8 Quick & Brilliant Résumé Hacks

1) Spice it up (add color)
For a quick fix, start by adding some color to your résumé you will stand out, but not only that, you can also take control of where the reader is looking. Their eye will tend to follow the bold color so you can use it to highlight your strong points like relevant job titles and bullets showing accomplishments.

2) Hit the bulls-eyer
Tailor your résumé to the desired position. It may seem easier to just do a “catch-all” or “generic” résumé but your career could suffer. You’ll make them work harder and that can cause frustration and could cause you to lose out on the job. If you don’t state (very clearly, and at the top) the position you are seeking, it’s confusing and vague. The reader will probably give up and say “If this person doesn’t know what he/she wants to be when he/she grows up, I don’t want to try to figure it out for them” and they will simply pitch your résumé into the reject pile. Instead, hit the job title first, then pull out key words to use as sub-titles and they will think (upon first glance) that you are a match made in heaven!

3) Summarizer
Hiring managers do a quick drive-by on the first initial read so pull out everything they are looking for and use it at the top in a paragraph that is a powerful summary. Make it so compelling that in the first 12 to 20 seconds they throw yours into the “YES” pile.

4) Use a PDF (for document integrity & security)
PDF formats are accepted widely and it should be your main file type to use, for several reasons. First, it reads well on various devices. Second, it maintains the integrity of the document (proper page breaks, fonts, and design elements). Third, it gives you added security (it makes it harder for someone to be able to tamper with your resume and change things – it doesn’t happen often but there are people who have been fired when it is discovered that they lied on their résumé and who’s to say they can’t tamper with it if they need a good excuse to let you go? Or who’s to say someone won’t steal your résumé format (and / or wording) to use it for their own?

5) Combine (the Résumé and Cover Letter)
Make it easier on them. Take your document (preferably a PDF as mentioned in point #3) and combine the cover letter and résumé to make one document. That way they only have to do one “click” and it’s easier! Put the cover letter at the top and when they scroll down to page 2 it should be the first page of the résumé (page 3 would be the second page of the résumé, etc.) Whether you email it directly or upload it through an online portal, whenever possible, use a combo document for best the results.

6) Show the “Big Picture”
Give them the fast food they desire… just prior to your “Professional Experience” section, give them a quick overview of your entire career. This can take on many forms and can be as simple as stacking the information, complete with company names, job titles, and dates of employment. At least it gives them the big picture of your career (what you’ve done, when, and where) before they read through all of the minute details.

7) Power it up with Endorsementsr
It can add a lot of credibility if you are able to tactfully work in a few quotes or endorsements on your materials – and the bigger the job title of the endorser, the better. This way it’s not just you saying “I’m great at what I do and you should hire me!” It’s actually other people’s point-of-view as well.

8) Go long (2+ Pages)
I was stunned a while back to learn that the Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) that screen the résumés in the corporate environment CONSISTENTLY picks the more lengthy resumes. It turns out that the “stupid” computer thinks you are more qualified if your resume has more pages! It’s true! A study was done a while back where employers were asked to show the résumés of all the employees they had hired in the past 6 months and almost with out exception the computer chose 2, 3, 4, and even 5 page resumes. So don’t be afraid to go long. You might want two versions – a long one to submit to their “system” and a shorter (2 page on average) version to use for the “humans” that you can submit directly to a decision-maker.