20 Tips to Create an Outstanding Resume

Your resume and the cover letter are the first documents to create your brand image in the Job industry.

Your resume must be clear, brief, and strategic and it should represent your qualifications, past experiences, and skill-set to get a recruiter interested in interviewing you. 

It should be able to describe what value addition you can bring to the table once you are selected. An updated well-designed resume is the key to a successful job search. 

To create an amazing resume following points will help you out:-

1. Keep your resume short and brief- do not make it more than 2 pages.
2. An employer takes an average of 10- 30 seconds to scan a resume. The resume should be crisp and clear.
3.  Be sure there are no spelling or grammar mistakes.- Use tools like Grammarly to remove any grammatical error. 
4. Set your font size to 10-12 points.
5. Choose an attractive and readable font. Like Verdana, Arial or Helvetica; Never use funky fonts like Comic Sans, Papyrus, or Curlz MT.
6. The Resume should contain the Name, email address, phone number, and address. Your contact information should be correct. 
7. Use a professional-sounding email id, for eg. Sneha.job@gmail.com instead of funkycoolsneha@gmail.com.
8. Do not mention full postal address on resume, only the name of the city would be enough. 
9. Include URLs to your social media profiles, personal websites, and your blog. Keep your linked-in profile updated and include its customized URL in your resume.
10. Make strategic use of bold, caps, and italics- It will make the resume more readable.
11. Give your sections appropriate sub-headings –like Resume Profile, Work Experience, Educational Qualifications, Skills etc.
12.  Choose the resume format from 3 Main formats of resumes (The Chronological, The Functional, OR The combination) and try to tailor the resume for each job opening as per the job opening and highlight the requirements with matching skills.
13. Highlight your past work experience and achievements that are related to the position you are applying for by reviewing and understanding the job description properly. Only add jobs you’ve done in the past 10-15 years. 
14. Be honest- Do not write any incorrect information. Re-read your resume and make sure you can explain anything and everything that is written over there.
15. Give real data in figures- Try to use Numbers and percentage to Quantify your achievements for eg. How you impacted company revenue in %, how many people were there in your team etc.
16.  Use simple words and action verbs- make it more readable- use simple and understandable language, also use influential verbs to describe your roles and responsibilities.
17.  Do not include unnecessary personal information like marital status, name, and occupation of the father. Don’t include hobbies or interests, weakness or strength.
18. References do not need to be mentioned in the Resume, it can be asked at the time of selection to verify.
19. No need of adding a photograph or image to the Resume unless you are from the hospitality, aviation, or media-related industry.
20. Do not use “I,” “My,” or “Me“. Write your resume in the third person, as if it’s being written by someone else.