified candidates, the
person doing the screening, well, is a person—
and no one enjoys being "bored to death,"
especially not by sifting through long-winded
resumes that regurgitate all-too-familiar job
descriptions.

5. Here’s a little secret:
Many hiring managers actually write job
descriptions. So, you are not doing them (or
yourself) any favors by including a sea of
bullets with your daily job accountabilities.

6. Understand your resume’s job is not to give
away every little detail of what your job
entailed.
No siree, Bob.

7. Instead, your resume’s job is...
To list your employment, so they know you
have experience; include job titles, so they
know you have done the job before; include
dates, so they gauge your loyalty and
employable record; and, include education,
certifications, and professional development, so
they verify your credentials.

8. The rest of your resume is...
The rest of the resume is marketing, so you
outdistance other job seekers. How do you
outdistance other job seekers? With
differentiating, interesting, and attention
capturing copy that gets into the mind of the
hiring authority and motivates them to "buy"
what you are selling.

9. So, before you decide to use your resume to
tell HR what an Operations Manager does,
what a Creative Director is suppose to do, what
Sales Managers are in charge of…

10. ...opt to instead capture attention by telling
them (concisely) how well you did it. Tell a story
of what challenges you faced, how you
creatively overcame them, and paint a picture
of the bottom-line your efforts produced.

11. Your Resume Checklist
Now, that, will ensure you are memorable,
entertaining, and worth an invitation into the
office for a personal interview.
Here is a resume checklist to help determine if
you have said way too much and if the “HR
Lady” is snoring on the other end.

12. 1. Is your summary longer than 5-6
sentences?

13. Keep things concise and employer-focused. It
helps to write this section last.

14. 2. Have you included more than 2-3
soft skills (personal traits) in your
Professional Summary?

15. Soft skills are usually adjectives and while they
add pizzazz and energize your writing, too
many of these also weaken your candidacy. On
the flip side, substantiated and concrete skills
(hard skills), strengthen your candidacy.

16. 3. Is it difficult to identify your hard
skills?

17. Technical skills, experience listed through the
use of industry jargon, and proficiencies such
as staff management, operations improvement,
and sales cycle. These should be clearly
identified.

18. 4. Does your employment history
resemble a job ad?

19. Have you just defined what your job title means
by recounting the reason you were hired? Don’t
do this.
Instead, focus on how you performed in this
role, how you owned the role, and tell a story of
the magnitude of obstacles you faced and how
you better positioned the department or
company.

20. 5. Do you have more than 6 bullets
under each job description?

21. Remember, accomplishments are to be
bulleted. While you may have more than a few
accomplishments under each role, a skilled
copywriter can combine similar triumphs,
identify which are worth mentioning, and
"umbrella" some.

22. Resume Power Words
There are a myriad of ways to convey your
milestones without having to list 20 bullets
under each job title. Try using some of these
resume power words.

23. 6. Have you left them with
questions?

24. You must, but be very careful. You must say
enough on your resume not to sound vague but
conceal enough to ignite interest and plant a
need for them to know more about you.

25. Read The Original Article!
We hope you enjoyed this presentation!
Click here to read the original article by Rosa
Elizabeth Vargas on CAREEREALISM.com.

26. Related Articles
Top 100 Most Powerful Resume Words
4 Easy Steps For Creating A Targeted Resume
4 Ways To Turn Resume Fluff Into Marketable
Facts