Last
week, Gallup reported that U.S. job creation held steady at an
eight-year high in June. The Job Creation index score remains at its high of
+33.
The score represents 44% of
employees who say that their employer is hiring employees and expanding the
size of its workforce. More good news-Gallup also reported that its U.S. Jobs
Rate was the highest in June at 46% after six years of measurement. This rate
is a half percentage higher than June of 2015 from which one can glean that an
underlying increase in full-time work beyond changes in seasonal employment.
An uptick in hiring could result in an increase
in job opportunities for you. Here are four tips to follow when updating your
resume to help reel in the response you want from recruiters.
1. Make it shine. Dale Carnegie’s third Human Relations
principle, ‘Arouse in the other person an eager
want,’ reminds us to entice the person qualifying us for a job
interview opportunity. This means that instead of using verbose language, keep
it simple and succinct when describing the responsibilities of each of your
professional roles. It is absolutely critical that your resume be free of all
grammar and spelling mistakes because the perception is, “If this candidate’s
resume is sloppy, I can’t imagine what her work product is like!” Be sure to
have a mentor or friend with strong English skills review your resume to ensure
it is seamless, spelled correctly and free of grammar mistakes.
2. Forgo funky fonts. Dale Carnegie said, “There is only one way… to
get anybody to do anything. And that is by making the other person want to do
it.” If your resume is difficult to read, it deters the hiring manager from
thorough review. The easier it is to read and understand—for example using sans
serif fonts and bullets; bolding job titles to divide sections, etc. the more
likely the person reviewing it will allow ample consideration of your prospective
candidacy.
3. Use a professional email address. Dale Carnegie’s 19th Human Relations principle is, ‘Appeal to nobler motives.’ You can pump up
others’ professional perception of you by making minor modifications such as
using a professional, non-derogatory email address. For example,BeachBody911@gmail.com may
send the wrong message to the hiring manager. Create a new email address
specific for job searching if you currently use an unprofessional one.
4. Fill in the gaps. Recruiters question unexplained gaps within the
resume’s timeline. If you have a gap of four or more months between jobs, they
may assume you were actively hunting, but no one wanted to hire you—so why
should they? Use the gaps as an opportunity to show how you used the time. For
example, taking a sabbatical; volunteering for worthy causes such as missionary
work; traveling; attending courses and pursuing personal projects are great
gap-fillers. They show interests and causes that are important to you, and send
a message that you have attained a healthy work-life balance.
By: Liz Scavnicky-Yaekie
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