This article was submitted on August 13, 2009 at 07:16 PM PDT
From: Examiner.com | August 13, 2009
Abby M. Locke

Have you ever been bursting with excitement to share your good news with someone, only to have them ask you – “so what’s the big deal?” Well, imagine getting a similar question and response from a recruiter or hiring manager when you are really trying to make a lasting impression.

In my quest to help you transform your professional resume into a compelling storytelling document, I want to focus your attention on work responsibilities and job tasks. Employers and recruiters should not read your resume and feel like they are reading a classified advertisement or generic job description. While you always need to show employers the scope and breadth of your experience, don’t get so tied to your daily tasks that the professional resume falls short on value proposition.

Is your current resume only telling employers what you are paid to do?

• Focus on strong facts/statistics including budget size, the number of direct/indirect reports, the number of divisions or branches you manage, sales/revenue objectives, the number of clients you service and the title of your immediate boss.
• Compile these details to a three-to-five sentence paragraph, pepper it with vibrant action verbs, industry keywords, and eliminate any overused, passive phrases like “Responsible for the development of marketing plans for clients in the West Coast region."

Check out how this candidate’s work responsibilities get enhanced by highlighting the key objectives in his job.

Before: Manage daily activities for real estate portfolio for investment management company and supervise staff members.

After: Challenged to deliver 10% return on $700 million investment portfolio in unpredictable, evolving real estate industry. Oversee all daily activities including ROI maximizations, client relations, loan negotiations, and investment dispositions. Manage and coach staff of ten employees.

Get started on your own storytelling resume:

Use a sell me not “tell me” strategy with your professional resume

Is your professional resume making employers guess?

Avoid writing a "me-oriented" resume

Abby M. Locke of Premier Writing Solutions (www.premierwriting.com) is a master resume writer and career marketing architect who helps talented professionals and senior-level executives to achieve career success through cutting-edge, brand-focused career documents, innovative job search tools, and proactive career management strategies.