Stop the Madness: One Resume Is Enough!

 

Do you feel confused, stressed out, overwhelmed or even a little bit schizophrenic trying to manage the different versions of your resume? Most of my clients feel this way. They spend so much time and energy rewriting their resume for each and every job that they want to apply to. But if you are like most of my clients, then you’re probably doing way more work than you need to!

 

Well, guess what? You don’t need a new resume for every job you want to apply to! STOP THE MADNESS!

 

All you need to do is write one main resume that communicates your FACTUAL story (not your brother’s, cousin’s or sister’s story—just yours). This is your professional history, and there is no reason why your history should be changing. I work with my clients to help them do this as effectively as possible.

 

Then, when you want to submit to different job openings within your profession (which is OK), just change these three things:

 

  1. Rewrite the objective
  2. Change the summary of qualifications to reflect the core competencies that you have for the position
  3. Re-sequence the bullet points under your former jobs

 

For example, if you want to highlight certain skills and functions you performed on a job, you don’t have to delete the other ones because YOU THINK you don’t need them. There could be aspects of the job that you’re not aware of. Don’t edit out the things you’ve accomplished and all of the incredible skills you have! Just re-sequence the bullet points to highlight the ones you feel are the most relevant to the job you are applying to. The hiring manager wants to get an idea of who you are, so don’t delete half the picture!

 

Remember, you have one resume, one story, one history, and all you need to do is make a few minor adjustments to tailor it to a new job.

 

Good luck.