2 Often Forgotten Points Of A Great Resume

November 14, 2013

Two Rarely Mentioned Keys to a Successful Resume

By Jessica Holbrook Hernandez, Expert Resume Writer

I was reading an article on that answers the question why people like Mark Zuckerberg (the highest-paid CEO—who makes BILLIONS of dollars, by the way) don’t quit their jobs. Here’s the link to the article—but I’ll save you the trouble, and tell you it all comes down to purpose—and passion. Zuckerberg—and many others—has a mission that he won’t see fulfilled in his lifetime—and this purpose drives him to keep working away at it. Money ceases to be the greatest motivation—or it simply never was—and instead, the purpose and fulfillment from what these people do every day drives them. What does this have to do with your resume and career?

Have you thought about your purpose for working? Do you work every day for a paycheck—or for a purpose? This is going somewhere, so stay with me …

Naurex Senior Research Technologist Otsuka America Pharma Neuroscience Account Manager Bio-Rad QA/QC Engineer-TEMP Shire Associate Director, External Manufacturing Sanofi US Scientist II

When I started Great Resumes Fast my desire was to use my experience in HR as a hiring manager to help people create really great resumes. I saw a need—so many people that had no clue what their resumes should communicate, look like, or include. It was holding them back in their job search and preventing them from landing their dream careers. And I just wanted to help change that. I knew I could use my HR experience to create a resume an employer would want to read—and then these really awesome people (that would be You) would get that wonderful career they really wanted. My purpose is to help others on their journey to fulfilling their purpose by creating resumes that win interviews. And it isn’t exactly a need that goes away … there are millions of job seekers—and very few people who know how to write an interview-winning resume.

In turn, one of the key elements that make what we do so successful is purpose. We create brand-driven resumes that speak to your individuality as a candidate, communicate your value as an employee, and showcase those things that you have to offer the employer that no one else has. We essentially write about your purpose—and your passion.

One of the reasons so many resumes flounder in the job market is because they lack passion and purpose. They lack individuality and distinctiveness. Too many job seekers think they can hop onto a resume-sample Web site, copy something someone else has written, and ride it all the way to a new career. What they find out is doing this amounts to nothing. It’s as futile as trying to convince a dog that it’s really a cat or vice versa. You are who you are—and you don’t fit the mold of someone else. And for good reason!

Instead of trying to utilize a sample resume, or some generic phrases that almost everyone else uses on their resumes, communicate your purpose—with passion. Use your resume to convey your purpose and how pursuing that very purpose fits into ABC company’s mission.

When you can align your purpose with the company’s mission, you’ve met one of its greatest needs—positioned yourself as an asset to the organization and single-handedly eliminated the bulk of your resume-sample-site-copying competition.

Rise above the temptation to take the easy way out—copying text from resume templates—and talk about what you know and what you love. Share your purpose with passion and land that next great career.

About the Author

Jessica Hernandez, is a resume authority for the Job Talk America radio program and multi-published expert author for resume, career, and job search publications. She boasts more than ten years in human resources management and hiring for Fortune 500 companies and utilizes her extensive experience to support job seekers in their quest to move onward and upward in their careers. Find out more at Great Resumes Fast.

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