5 Things to Include On Your Resume

When it comes to your resume, it can be hard to put together. All fields are different in their requirements, and you want to find a way that makes you stand out. Yes, your qualifications should stand out but if they’re receiving dozens of resumes, what happens when they don’t get to yours? I feel like this something that isn’t touched on a lot.

I’ve always believed that my resume needs to stand out especially since I’m in a marketing/creative field. My resume has to represent me to some point. I feel like that can apply to many people. We live in a time where we don’t have to rely on word documents anymore. There are options out there that allow you to stand out.

If you want to take it one step further, there are tools where you can put together either outlandish or traditional with some spunk resume. I’m a huge advocate of Canva, and it’s free, so I make sure that I utilize it whenever I can.

There is a lot of freedom when it comes to designing your resume. You can do whatever as long as it covers the basics that need to be included.

What are the basics? The things that needed to be covered so the hiring manager can know if you’re a match.

Here are five things to make sure you include in your resume:

Header

If might not seem important to you but a great header can put you on the map. I know it’s just your name or logo but how you present that matters. You wouldn’t want to throw a header on there that wasn’t readable or user-friendly. No, that’s not the move. Avoid that at all costs. But, don’t let that diminish your shine. You could find a user-friendly cursive font that showcases your name and/or title. If you want to do a logo, make it cohesive, so it matches.

Profile

I didn’t know the correct name for this – whenever I work on my resumes, it has been called a profile. But, I do feel like there are many names for this blurb. Within this blurb, I find that it’s great to talk about your current work situation and the opportunity that you are looking for. If there isn’t an area for skills, I list my skills and platforms that I can work in. This is usually at the top of my resume, so a recruiter or HR can’t skip over it. If they do, they’re missing out. Nonetheless, this is where I talk about myself because that’s the whole point of a resume. I’m schmoozing myself for a career.

Experience

This is a big part of your resume. How else are you going to show off what you have done to get to where you are in life? In this area, you want to address everything that you have done. Many people like to either show the places and their role and others like to give the details — I am the person that shares details. My LinkedIn page has all the features because I want recruiters and jobs to know all the things that I do. My resume doesn’t have all the details because there is only so much room on a piece of paper. It’s my highlight reel, and it does highlight the important parts. Each of my roles is listed along with the timeline. I treat it as a timeline, more than anything.

Skills

If you have room, I suggest that you talk about your skills. It can be the most important skills, especially for your role. Canva has great options to highlight these skills like graphs and imagery. With my own resume, I have a cute photo of myself because I want to put a face to the name. Sure, some hiring managers might not like it but that means we probably wouldn’t fit together. Not only do I have a cute picture of myself but I have a line graph that highlights my skills and where I think I meet each point of that. In the past, I’ve utilized points that would fill in on a scale of 1-5, my expertise. You can get really creative in this area or you can just like your skills and do it the way that you want.

Education

This is a hot topic because you don’t necessarily need a degree to succeed in the world. If you don’t believe me, ask one of my best friends that have saved a boatload of money by just being herself and taking it upon herself to learn. Nonetheless, you can use this part of show off the school that you went to or the classwork that you did and how it applies to the opportunity. I’ve never shared any of my classes on my resume but my brother has because software engineers can go many things and he wants to do something specific so he shares those specific classes. This section is all about how you wrap it up. Whether it’s sharing your school information with graduation date or some coursework that you took in school or through an online program, share it.

At the end of the day, your resume is the first impression. Unless, they go over to your LinkedIn and social media accounts but still, it’s one of the first impressions.

You want to woo them in some way or stand out in some way. My resumes have never been over-the-top with the design but a perfect mix of traditional and design with a splash of Brittnee’s personality.

Whenever I have met with hiring managers, I have been complimented on my skills so that has been a takeaway for me.

Are all of these sections necessary? Not if you don’t feel they do any justice for your resume. I like to take these sections and add my own spin to it so if that’s something you like to do, do it. Switch it up to reflect your personality and how you fit with the job that you are applying for.

What are some tips and tricks that you utilize when making your resume?