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Resumes for Business Women
By | July 28, 2008
Even if you operate your own business, it’s smart to keep your professional resume up to date. This document serves more than the purpose of introducing you to potential new employers. A resume is necessary for professional engagements too. You could be asked to forward your resume to join a Board of Directors, be selected for a speaking engagement, hone your talents at another public event. Here are some tips to help you develop a resume that serves your professional needs.
1. Include a cover letter. Always accompany your professional resume with a cover letter. Let the letter point out particular interests in your life or qualifications you want to stand out in any particular situation. Prepare a unique cover letter for each inquiry you answer with your resume.
2. Stay Professional in Appearance. Resist the urge to get too fancy with your resume unless your specialty is being creative in very unusual ways. The resume is the written document of your background and qualifications, not your creative flair. Stick wtih high quality resume paper and use basic fonts in a standardized manner.
3. Keep it Brief. My curriculum vita happens to be over 10 pages long, that’s because it serve a particular purpose. I know that’s not appropriate for most business resumes. Create a resume of your background that’s diferent lengths. Have a one page resume and another that’ s up to two pages. Most business people are too busy to go through more detail than that. If more information is needed add it to your cover letter or forward it later.
4. Tell Accomplishments. Too many people stick to giving a list of regular duties on their resume. So you started a business and run it successfully; others do too. Instead, focus on what you’ve accomplished that give you a unique edge. Did you grow that business from nothing to over 6 figures in the first 2 years? Have you written a book that sells each time you make a public presentation? Be sure to highlight accomplishments over duties at this level in your life.
5. Focus Objectives on Others. If you use an objective in your resume, make it focused on the needs of others instead of what you want to gain from the business relationship. For instance, if you are applying to serve on a public organization, instead of saying “to gain experience in working with a public organization” state something such as “to use my skills in accounting to asssist the organization to mainain fiscal responsiblity.”
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