Here’s an excerpt of an article I wrote for the National Contract Management Association (NCMA):
Polishing Your Resume
Is your resume the best it can be? Need to start over from scratch? Use these insightful tips to create a winning resume.
Resume writing can be intimidating. We wonder, what do I include, what do I leave out? How do I make it look nice? In what order do I need to list everything? Some of the most common concerns I hear from my career coaching clients are about how to organize their resume and what pieces of information to include. Here are eleven tips that can help you get started on either creating your resume from scratch or updating it for your next job search.
1. Brainstorm
The best way to get started is to brainstorm about your natural talents and abilities. Write down everything you’ve accomplished, even as far back as childhood. This is a confidence boost and also can help you get everything out on paper that you could possibly include in your resume.
2. Give Yourself Credit
We tend to downplay the things we are naturally good at. This is because we assume that since it comes so naturally to us, everyone must be good at it, right? Wrong. Just because you can easily organize your office and keep your files in amazing working order does not mean everyone can do that. Perhaps you coordinated your local church’s picnic and did a spectacular job. Not everyone has that particular skill, so give yourself credit for what comes naturally to you. Do this, of course, while being honest and accurate. It’s never a good idea to blatantly lie on your resume.
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Career Transition Coach Hallie Crawford
