Words matter. It’s not often that most of us have to communicate how awesome we are to others using only words. The task is even made more difficult when you’re being compared to other job candidates solely based on these words alone. Scary….yes. The good news is that if you are careful with the words you do choose, then you will have a much better chance at standing out against the other candidates.
Crafting words in your resume is all about leaving out the vague and turning up the heat on specific actionable examples. Here are some tips to help you work through your resume and improve the way you communicate your awesome-ness.
Replace this…
“Experience working in a fast-paced environment.”
With…
“Reduced customer checkout time from 90 to 45 seconds. The fastest avg. checkout time at XYX company.”
Replace this…
“Excellent written communication skills.”
With…
“Write a highly followed blog on the topic of X. Increased follow base from 100 to 1,200 readers in under 3 months.”
Replace this…
“Team player with the ability to take on a variety of tasks.”
With…
“Coordinated with my local team and over ten clients to increase A/R and sales by over 25%.”
Replace this…
“Demonstrated success in evaluating client needs.”
With…
“Created and implemented comprehensive client survey that lead to an increase in customer satisfaction and retention.”
The demonstrations above should give you a good idea of what is meant by crafting actionable examples in your resume. If you are looking for a good guideline to know if you are on the right track, check out this list of words and avoid them at all costs. Sure they sound good, but they don’t give the resume reviewer any insight into what you actually did. Here is a list of words that should key you into vague phrases that may hurt your resume.
Words to avoid.
- Aggressive
- Ambitious
- Competent
- Creative
- Detail-oriented
- Determined
- Efficient
- Experienced
- Flexible
- Goal-oriented
- Hard-working
- Independent
- Innovative
- Knowledgeable
- Logical
- Motivated
- Meticulous
- People person
- Professional
- Reliable
- Resourceful
- Self-motivated
- Successful
- Team player
- Well-organized
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