the perfect resume

In 8 steps

We get our fair share of resumes here at the office and to put it lightly, some better than others. Truthfully, I love that you spent your summers working in cornfields and that you stocked up grocery stores but those things are not relevant for us. So here are a couple tips to make a good impression. At least for us.

The exterior

Make sure your resume looks good. Go for a pretty business font. Comic Sans is reason enough for me to stop reading. Just so you know. Having it graphically well designed always stands out, maybe with a nice little line bordering it, or a frame around your address. Any graphic designers in your circle of friends? Give them a nice bottle of wine in exchange for a resume design boost.

Steer away from clichés

As soon as people start applying for jobs, they have the tendency to automatically switch on the cliché mode. Dear madam, I hereby wanted to, your vacancy caught my attention, I welcome the opportunity to discuss my qualifications in a personal interview. Sigh.

Your resume is meant to show people why you deserve that specific job. And not the other 120 applicants. If everyone writes down the same thing, its unclear for an employer to spot the ideal candidate. Write something which suits the company you’re applying for and the specific job.

After college I sent a handful of standard boring cover letters until I was so fed up (and working as a bartender at a golf club) that the next cover letter I wrote started off with: “After serving my six hundredth cappuccino in a pair of red pants at the golf club…” and yes, I got the job.

Be daring and show who you are. Because in the long run, that’s more important than all the diploma’s you’ve obtained. Don’t try to be too amicable though, that’s another pitfall.

To photo or not to photo

I always want to see what an applicant looks like. It might look a tad bit vain, but you’ll be more memorable if you add a photo to your resume. Make sure the photo puts you in your best light. More on how to do that here.

Another idea would be to jot down your social media channels. This way your potential future employer can see what you look like and what kind of person you are.

Clean out your social media

This leads me straight to my next point. Make sure your social media accounts are presentable. Get rid of any photos where you are chugging down a beer with one hans and have a cigarette in the other. Try to put yourself in your employers shoes and show things that they might like. If you want to work for a watersports brand for example, it will evidently help if you upload photos of yourself partaking in any water related sports. You’re not supposed to transform into a completely different person though, and I hope the job you are applying for really is something that suits you. And if that’s the case, the job, your cv and social media will all perfectly align. I personally always love it when applicants have their own blogs or a great Instagram account.

Be clear

It differs of course from job to job, but if you send me an email in which you state that you’re busy thinking of and working on different concepts for the ever growing market of this and that, and at the same time you’re also a strategic and problem solving person and a brand connector for online influencers, then you’re barking up the wrong alley.

Describe what you did

A brief description about your previous employer and your function is not enough. Describe the tasks you dealt with and successes you achieved.

Bundle your temporary jobs

Of course every job says something about you and when you’re young you don’t always have relevant working experiences. But writing about your job as a cashier in a super market or that time you worked at a gardening store really isn’t something I care to read about.

Bundle up all your temporary jobs and explain that you took up any opportunity to make a few extra dollars. From working for a union assembly line (because it paid so well you immediately bought a new pair of Nikes) to serving ice cream at a local gelato shop. This gives an overall scoop of your work ethic, and that’s enough.

Skip your hobby’s

Hobbies sounds so insanely elderly and reeks of post stamp collections and bird watching. Replace it with the term ‘interests’ and try to steer away from clichés here too. For example, we all love to travel; make it unique by being more specific. You like to travel on your own, you have a deep amount of love for Italy and spent six months living there to learn the language, culture, and okay, to have an occasional glass of Italian wine, or two.

‘I enjoy great food’ is another one of those roads that has been travelled far too many times. Say something like how you’ve got a checklist of the top 10 restaurants in the world that you plan to visit and that nothing thrills you more than catching your own fish to later devour on a barbecue. Make yourself unique and truthful to who you are. The type of sports you play also says a lot about you. A lot of companies find it important to know that you’ve been part of some type of team sport. But again, everything must be accurate to your reality or else you’re up for a whole lot of embarrassment when the cat comes out of the bag and people realize that what you’ve told is far from reality.

Be yourself, because your are the most fun the best and the prettiest.