CareerOwl Featured Career Article

Take a look at your resume right now. Do you see duties and responsibilities ... or benefits?

If you're like most people, you could tell employers a lot more about the BENEFITS they would enjoy by hiring you. Doing so will instantly improve your resume. And shorten your job search.

It's easy!

Just think back on your daily duties. What good things happened when you did your job well? Write them down. Focus on results. The more specific, the better!

Don't say this: "Responsibilities included implementation of policies and procedures, training of new employees, interfacing with vendors, and light correspondence duties." That's a laundry list of duties.

Say this: "Worked with staff and vendors to increase product turnover 15% and sales 23% in five months. Also trained 14 new employees, five of whom were rapidly promoted." That's all about benefits.

See the difference?

For most people, this is the hardest part of resume writing. Maybe it's because we tend to take for granted the good things we do on the job every day.

In any case, here are three shortcuts to help you focus on benefits in your resume.

1) Write down all the money you've saved or earned for employers in every job. What have you done to increase revenue and profits?

2) Maybe it's hard to quantify your work in dollars, pounds or shekels. If so, try this. Write down everything you've done to increase efficiency or save time, because time is money. Perhaps you wrote a training manual ...or created a new system in the mailroom. Anything is fair game here.

3) A third way to focus on benefits is to keep this phrase in mind as you recall your duties: "As a result." Stick "as a result" on the end of everything you've done and see what you come up with. For example: "Worked with staff and vendors to eliminate slow-moving products. AS A RESULT, increased product turnover 15% and sales $23,000 in five months."

So, think about all the ways you've made or saved money, the ways you've saved time or increased efficiency, and the good things that have resulted when you did your job well.

Emphasize these benefits of hiring you. As a result, you'll find that next job faster!

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Kevin Donlin is Managing Editor of 1 Day Resumes. The 1DR writers provide same-day, one-on-one resume writing assistance. He is also author of "Resume and Cover Letter Secrets Revealed," a do-it-yourself manual that will help you find a job in 30 days ... or your money back. For more information, click here.

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