In a job search, your first introduction to an employer is
almost always your resume. As such, it is absolutely
essential that your resume immediately capture the
attention of your reader. But how do you do that? When your
resume is sitting on a desk with 475 other resumes, how do
you ensure that your resume rises to the top, making the
cut to be placed in the "keeper" file rather than the
circular file? More importantly, how do you ensure that
your resume compels the recipient to actually pick up the
phone and call you for an interview?
The solution, of course, is to remember that your resume is
a marketing document. It is NOT an autobiography. Your
resume is an advertisement—an advertisement that is
selling YOU as the ideal solution to an employer's problems.
To achieve this, your resume must present your key skills,
qualifications, experiences, and accomplishments in a way
that is both convincing and compelling. Your resume must be
written to clearly illustrate to the reader that you can
meet their needs and help them to achieve their goals, all
the while adding value to their organization and delivering
a strong return on their investment in hiring you.
One of the most common resume writing mistakes is the
development of a responsibilities-focused resume. Job
descriptions simply don't distinguish you from anyone else
that does the same or a similar job as you. A resume
focused on responsibilities and job descriptions
illustrates to the reader how you are ordinary. Instead,
your goal is to show the reader how you are EXTRAordinary.
To do that, your resume must be focused on achievements and
results. Achievement-focused resumes engage readers,
essentially painting a picture of how you have added value
in the past and thus, helping the reader to envision how
you will add value in the future to their organization. By
creating the achievement-focused resume, you illustrate
your business savvy, your understanding of the bottom line,
and your track record for contributing to it.
But, for many people, writing an achievement-focused resume
is easier said than done. Are you like so many other people
who have trouble identifying exactly what their
achievements in the workplace have been? Maybe you have
even worried that you don't have any accomplishments of
note to include in your resume. Let me put your mind at
ease right now. This simply isn't true! Every single person
has value to add and unique contributions to make.
Rewriting your resume to emphasize achievements and results
is almost always the single most impactful improvement you
can make. If your resume isn't generating results,
rewriting it to emphasize the past challenges you have
faced, the actions you have taken to meet those challenges,
and the benefits of those actions, will likely have a
dramatic positive impact on your job search results.
If you, like so many others, are struggling to identify and
communicate your achievements, the following 50 questions
will help.
1. What is special about the way you do your job?
2. What do you do in a different way or better than other
people in the same position as you?
3. What does your employer like about you and/or praise you
for?
4. Were there particular areas in which your employer
thought you were outstanding?
5. Were you given any special honors, recognition, or
awards? What did you do to earn it?
6. What positive things do your performance appraisals have
to say about you?
7. When you were hired, was there a lot of competition for
the position? Why were you selected?
8. In what ways is each of your past employers better off
for having had you work for them?
9. Does your company set goals or objectives for you and
have you met or exceeded them? Explain.
10. Have you met any particularly hard-to-accomplish goals?
How did you accomplish this?
11. Were you hired to meet a particular challenge or solve
a particular problem? What was it, what have you done to
meet those expectations, and what have been the outcomes?
12. What was the biggest problem or challenge you were
faced with in each position? Did you solve the problem or
meet the challenge? How and what were the results?
13. Did you ever have to overcome any adversity or
ambiguity to accomplish something important to the company?
Explain. How did you do it and what were the results?
14. Have you ever made any suggestions that were
implemented? What was the result?
15. What have you done that was innovative? What was the
result?
16. Have you helped to influence change in your company? In
what way? What was the result?
17. Have you been given any special assignments? Why and
what were they?
18. Have you helped your employer increase sales? By what
percentage or amount?
19. Have you helped streamline operations in any way? In
what way and what was the result?
20. Did you generate new business? By what percentage or
amount?
21. Did you bring in new clients? By what percentage or
number?
22. Did you build partnerships or affiliations with new
organizations? What have been the results?
23. Have you led your company into expanded markets? By
what percentage and how did this impact sales?
24. Have you opened new markets for your company? What was
the impact?
25. Did you save your company money? How much and under
what circumstances?
26. Have you ever developed a new system or process? Was it
implemented? If so, what were the results?
27. Did you improve customer relationships in some way?
Under what circumstances and what were the results?
28. Have you done anything to increase efficiency? How did
you do it and what were the results?
29. Did you meet a particularly aggressive or important
deadline? If so, what difference did this make to your
company?
30. Have you ever developed procedures to speed repetitive
tasks? What were the results?
31. Did you bring a project in under budget? How? How was
the money you saved used?
32. Have you ever recommended a new product or program that
was implemented? What was the result?
33. Have you ever helped launch a new product or program?
What were the results?
34. Have you ever made recommendations to improve a product
or program? What were the results?
35. Have you taken the lead on any projects or special
initiatives? How successful was the effort?
36. Have you ever taken on any new responsibilities that
weren't part of your job? Did you ask for the new
responsibilities or were they assigned to you? Why were
you selected?
37. What have you done to increase productivity? By what
percentage or amount?
38. Have you improved communications in your company? In
what way, with whom, and what was the outcome?
39. Have you ever done anything to increase profits? How
did you do it and by how much?
40. Have you helped your employer cut costs in any way? How
did you do it and by how much?
41. Have you helped your company grow business in any way?
How did you do it, by how much, and what was the result?
42. Were you involved in any negotiations? What was your
role? How did this benefit the company?
43. Have you done anything to help control costs? What did
you do? What was the impact?
44. Did your work or the results you produced stand out in
some way as better than your predecessor? Explain.
45. Did you do something to correct inconsistencies or
errors? What was the problem? What did you do? What was the
result?
46. Did you accomplish something special for a customer?
How was this important for your customer? How was this
important for your employer?
47. Do you have a strong record of on-time completion of
projects? Explain. How has this benefited your employer?
48. Have you ever done anything to increase cash flow? What
did you do? What was the result?
49. Have you led or served on teams whose work had a major
impact on the company? Explain. What was the benefit to the
company? What was your role on the team?
50. Did you foresee any problems and proactively implement
solutions to avert the problem? Explain.
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Certified resume writer and personal branding strategist,
Michelle Dumas is the director of Distinctive Career
Services LLC. Through Distinctive Documents
http://www.distinctiveweb.com and her Executive VIP
Services http://www.100kcareermarketing.com
Michelle has
empowered thousands of professionals all across the U.S.
and worldwide. Michelle is also the author of 101
Before-and-After Resume Examples
http://www.before-and-after-resumes.com
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