Create A CV or Resume That Will Win Interviews

By Lisa O'Brien

Your resume is the single most important tool that you have in winning an interview. Your resume will act as a marketing tool by highlighting your skills, experience and education as it best relates to the position.

Jobseekers who win interviews do so because they have a resume that is well set out, looks professional and highlights their skills and experiences as they relate to the position.

Use the following tips to create a resume that will win you more interviews.

Tip 1 - Make Your Resume Attention Grabbing

To be effective, your resume must grab the attention of both Recruitment Consultants and Employers within 35-45 seconds. This is the average amount of time that a reader will spend reading your resume. A well-presented and well-written resume will extend that attention span to over a minute. Use action words, bullet points, headings and bold fonts where appropriate to make your resume attention grabbing.

Tip 2 - Keep It Simple And To The Point

Employers need to see details about your work history and experience, but they don't need to know everything. Do not include information in your resume that is not related and will not have a direct impact on winning the interview.

Tip 3 - Emphasize Your Achievements

There is a difference between simply doing a job and doing an amazing job! For this reason, it is very important to include in your resume your achievements not just your responsibilities. What made you stand out from the crowd? How did you come up with a way to do things better, more efficiently, or for less cost?

Tip 4 - Keep The Resume Positive

Employers are looking for people, who can contribute, have a positive attitude, are enthusiastic, and have successfully performed similar job skills in the past.  For this reason concentrate on communicating these issues and avoid any detracting information.

Tip 5 - Be Ready To Receive Calls From Potential Employers

Most first time job interviews are conducted via telephone rather than in person as they used to be. For this reason, make sure that you keep a list of where you have sent your application. Be prepared to explain why you applied for the position and why you should be interviewed for the position.