By Dan Goldsmith, Managing Director, AC Lion -
Welcome back – this is the second installment in the new 'digiday Job Hunt' section where we’re discussing and learning pointers and guidelines in the creation of a killer resume.
In the last article I discussed the idea of establishing a supervisory logic as the basis and starting point in how you write your resume. Defining one's supervisory logic and a consistent career message can be an existential experience for some, and pure torture for others. But, like any good exercise, if you’re feeling stretched then you’re probably just approaching good work. Difficult, maybe; necessary, indeed!
Once you’ve taken steps to define the supervisory logic of your resume, you can then start to approach the actual structuring of how the resume will be written and laid out. Get ready to switch gears my friends because we’re now going from Yin to Yang, from Felix to Oscar, from Samantha to Charlotte (easy does it ladies, I had to ask a woman friend of mine for help with that metaphor). We are leaving the realm of ideas and creativity and plunging into the quadrant of structure, position, limitation and commitment.
It is my opinion that the resume is a tactical asset in that it serves a very discreet function; to get you the interview. Too often, people make the mistake of believing that a resume wins the job and as a result you/we/they try to dump WAY too much information within those precious four corners making the, now, personal Magna-Carta about as clear and comprehensible as a Jackson Pollack painting.
Honestly, think about it, all your resume really needs to do is train and lead the reader’s eye balls for about 7 seconds and hopefully get them to think, …“Yeah, bring her in for an interview”. After that, you can take over and run the show with your litany of experience, anecdote, name-dropping, and wonderment. Alright, I’ve simplified this a bit to make my point but the point I am trying to make is that the resume ought be a example of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe minimalist architecture, or rather “Less is more” (and you can bet your ass I used wikipedia.com for that one!).
What I call “visual formatting” is the organization, planning, and more importantly style of your resume from the perspective of the reader. How can you lead the reader’s eye through your resume so as to ensure critical points are clearly established and that potential pitfalls as absolutely avoided.
Some tips on visual formatting follow:
• Hierarchy and outline structure will lead the reader along in an effortless way. Be certain the supervisory logic is established and communicated with minimal effort on behalf of the person reading your resume.
• Be consistent in convention throughout the entire resume. If you are spelling the name of the state “New York” in one part of your resume then you’d better use “Illinois” or “Ohio” for other locations –v- Ill or Oh. Every little convention you assume must be 100% consistent bottom to top. Having read resumes for the last 8 years I can tell you that constancy and structure connote professionalism, specificity and impact and generally set the right tone.
• Consider use of indents and bullets to transition from general to specific components of each job presentation. As well a discreet use of bold and italics are easy ways to give the resume flow and contour.
• Size may not matter but balance sure does. Keep bulleted paragraphs balanced in terms of the amount of space each consumes. Resource planning is critical for the appropriate visual impact. If you dump 9 bullets on one job and only 3 bullets on another job one may be led to believe that either you’re embellishing on the 9 bullet job or simply have nothing to say about the 3 bullet job. I advise to find a medium across all of your experiences.
• Group your bullets in a consistent fashion. Perhaps the first two bullets of each job description will illuminate initiatives you were tasked with while the last few bullets will illuminate the net result of such actions.
• Test your ability to conceive and write powerful sentences and very accurate use of verbs. The most over used word in resumes seems to be “managed”. I happen to frown on this word because it really doesn’t describe, in a granular sense, exactly what it is you did. The definition of managed is “to bring about success”.
Positions in companies are like gears in a watch. Each part plays a crucial role in the proper running of the mechanism. When thinking about your job hisitory, consider the various critical subsets that should be isolated and explained. Instead of using "Managed," why not: Conducted; Arranged; Contrived; Guided; Regulated; Engineered; Manipulated; Handled; Facilitated; Drove; etc.? If you use the word Managed too much, it may begin to appear you have a dull vocabulary-- or worse yet, don’t pay very close attention to what you do or did professionally.
There are so many different styles to use. My intention is not to define the one and only way to actually write the resume but rather to remind you that the person who is reading your resume is reading hundreds of others.
That said, you must communicate only that which has specificity and impact towards the end goal and you must make it idiot-proof to appreciate on the other end. To this I suggest summarizing in a few sentences and then illuminate in more detail-- using bullets and indents for structure along the way.
Break up the visual monotony by bolding the key performance indicators and you’ll give the resume some contour and seasoning. Keep it consistent in structure but exciting in language. Write the resume that wants to be read and you’re on your way to getting a heck of a lot more interviews!
Dan Goldsmith is Managing Director of AC Lion New York City. Dan has played a critical role in building AC Lion into one of New York’s premiere executive recruiting agencies specializing in the new media and online advertising space. Dan has over fourteen years of direct sales experience within the technology and media. Dan has built out AC Lion’s vertical market since 2000 through e-commerce, publishers, rich new media, and ad-serving clients, among others.
