Death of the objective statement.
To say that you are “seeking a challenging team leadership position” might be true, but it still reveals nothing about what you can do for a prospective employer. So, please do not ever, never, ever add an objective to your resume. The person looking at your resume already knows your objective–to land the job. So, do yourself a favor and use this valuable real estate for a much better purpose. Kill the objective and go with a career summary.
Embrace your career summary.
If you are in it to win it with your pursuit to a better job (which, duh, of course, you are), grab the opportunity to announce your professional brand right out of the gates. This is your shot to set the tone for your entire resume and provide the hiring manager with an instant peek at who you are and in what you specialize in — with your target audience/job in mind.
Homework assignment!
1. Think about your strengths!
2. Ask yourself – “what is my why?”
3. Write down your career goal(s).
Also, realize that most hiring managers are just scanning through piles of resumes every day. Their goal is to determine if you are a “yay” or a “nay” within just a few seconds – 6 seconds to be exact. Your summary can help the hiring manager connect the dots between “Here’s what I need” and “Here’s what [YOU] can walk through our doors and deliver.” The summary will also likely entice that person to continue reading the rest of the resume.
So, how do you write a great summary?
A simple career summary should include 3-5 bullet points that quickly and powerfully spell out your value to the intended audience (do your research to identify who is your intended audience).
Your elevator pitch - construct an overarching statement about who you are professionally, and in what you specialize in.
Highlight your strength(s) you bring to the table or experience you have that aligns directly with what your intended audience.
Connect the dots for the hiring manager. If on-paper you are not the ideal candidate, explain why you are a good match. You can use it as an opportunity to connect your skills for — and outline your intentions to — the reviewer so they can understand how or why you are a good match for a particular role.
For resume support, interview coaching, or just want to say hello, reach out at hello@tarynmconsulting.com or check out the Resume Job Seeker Check List.