| |
Chapter 1 - Image Control:
The Key To Higher Salary Offers
This resume writing book chapter
takes you through the analysis of two complete sets of before and after resume
examples. You'll see how and why each resume was improved and resulted in
elevating each person's image substantially. The first example shows how Fran
went from a 0% to a 100% response rate and elevated her image and salary level
by $9,000. The second example shows how Tammy also went from generating no
interviews to sending out two resumes, landing two interviews and then
accepted a position paying $20,000 more per year. Detailed explanations and
graphs, like those illustrated on the home page of this site, show how each
title and skill heading was changed to bring Fran's and Tammy's image in line
with their salary goals.
Next, you're taken step by step through resume writing templates / worksheets
and final checklist to see if a skill-based resume or a chronological resume
will work the best for you. You'll also complete worksheets to analyze each of
your job titles to see if they match the jobs you want, or if they weaken your
image. If you find that they weaken your image, you'll then use our examples
and worksheets to strengthen them or replace them with skill headings that do
project an image that matches the jobs and salary you want.
Chapter 2 - Improve Your Self-Confidence and
Expand Your Comfort Zone
Chapter 2 of this resume book shares a wide variety of success stories
to build your confidence. Here you'll read dozens of stories about real job
seekers who not only created much better resumes but learned that they had a
wealth of skills employers want. This section discusses the fact that
employers really are more interested in your skills rather than specific
titles. This is true since job titles often have little meaning outside of the
company where you've worked. If you're like many job seekers creating a
powerful resume can make you feel uncomfortable and this book chapter helps
you expand your comfort zone so that you accept the full range of skills you
do possess ... and goes even further to show you how to market them fully.
Chapter 3 - Are Resumes Really That Important? Yes
They Are!
This resume book chapter discusses the fact that employers receive
hundreds of resumes and spend very little time reviewing them. Therefore, your
resume must grab an employer's attention and sell your top skills in seconds.
Resumes also lay the foundation for employers to ask you questions during
interviews ... therefore a weak resume results in weak interviews and a strong
resume results in automatically taking your interviews to a higher level.
Chapter 4 - 6 Steps to Create a Powerful Resume
This book chapter forms the heart of your being able to create a much more
effective resume. It takes you through 6 Easy Steps to Create Your
Resume, whether it's a skill based resume or a chronological resume. A
set of before and after resumes are included that illustrate both types
of resume formats and are used as examples to show you how to complete
the worksheets. Once you've reviewed the examples - you're then able to
complete the worksheets to create your own resume.
Chapter 5 - Skill Lists and Sample Sentences To
Create A Proven Resume
This resume book chapter includes over 2,000 skills, skill headings
and sample resume statements for 45 career fields. The skill lists and
statements make it easy for anyone to flip to the career fields in which they
have experience and check off information that matches their background. You
can view a complete list of the career fields by clicking the link at the
bottom of this page.
Chapter 6 - 12 Questions to Expand and Control
Your Image
Top questions I've found that I ask whenever I write resumes with job seekers,
is also provided in my resume book. No matter the income level
or the industry clients are in they still benefit by reading and applying
these questions to elevate image and quantify experience! Key in landing
higher pay..
Chapter 7 - Creating Powerful Design and Content
This resume book chapter teaches you how to create a resume that uses
design to control and direct the employer's eye path to your top skills and
sell you in seconds ... a must when you know that employers spend as little as
five seconds glancing at resumes before discarding them. Several sets of
resumes are analyzed to teach you how to use design elements that will make
your resume stand out. The second section of this chapter teaches you how to
write strong content. It's important to know that the design of your resume
must get attention but it's really the content that will convince employers to
call you.
Chapter 8 - What You Should and Shouldn't Tell
Employers
This chapter, of my resume book, answers many of the nuts and bolts
questions people have about describing their employment history (and related
problems), education, professional affiliations, and other issues. It also
takes you step by step through the process of creating objective statements.
Examples are provided of the type of objective statements I prefer in which
your objective and three to four of your best achievements are combined and
placed at the top of your resume. Two examples are included from resumes that
landed a $400 a month increase and a $42,000 salary increase. Step by step
worksheets are provided to take you through the process of creating powerful
objective statements.
Chapter 9 - 60
Proven Resume Examples
This resume book chapter contains 60 proven
resume examples and it provides an extensive cross reference list of skill
headings contained in all 60 resumes and is grouped by industry/skill
categories. For example an accounting resume may contain skill sections for
accounting, customer service, supervision and operations management however
the resume skill sections can be useful to a wide range of job seekers in
other career fields.
The resumes are grouped into these career categories: Accounting/Bookkeeping;
Administrative/Clerical; College & University Students; Curriculum Vitae;
Customer Service & Retail; Education; Healthcare/Medical; High School;
High Tech; Hospitality & Food Service; Human Resources; Social Services;
Licensed Professionals; Military; Parts, Production, Warehouse; Real
Estate/Property Management; Sales & Marketing; Management/Executive;
Trades; and Writing/Journalism.
In the left and right hand margins facing each resume example are questions to
help identify and describe skills and achievements, targeted specifically for
that career field. For example, next to the accounting resumes is a question
about total number of A/R and A/P accounts managed and the dollar range of A/R
or A/P that was managed. Next to the construction resumes is a question about
the type of construction projects worked on or managed such as industrial,
commercial or residential projects. Each group of industry related resumes
includes a dozen or more questions or tips for that particular field. This is
a great help in understanding why and how the resumes were developed and
serves as a guide in helping you create a powerful resume.
Chapter 10 - Cover
Letters: Strategies That Have Increased Salaries!
This resume book chapter
teaches you why most cover letters fail and shows you how to create a cover
letter that works by understanding how employers screen cover letters and
resumes. Just as with your resume, you'll learn how to use cover letter design
that directs and controls the eye path, and saves employers reading time.
You'll be taken step by step through an analysis of three job ads and shown
the difference a great cover letter can make in the impression employers have
of your skills. You're shown how to analyze ads to identify keywords and
create powerful keyword headings for your letters. You're then guided in how
to write powerful statements for each paragraph of your letter. As with all
the preceding chapters in the book - Proven Resumes: Strategies That
Have Increased Salaries - you're guided in understanding how to identify your
audience, what they want to hear and what you have to tell them to land an
interview. You're shown what to put in each paragraph of your letter from the
opening to closing paragraph and are provided with opening phrases that make
writing your letter easy.
You'll also learn how to use powerful strategies such as a P.S. to grab
attention. The importance of follow up is also emphasized and you're guided
through this important strategy. You'll be shown how to tweak your letter and
customize it for specific positions as well as how to write cold call or
generic letters to inquire with companies that have not advertised. Tips on
how to provide salary information, answer ads, fax your resume and apply for
jobs you think you may not be qualified for.
As with the graphing of Mark's resume on the home page of this site, you'll
also be taken through the process of graphing your cover letter to determine
the salary and experience level that it presents you at.
This chapter ends with a cover letter critique worksheet as well as an easy to
follow worksheet to write your cover letter. The information in this booklet
is geared to job seekers in the $20,000 to $100,000+ salary range.
Chapter 11 - Interviewing:
Strategies That Have Increased Salaries
This chapter in my resume book, teachs you how to analyze and thoroughly prepare for each interview you
receive. You'll do this by learning how to analyze want ads and job opening
descriptions in order to anticipate the questions each employer will ask you,
how to sell your top skills and address any concerns that may pertain to each
individual job. In contrast, many interviewing books provide dozens of
interview questions and sample answers that job seekers must try to memorize.
Many of these questions and answers may not be applicable to a particular job
or applicant and therefore are not targeted. As a result, they are often so
general that they lack the impact needed for job seekers to present themselves
with power and convince employers they are indeed the top candidate. By
learning how to analyze each job you'll interview for, anticipating specific
questions each unique employer will ask and preparing answers that sell you
best for that particular job -- you'll put yourself ahead of the competition
who have merely memorized canned interview answers.
This resume book chapter begins by addressing 13 criteria that many employers
judge applicants by to determine if they are overqualified, qualified or
unqualified. Cynthia's unsuccessful interview is critiqued and graphed using
the 13 criteria. The graph shows why Cynthia appeared unqualified in 10 of the
criteria and qualified in only 3 of the criteria discussed. This helps to
explain why Cynthia didn't land the job and helps job seekers pinpoint problem
areas in their own interviews. Next a synopsis of Cynthia's successful
interview is provided and graphed, and shows how Cynthia was able to
subsequently present herself as qualified in all 13 criteria that employers
look for when hiring.
The next section of this book discusses
three phases of the interview cycle which include:
Phase
I:
Introduction & First Impressions - This section discusses the
importance of first impressions and stresses that employers begin
judging you the minute you walk in the door.
Phase
II:
Questions You'll Be Asked Based On The Employer's Review of Your Resume
- This
section discusses the wide range of questions employers may ask you during the
interview, how to anticipate and answer such questions. It covers: Questions
Employers Will Ask To Judge Your Skills and Experience, Questions About Your
Bottom Line Contributions, Questions You Can Ask To Direct and Control The
Interview, Questions Employer Ask to Assess Personality, Values and Coping
Style, Questions About Your Work History, Questions About Education and
Training, Questions About Your References, and Questions About Salary
Requirements.
Phase
III:
Interview Closure - This section teaches you how to close your
interview with impact, probe to determine if you're a top candidate and
identify when second interviews will be held and when you should
follow-up.
Post
Interview:
Follow-up and Thank You Letters - This
section teaches you how to follow up on your interview. It also discusses the
importance of using thank you letters as another opportunity to sell your top
skills or to introduce new information that was not covered in the interview.
Excellent thank you letter examples are included.
Tips are provided on how to identify and de-emphasize your weaknesses during
each interview. You'll be shown how to provide answers that demonstrate your
technical knowledge as well as your skills and abilities to do the job. You'll
learn how to use power words and quantify. The fact that employers hire
enthusiastic applicants and how you can show your enthusiasm during interviews
is also stressed. Tips and examples are also provided on how to answer the 10
Most Common Interview Questions.
The book chapter ends with an Interviewing Checklist so that you can test
yourself to see how well you understand and how well prepared you are for each
phase of the interviewing cycle. A graph is also provided to rate yourself in
the 13 criteria which have been described at the beginning of this booklet.
Using this graph you can assess how employers will perceive your
qualifications as being overqualified, qualified or unqualified for the job.
Chapter 12 & 13 - Electronic
Resumes,
Online & Offline Job Search Strategies
In this resume book chapter, you'll
learn how to identify keywords that are critical to creating an effective
electronic resume. Keywords are how electronic resumes are sorted in order to
find candidates with specific areas of experience, skills and education. The
Electronic Resumes & Job Search Booklet takes you step by step through the
process of creating ASCII, scannable and e-mail resume formats.
This book chapter opens with a written testimonial/success story from Doug,
who found an ad for a leading management consulting firm. Using the steps
you'll learn Doug posted his new electronic resume on the internet and out of
thousands of resumes that exact employer found his resume. Doug was was then
called for an interview and ultimately hired! It's one thing to have a company
find your resume at random on the internet but an entirely different and
impressive situation to have the exact company you targeted your resume
for--find it, contact you and then hire you!
You are shown how Doug followed simple strategies to analyze the ad and then
create powerful keyword headings for his electronic resume. Next, you're shown
how Robin analyzed 8 ads for customer service positions which contained more
than 160 keywords. Robin then grouped these keywords and areas of experience
into major skill categories and used the top keywords to create powerful
headings for her resume. She then developed sentences using all of the
keywords for the content or text of resume. A 6-Step process shows you how to
do the same with your resume.
In addition to the excellent information and examples
provided for creating effective electronic and keyword resumes, you're also
provided with information on how to launch your electronic job search. Links
to mega career sites are provided where your resume can get instant exposure
to thousands of employers at top sites like Monster.com, which posts over
200,000 job listings. You'll also be directed to industry-specific job sites,
how to target specific employers, how to find national and local employment
security sites and sites of interest to college students or executives. Tips
are also provided on what type of employers use electronic resumes.
You'll also be taken through strategies to help you with your offline or
traditional job search. This section of the booklet discusses the importance
of having the right mind set during your job search. And, for reassurance
you're provided with a Job Search Success Sheet that takes you through problem
areas that you may need to correct if your resume isn't generating enough
interviews .... or if your networking isn't paying off ... or if you are land
interviews but don't get the job offer .... or if you are offered positions
beneath the salary you want .... or if employers don't think you're qualified
enough for management positions or the career change you'd like to make.
Statistics are provided on the top job search methods and you're given
detailed information on how to use each one. Whether it's applying directly to
employers, networking, answering ads, working with your unemployment office or
with an employment agency you'll find phone scripts and worksheets to help you
track each step of your job search for maximum success.
Bonus - Job Search Organizer Chapter
If you're like most
job seekers the idea of hunting for a job is bad enough in and of
itself--let alone adding to the problem by having to keep track of all
the places and people you've contacted when applying for jobs. Yet, it
is imperative that you identify which job search methods are most
successful for you--and the only way you can really know that is by
keeping track of what you're doing and what's working. You'll be given
many tips in the Job Search Organizer that help you do just that! For
example, many job seekers report that they don't keep the ads they
respond to but then also admit they don't market themselves well when
employers call them. Without organizing and keeping ads, it's extremely
difficult to remember what skills you should market to each particular
employer. Keeping a job search organizer notebook allows you to
instantly turn to a particular ad you've answered, look at the
worksheet you've completed, and instantly know which skills you should
market when talking to that employer. All of these tips and more are
included in the free organizer you're about to receive!
What's in the Job Search
Organizer
- Overview of the Financial Value of Your Resume
- Instructions for Getting Started Using the Organizer
- 8 Steps to Plan & Launch Your Job search
- Your Job Search Planner
- Weekly To Do Calendar
- Daily To Do Calendar
- Monthly Planner
- Evaluating Your Performance During Pre-Screening Interviews
- Employer Research and Data Worksheets
- Networking / Referral Data Worksheets
- Worksheets to Track Resume Posting at Internet Sites
- Worksheets to Track Ads & Job Openings You Respond To
- Worksheets to Track Job Fairs & Career Events
- Worksheets to Track Openings from Career Placement Offices
- Worksheets to Track Contact with Employment Agencies
- Address Book to Enter Employment Related Information
Bonus - Success Imagery Chapter
If you're like many job seekers you may want a better job
or higher salary or hope to make a career change ... but you may also feel
somewhat intimidated about pursuing your goals. This chapter provides the
Success Imagery, I and many of my clients, have employed to achieve our career
goals. These strategies have taken me from being a receptionist making $12.25
an hour to become an author of 13 resume and career books, public presenter,
master trainer for college instructors and career professionals, and
professional resume writer charging $100 an hour.
Like many job seekers, my career goals did not match my self image. Before
writing my first book if someone had told me I'd be where I am today I'd never
have believed them and probably would have been so intimidated that I wouldn't
have tried everything I've tried.
This book chapter takes you through the process of understanding your
intangible desires--those desires that really motivate you. When first asked,
many people say money is their top motivator but most often is not. It's
intangible rewards such as helping people, receiving respect from others,
achieving a difficult task and accomplishing those things we love which
actually result in a higher salary. You'll be guided through exercises to help
you identify the pain of not moving toward your goals in contrast to the
pleasure you'll have when you do achieve them. You're then taken step by step
through a series of worksheets that show you how to create your own Success
Imagery scripts that you can either read or listen to on a cassette.
Of hundreds of self-help books I've read and used, Success
Imagery, for me has been the most potent. It has helped me believe in myself
and what I could accomplish. When you believe you can do it--then you do it.
If you don't believe you can do it--then you usually don't even try.
Additional
Career Specific
Resume Books for $7.95
click each title to order
Teachers
Resume Book,
Accounting
Resume Book
CAD/Drafting
Resume Book,
College
Students Resume Book
Customer
Service Resume Book
EET Resume Book, IT
/ Computer Information Resume Book
High
School Student Resume Book
These career-specific books (36-57 pgs), .pdf, instant access, were created with Adults in
Technical & College Training Programs ... generally with
experience in other fields. Of course, the High School
Student book was created with High School Students and their Teachers.
f you hire me to write your
resume, you'll also receive links to my book, Proven
Resumes: Strategies That Have Increased Salaries free of charge. Reading
selected chapters of my resume book will provide you with an in-depth knowledge of resume development, cover
letters, job search, electronic resumes, interviewing, and confidence building
strategies.
MASTER RESUME
WRITER
PERSONNEL AGENCY OWNER
CAREER DEVELOPMENT INSTRUCTOR
UNIVERSITY JOB PLACEMENT SPECIALIST
TRAINER OF PROFESSIONAL RESUME WRITERS
TRAINER TO EMPLOYMENT SECURITY PROGRAMS
AUTHOR OF 15,000 RESUMES ... 13 RESUME BOOKS
http://www.free-resume-tips.com
Phone: 425-398-7378
 Website
Contents, Regina Pontow, 1997-2012
Worldwide Rights Reserved
Website contents derivative of Regina
Pontow, Proven Resumes & Confidence Builders
and Proven Resumes Strategies That Have Increased Salaries 1992-2012
DISCLAIMER
|