How to sell yourself through your work experience

Summary

·  Describe your skills in a factual way

·  Your work experience should be listed in reverse chronological order

·  Use verbs to clearly highlight your experience

 

Describing your work experience positively and clearly is vital to securing an interview.

The reader of your resume wants to see your skills and abilities through factual descriptions of your tasks and achievements in each position held. Avoid listing your skills under separate headings only - this format appears less factual and it can be more difficult for the reader to take in. Instead incorporate such information as fact into the description of the position to which the skill belongs.

Your work experience section should be displayed in reverse chronological order - that is your current or most recent position first. Each position should firstly be summarised - between one and three sentences as a general guide. Next describe your duties and responsibilities using short, succinct sentences or bullet points. Use positive adverbs and verbs to project a confident image.

Examples include: effectively managed, successfully negotiated, enthusiastically participated.

Finally, using the same style, describe your achievements.
For example: what improvements you suggested or made, what targets you met or exceeded, or what problems you solved.

This information can be a strong selling point because it shows how you went beyond the minimum requirements of your job.

How much detail to include will depend upon how relevant the role is to a) the sort of work you are now looking for and b) how long ago you held the position.

Generally the current, most recent or most relevant job (if it has been held in approximately the last three to five years) should be described in the most detail. After that each role going back in your work history should contain less and less information.

Besides the skills required to do a particular role, whoever is reading your resume will want to see evidence that you are able to work with others. Therefore, it is always a good idea to incorporate facts relating to when you worked in a team, communicated effectively and led others.

Be clear, brief and to the point in the information you display and always use positive language.