How To Build A Strong Resume With Examples, Tips, and Guide

A good resume can generate exciting interviews for your next career stage. But develop yours carefully; otherwise, it may connect you to the wrong job opportunities, or none. To write the best resume, you’ll need to define your job search goal and then build sections that speak to that goal. In addition, provide the basic career information required for any resume to compete in today’s job search.

The guide below will show you how to draft and focus your resume so it helps you secure your next job.

Steps for Building an Effective Resume

1. Clarify your goals

If you’re at all unsure about your target job duties, take some time to clarify and write them down. Also, jot down any preferences you have for industry, employer size, or work environment. The more you know your job search goals up front, the easier it’ll be to focus and optimize your resume.

2. Cover basic details

At the top of your resume, give your full name and contact details using this template:

Firstname Lastname
phone number | email address | City, ST 09876 | LinkedIn

Double-check your phone number and email address for accuracy – they’re as important as anything else on your resume.

Then, create a basic outline of your recent career by listing your job titles, employers, locations, and start and end dates. Follow this template to organize your information for each job:

Job Title, Employer, City, ST | work dates

Take your work history back at least as many years as your target job requires. For example, if the job posting calls for seven years of experience, create your outline going back to at least around 2018. You can detail previous jobs too, but don’t go back further than 10 or 15 years to avoid age discrimination. (If your early work history is still important, you can summarize it in a prior experience section omitting work dates.)

On a modern resume, your contact details and work outline are the only information that’s “required,” or expected by virtually every recruiter and hiring manager. All other details are optional based on their relevance to your target job (even advanced college degrees in rare cases). Keep this principle in mind whenever you work on your resume, and you’ll find it easier to set and maintain the right focus.

3. Filter your work information

Now that you’ve set a foundation of required details, you can build the next layer of your resume. To do so effectively, you’ll need to take a step back and think a little more creatively first.

For each job in your recent work history, brainstorm your (possibly various) duties and achievements on a separate document or sheet of paper. Don’t worry whether every duty or achievement belongs on your resume – just get it all down.

Then, review each detail in light of your target job. Does it overlap somehow? In other words, does it help show you have the skills to succeed in the role you’re after? If yes, incorporate that duty or achievement as a bullet point under the respective job description. If not, leave it off your resume.

By filtering your information this way, you can create an experience section focused on your goals. The process also helps you know the right amount of information to give on each past job. You may only have a brief overview of any unrelated jobs (even ones you held for years) and a detailed account of any highly related jobs (even those you held only briefly). Far from being misleading, this approach gives hiring managers the clearest measure of your background relevant to the role they hope to fill.

4. Draft your other resume sections

For many job seekers, education is the other main resume area to cover. Provide your relevant degree titles, school names, locations (or online), and optionally your graduation dates. Template:

Degree Title, School, City, ST | graduation year

Then, follow the same process you used to flesh out your job descriptions. Brainstorm details about each degree, and include any that relate strongly to your target job. Expanding your education section can be useful if you have limited work experience. Say you haven’t used an important software program at work but learned it through one of your academic projects. By adding that detail, you can assure hiring managers you have the required proficiency.

Other common sections to consider for your resume include:

• Certifications
• Languages
• Publications
• Training

Again, only include sections and details that pertain to your target job. When you leave out unnecessary information, you have more space to describe the skills and expertise you’ll bring to the job opening.

5. Write an introductory section

Finalize your resume by adding an introduction. Typically, this section appears below your contact information header and includes a brief summary paragraph and skills list. Most job seekers find it easier to write this part last, since creating other resume sections gives them a new perspective on how they want to introduce themselves to employers. For more help writing your resume intro, see:

• How To List Skills in Your Resume Skills Section (and List of Key Skills for Resume)
• How To Write a Resume Summary (With Examples)

Sample Resume Template

Fill in the template fields below to start building an effective resume for your job search:

Here’s a resume example to get you started:

As you can see, the first example was written during the candidate’s early career phases. While it was effective in positioning the applicant for mid-career roles, it doesn’t properly reflect what they’ve accomplished over the past three years. The second example better represents how they’ve grown over time, emphasizing the tangible value they can bring to future organizations.

4. Update your professional experience section

Whenever you add a new job to your resume, it’s important to reflect on your most notable achievements. You’ve undoubtedly been tasked with new responsibilities compared to your previous roles, but that isn’t what hiring managers are most interested in. Companies want compelling examples of how you’ve excelled in your most recent positions. Your bullet points should be concise and accomplishment-driven, providing engaging insights into your most impressive contributions

5. Edit the skills section of your existing resume

The last step in updating your resume is to review your skills section. Start by comparing your current list of skills to the job description. If there are significant gaps in your skills section, incorporate keywords from the posting to ensure compliance with applicant tracking systems (ATS). It’s also important to feature new skills you’ve cultivated to show hiring managers how you’ve progressed in your career.

Here’s a resume example that shows career progression:

Andrew Stoner

Executive Resume Writer and Career Coach

Andrew Stoner is an executive career coach and resume writer with 17 years of experience as a hiring manager and operations leader at two Fortune 500 Financial Services companies, and as the career services director at two major university business schools.