When crafting and editing resumes, professional resume writers take on the mindset of the employer and recruiter. You need to adopt a fresh perspective in order to edit your resume like a professional. You will have to take a break from your resume for a day or two before going back to it, if that is what it means.

Candidates can often become so immersed in their resume that they can no longer give it an unbiased opinion. Due to their extensive involvement in their own experiences, many candidates find it challenging to write their own resume. Rather than offering a macro view of their experience and achievements that is important to a potential employer, they are instead stuck focusing on mundane daily tasks of the job that have little impact on their resume.

Have an open mind and think like the employer or recruiter you are applying to in order to tackle your resume like a professional resume writer. Below are some general rules to adhere to:

Demonstrate your strengths.

What are the top 5 skill sets that an employer seeks in the ideal candidate? Emphasize your resume on the successes you have had by using these abilities. If you are applying for a sales position, for example, you should emphasize quota achievement, account penetration, prospecting and closing techniques. Stay focused on the core skills that an employer is looking for.

Focus on the relevant information for the job.

After only a few seconds of reviewing your resume, a hiring manager typically makes a decision on whether you are suitable for a call back. In its entirety, every line on your resume is rarely read. The quicker the hiring manager comes to the conclusion that you are a candidate for call back, the more information on your resume that is relevant. If your resume includes information that is both relevant and irrelevant, you increase your chances of being dismissed. The more an employer finds relevant information on your resume, the greater its impact. It is preferable to omit information that does not have much value to an employer, rather than including it.

Be bold in promoting yourself.

To make an impact with your resume, you need to effectively market yourself. Every part of your resume should be tailored to showcase your best selling points. Present all of your experiences, skills, and capabilities in a way that will make them appealing to potential buyers. A resume should present information in a way that conveys, "Here is what I have accomplished and what I can bring to the table." Many resumes fail to impress potential employers because they lack focus; for example, if you previously worked in a grocery store, that experience should not be the main focus of your resume. By highlighting how your customer relation skills helped to sustain customer satisfaction and create returning customers, you can make your product more marketable. Your statement is truthful. By rearranging the information, it can be better tailored to the requirements of the job.

Be mindful of common mistakes.

Mistakes such as misspelling, punctuation, grammar, and alignment can be avoided if proper care is taken. Many employers dismiss resumes that are not carefully proofread due to the mistakes they contain. Let these easy fixes not be a reason for a resume to be dismissed among all other reasons. Have a friend or family member give it a review. A fresh pair of eyes, or at the very least, another pair of eyes, is needed. Take a step back and review your resume with fresh eyes. If you stare at a resume for too long, you may overlook important details.

Having a professional resume writer review and edit your resume can make a significant impact. Spending valuable time continuously searching and applying for new job opportunities often yields no response in return, whereas actually securing interview opportunities for jobs of quality can be the difference.

Unless you are employing the services of a professional resume writer, make sure to adhere to the points above when tackling your resume. If you are uncertain about your resume, our Free Resume Evaluation is available to you.