Resumes are about results

Posted on May 18, 2024 by Martin Hahn, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.

When I graduated college and began looking for my first “real” job, I, like
every new graduate, needed to put together my resume. I thought it would
be an easy endeavor. I expected I could simply put down my work
experience (what little I had) and everything unique and amazing about me
would just pop off the page like a popcorn kernel in a vat of hot oil and
popping noise and all.
Oh, how wrong I was.

I quickly learned it’s incredibly hard to create a resume that grabs the
reader’s attention and screams, “I am someone you must interview!” In
fact, most resumes are only looked at for something like eight seconds, and
that’s assuming a human is reading them. If they’re being scanned by a
computer, it’s even harder to get noticed. And if you can’t get your resume
noticed, you can’t get the interview, and therefore no job offer. So, the
resume is a critical component of your career.
But where and how to start?

An effective resume doesn’t just present what you’ve done. Your resume’s
primary objective is to demonstrate what you will do to help a company
succeed. A potential employer writing reviewing lots of resumes, it’s apparent that most
people miss this part. Your focus on what you did and the tasks you
performed. Your prospective boss can get a pretty good idea of this by
looking at your title. But what he or she wants to know are your results. How
will you help him or her succeed? How will you help the department and the
company achieve its goals? Because if you delivered at a previous company,
you’ll probably deliver for this company, too.

So, this is how you stand out from the masses: include bullets of your
successes. Whatever the success, own it, showcase it. Were you a salesperson
or a retail store? Point out how you increased your sales three months in a
row, were the top salesperson in your department, or received the employee
of the month award. A receptionist? Spotlight that you changed processes
and procedures to increase efficiencies of mail processing. Were you a camp
counselor? Showcase how you invented new games to engage the campers.
Or had the fewest campers drop from the program of any counselor. Had
the best table turnover rate as a waitress at a restaurant? Include it! It matters
less what the success metrics are, just that you have them.

Now, I’m not suggesting you make them up. Lying on a resume or job
application is a quick way to lose an opportunity. “If you lied on your
resume, where else will you lie?” is what they’ll be thinking. But do need
measurable successes you achieved and spotlight them on your resume. I
like bullets so the reader can quickly see the impact you made. I like to
format my resume like this:

Job Title, Dates, Brief job description, Result number one,
Result number two, Result number three.

You have permission to boast about your success on your resume. But it’s
more than that; it’s a requirement. Don’t just brag only about where you
worked or your job title; be sure to brag about what you’ve accomplished.
That is how your resume will move to the top of the “must interview” stack.