Career Articles

Your Resume Conveying the Essence of You!

By Linda Schnabel, CRS, CIS, JCTC

You’re sitting in front of a blank piece of paper; your wastebasket is full of crumpled attempts to describe the essence of you. Oh yes, you’ve heard it all before! Your resume should be a living, breathing document that reflects your unique skills and strengths.

But how, with your varied background, do you describe this in words that make the most of diversity rather than stir up concerns related to inconsistency or job-hopping? Or maybe your particular challenge lies in relating rich experience that spans thirty plus years. You aren’t as young as you used to be but your skills and thirst for challenge are still as strong as the new MBA graduate. Or perhaps you’re a student with modest experience but you possess a hardy penchant for arduous work and ongoing learning. How do you convey this to the reader of your resume so that he/she wants to meet you? How do you, with about 500 words and 3000 characters, portray the essence of you

Those responsible for recruiting today are inundated with resumes. And you can be sure that these talent scouts have seen it all! Your only hope of breaking through the clutter is to produce a marketing document that clearly identifies those specific skills that have the potential to fill actual requirements. Not a job description, but an action-oriented testimony to your real life victories

Let’s face it! You are where you are today, not because you write good resumes, but because you possess other specialized capabilities. This is precisely why many folks collaborate with a professional resume writer to complete this daunting task. There are other valid reasons for seeking outside support

• A professional resume writer is trained to ferret out information about your career history that you might not even consider important in today’s job market.
• Professional resume writers are equipped to design a marketing document that authentically represents you.
• The process of working with a professional in the development of your resume begins to prepare you for the interview process because you will focus on your career victories – stories that provide a powerful foundation for behavioral interviews.
• Professional resume writers are usually well-networked and can provide you with valuable career tips and resources.
• A third party brings fresh perspective and objectivity to the process.

There’s nothing like collaboration! If you are seeking professional help to develop a powerful marketing document, a professional resume writer would welcome the opportunity to find 500 words and 3000 characters to accurately describe the essence of you!


Linda Schnabel, is Principal of Career Works, a career management service for individuals and groups.