Typically, employers want to see the last ten years of your work history. And, employers initially prefer a one-page resume customized to the job lead you are applying for. Here are some tips to help keep your work history brief.
Format
List your recent job first.
Include the following information:
Company name, Job title, City, ST, month/year – month/year
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
If you had two or more job titles within a company:
Company name, City, ST
Job title, month/year – month/year (dates for this job title)
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
Job title, month/year – month/year (dates for this job title)
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
Job title, month/year – month/year (dates for this job title)
• Accomplishment
• Accomplishment
Also, follow the format and wording tips found in “Resume Part 3 – Summary”:
Omit personal pronouns – I, me, my, mine, we, us.
Avoid words like “responsibility(ies)” and “duty(ies)”.
Begin sentences (accomplishment statements) with action verbs – present tense if you’re still working and past tense if you’re not.
Quantify whenever you can.
Omit the following words if sentences still read well without them: a, an, the, all.
Drafting Your Work History
Start by typing everything you can remember about what you did at each job within the last ten years. List your accomplishments with bullets. Keep in mind that this is your draft resume. Write everything you can remember. At this point, don’t think about how long it’s going to be. Also, add to this draft as you recall more accomplishments.
Customizing Your Work History
As you’re reading a job description, ask yourself, “When and where have I done that?” and “How well have I done that?” especially when experience, skills, or duties are prefaced with “must have”, “requires”, “desires”, or “prefers”.
On your draft resume, keep any accomplishments in your work history that relate to the job description and delete the rest. Modify the remaining accomplishments to one or two lines, if needed. Save As “FirstLastName-Resume-JobTitle-CompanyName.docx”.
If you’re tempted to want to keep most everything on your draft resume, then ask yourself, “How can this be beneficial to the company?”
Josie Toth is a Regional Facilitator for Workforce Solutions. She facilitates job search skills and career exploration classes in the 13-county Houston-Galveston area. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies and enjoys encouraging others in their pursuit of meaningful work.
blogforce.wrksolutions.com 