Raul Maldonado

Raul Maldonado

Data-And-More(9_001).csv

Job Search: Resume Tips

5 minute read

Introduction

In this article, you will learn how to create a resume to effectively make you stand out to employers, compared to other candidates interviewing for job XYZ.

Why Listen to Me?

  • You want to show a succinct and effective pitch for prospective jobs
  • I have a seasoned experience in job searching (I.e. I had hella jobs)
    • In 2007, I went to a Taco Bell everyday until I got the opportunity to interview
    • 2016-2018 I worked contracted jobs in pursuit of achieving my goals in the Data-field
    • From 2017-2018, I worked in the gig economy as a “TaskRabbiter”. There, I had to contstantly fine-tune my profile everyday for moving, officework, cleaning, and waiting in line tasks.
    • And more!

Agenda

Coming up, we’ll see a not-so persuasive resume to pitch to a prospective employer. This was one of my very first resumes in late 2000s.

Maybe my looks aren’t the reason why I wasn’t interviewed….maybe.

Let’s spruce it up more to enable us to be more of an attractive candidate for employers.

But first, let’s go over the format of this article.

The first section will suggest tips to make a great resume, meanwhile we comment on how the 2010 resume could be more effective.

Thereafter, we will jump into section two to discuss my current resume. In this, we too consider how we can make it more effective.

Example

The attached document above showcases a real-life resume from 2010. This was post-high school. I was trying to find a job, but ultimately did not find one. I created this resume with no guidance, curation, or feedback.

This looks…neat(?)

Let’s get started!

Resume Tips

1. Keywords in Job Posting

With the innovation of technology, comes the prospect of reducing number of tasks for people (automation). That being said….employers have more opportunities to filter candidates.

So to not be filtered out of the application pool, If I were applying to a warehouse, I should have added in keywords like logistics, assemble, lbs. (pounds), or something more to that nature.

For a retail customer service role, I should add keywords like customer support, onboard, train, or something else to that nature.

If I either add no or irrelevant keywords, the likehood of me not getting the job increases.

2. Include 1-page worth of Relevant Information

This resume was kept to one page. It may have been due to the lack of experience. However, what happens if you are a seasoned worker with a variety of responsibilities in your career?

Well, even if you have all those years of experience, one’s resume should not have every work experience listed.

Remember: this allows for an effective pitch for a convenient read to the employer. And inconviencen allows them to dismiss your resume/portfolio.

3. Use Active Language w/Quantitative values

Active Language is words like “earned”, “completed”, “achieved”, etc. This allows for more positive reinforcement in listing your accomplishments.

Another thing to consider in your job history descriptions are succint descriptions of tasks.

For example, you may have a job description that reads:

“I leads multiple team-based shifts and helped each team member with various tasks and responsibilities.”

This example could be shortened and strengthened in the following:

“Led multiple teams and shifts for effectively coordinating to serve 300+ customers per workday.”

In that re-write, I added another effective idea. I provided an estimate of 300+ customers being served.

Why?

This allows to provide some “magnitude” with the direction you’re trying to lead in. that is, we are trying to show our vector of success in the listed responsibilty.

Note: Don’t smudge numbers; be as close to honest you can be. Also, if the metric isn’t that ideal to pitch, don’t bother embedding it.

4. Other helpful tips

  • Keep History in Reverse (Most Recent) Order
  • Carefully Stand Out
    • If you flex too hard, it may come off as being an imposter
  • Show—Don’t Tell—Your Soft Skills
  • No specific addresses
  • Optional Summary
  • organization matters
    • Education before work history can have impact
  • No Relevant Experience? No Worries!
    • There is always opportunity to grow into the existing or other career paths <3

5. Formatting

  • Save as a PDF
    • If saved as a .rtf, .docx, or something else, then the structure of the resume will change (due to technical issues)
  • UX
    • You want your potential employer to have a seamless user experience (UX) to understand how you can fit into the company.
      • A great UX allows you to reduce the time to look into your portfolio, and more opportunity for further consider you :D

6. Remove Short Term Jobs

  • Instead of singular gig related roles, try the full length of your time in the encompassing gig timeframe?
  • If a short job timeframe, don’t even include it (unless this is freelance work)

Example Resume: Updated

In the above, I did the following:

  • In green:
    • Description of job descriptions with Active words & numbers
  • In red:
    • Removed some additional person information (e.g. Zip Code)

      Phone & Email are required, in my experience

    • Removed “Short term” job
    • Remove Objective Section. For me, this is definitely optional
  • In blue:
    • Re-arranging Work Experience before Education
    • Better UX experience
    • Other minor requirements

7. Proofread

Triple check your spelling, punctuation, and format of your resume.

You are packaging and delivering an product that seamlessly portray your portfolio and credibilty to your potential employer. Moreover, we want to reduce the risk of rejection from minor typos.

This happened to me in 2019 when I listed a job from “Feb 2018 - Jan 2018”….out of ~5 interviews, the next one pointed out the type. I didn’t get the job either because of something else, or this error.

8. Constantly Update your Resume

How can I improve now?

Considerations

  • Be Ready to talk about job hops
  • Explain Gaps
  • Learn a thing a day
    • I sometimes try to learn a new word a day, to add to my ways to communicate with others
  • Be humble, but confident

Conclusion

Remember, be confident and trust in your pursuit of your career path. However, don’t be overly confident, like the following example:

If you have any questions or concerns, happy to answer them. Moreover, if you want to add something to this article, let me know!

Cheers, and good luck on your job search!

I should apply online meme

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