What's Your Word This Year?

Happy New Year!

Thanks for reading my blog posts. (I know you are, because I had a sudden spike in sales of my "Write Great Resumes Faster" book after mentioning it in this blog post last week!)

I started a new tradition last year … choosing a theme for the year. I called 2014 "The Year of the Product" because I wanted to focus on developing a new passive income stream -- a training program for resume writers interested in earning passive income through affiliate marketing. My words were: Create / Share / Action.

I did meet that goal, launching the Resume Writer's Affiliate Income Blueprint program, fulfilling my dream of creating a program that would help resume writers meet their income goals while they also served the needs of jobseekers.

For 2015, I took inspiration from Kelly McCausey and narrowed my focus for 2015 down to a single word. I was trying to figure out what my word was going to be … and it was starting to worry me that nothing was really coming to mind … and then my subconscious mind kicked in when I looked at my to-do list. Suddenly, my focus for 2015 was clear.

Fotolia – © arybickii

You see, I have trouble finishing things. At any given time, my to-do list (the one I was just talking about), extends to more than a page. I have dozens of notes in Evernote with projects that I ended up dropping off my handwritten to-do lists.

I love writing resumes. I hate finalizing them. In an ideal world, I'd send the client the first drafts and someone else would handle all the minor changes and create the additional file formats.

I love coming up with ideas, outlining concepts, and even starting stuff. But I hate the middle and I really have a hard time with the end. (I'm only motivated by deadlines. And that's whether it's for a resume or each month's Bronze member resources on BeAResumeWriter.com.)

So FINISH is my word for 2015. I've set a goal for one project that I've been working on for about 15 months now. I'm going to finish it by the end of this month. And then I'm going to choose something else to finish in February. And so on.

But before I *finish* this blog post, I want to ask you: What's YOUR word going to be this year? Post it in the Comments section below.

And I expect you to hold me accountable on my theme. Ask me how my projects are going!!!

Who Is Talking About You? Google Alerts Will Tell You

I just saw on Facebook that a resume writing colleague had been quoted in an article in a major business magazine. She said she was alerted to it when she saw traffic on her Google Analytics report. But Google has an even better tool for letting you know when your name is in the news -- and it's free.

Google Alert is the easy way to monitor what is being said about you online.

You “register” certain keywords and phrases with Google and Google Alerts will send you an email when there are new results with your search words and phrases.

To start, visit the Google Alerts website:

http://www.google.com/alerts

If you have a Google account, sign into it (using the blue “Sign In” button in the upper right-hand corner).

Next, make a list of relevant keywords and/or phrases you’d like to monitor. Suggestions include:

• Your name (with all the various ways you use it) – for example, my Google Alerts include “Bridget Weide Brooks,” “Bridget (Weide) Brooks,” “Bridget Ann Brooks,” “Bridget Ann Weide,” and “Bridget Brooks, CPRW”
• Your company name
• “Resume writer” + (Your City/Town)
• Your phone number
• Your email address

If you use quotation marks around a phrase, you’ll get alerts when the search matches that exact phrase. If you don’t use quotation marks, you’ll get alerts that include the words separately.

Note: You may have to tweak the alerts if you’re getting too many or too few results.

Enter each phrase into the Alert box:

Enter one search term at a time. Don’t be concerned about upper or lower case — both will be searched.

If you are not logged into your Google account, you can specify the email address you want to have alert notifications sent to.

Click “Show Options” to further customize your alerts:

• How Often. You can choose to receive notifications immediately (“as it happens,” once a day, or once a week.
• Sources. You can choose to receive a notification depending on where your search term shows up. For example, “Automatic” covers any results found. You can also narrow the alert down to notifications when your keyword phrase is found on Google News, blogs, web pages, video, books, and/or discussions.
• Language. Pretty self-explanatory. English is the default.
• Region. This refers to country. “Any region” is the default.
• How many. Your choices are “only the best results” or “all results.” The default is “only the best results,” but you can tweak this later if you’re not getting enough results.

If you are logged into your Google alert, you’ll also be able to choose whether notification emails are sent to your Google email account, or to a RSS feed associated with your email account.

If you’re logged into your Google account, once you select “Create Alert,” you will be taken to a list of the alerts you’ve already created. If you click on the “pencil” icon, you can modify the options related to that alert (i.e., change your settings).

Once you set up your alerts, you’ll receive emails (or RSS Feed notifications) when results are found that match your criteria. At the bottom of the email, Google will also give you links to Delete, Create, and Manage your alerts.

Read the Google Search tips page to learn how to refine your search even further:

http://google.com/help/basics.html

You may find that you have to tweak and/or test your alerts for a little while before they work the way that you want them to, but the results are worth it the first time you receive an email notification about something that you didn’t know was out there.

Write Great Resumes Faster By Mastering Microsoft Word

I was talking with a resume writer recently who uses a software package to write her resumes. But one of the best things you can do to learn how to "Write Great Resumes Faster" is to become a master of Microsoft Word.

Learning how to use Microsoft Word more efficiently can help you complete routine functions faster. Learning how to use Word's "Style" function can simplify the formatting process. Learning how to use "track changes" can speed up the client approval process. Even something as simple as changing the default font when you open a new Word document can save you time -- time that adds up in every resume you write.

One "power" Word tip is to create a couple of "standardized" formats and layouts. Develop five or six formats you can use to guide your resume development. Starting a resume from a "template" (and by that, I mean a template YOU design, not one of the standard Microsoft Word resume templates) will help you structure your document creation because you're not starting entirely from a blank page. Think of them as "structured outlines" instead of templates.

Even if you've been using Word for more than 20 years like I have, you can always learn new tricks. Look for Microsoft Word training online. There are lots of free and paid courses on Udemy. Look for ones with good reviews and a healthy number (50+) of students who have taken the course. You can even look for free YouTube video trainings.

Looking for more ways to improve your speed and increase the effectiveness of the resumes you write? Check out "Write Great Resumes Faster."

Q&A: Designing an ATS-Friendly Resume

Yesterday's blog post focused on the content of an ATS-friendly resume. Today's post tackles design considerations for resume writers when creating a resume that is likely to go through an Applicant Tracking System.

Q. How do I design an Applicant Tracking System-friendly resume?
A. The easiest way to ensure the client's resume will be accepted by an ATS is to design a resume that is both ATS-friendly and human-reader ready. 

The two are not mutually exclusive; however, ATS-friendly resumes are formatted much more simply, while human-reader resumes may contain graphic elements that make the document easier to read and more attractive to the reader.

Because the ultimate goal is to have the resume reviewed by a human, even an ATS-friendly resume needs to be readable — and attractive — to human eyes. (Be sure to tell clients: If they are given the choice to copy-and-paste the resume or upload a file, choose the upload option. This will ensure the human-read resume retains the formatting in your original design.)

Some applicant tracking systems can manage graphics (or simply ignore them), but since many systems can’t handle graphics of any type, it is best to omit them if you suspect an applicant tracking system may be used to handle the application.

The format of the main body of the resume is critical — some ATS software cannot read header/footer information, so if you include contact information in those sections, it may not be read. (And remember, geographic location can be used as a filter.)

Does an ATS-friendly resume have to be boring? Not necessarily — although formatting has to be carefully considered.

Format is extremely important. The employer name must appear before the date.

Work experience — the client's current and previous jobs — should appear in this format:
Company Name Date
Position
Description

The date should always appear to the right of the company name for optimum reading by the applicant tracking system. Dates can be included in almost any standard format — for example: November 2014, 11/2014, or Nov. 2014.

Work experience sections should also include the skills used in the role (including computer software and hardware, if relevant).

One nice thing about applicant tracking systems is that they are not sensitive to the length of the resume, so two or more pages are fine. However, they are sensitive to formatting issues.

Formatting a Resume For ATS Compliance:

1. Open the file in Microsoft Word. Under the “File” menu, choose “Save As.” Rename the file (recommended format: LastNameJobTitle.txt) and save as “Text Only” (.txt) format. 
2. Close the Microsoft Word window. Open the .txt file in Microsoft Word. 
3. Fix any obvious formatting issues. 
4. List the client's contact information at the top of the document, with each piece of information on a new line. Label the phone number with “Phone:” and email address with “Email:.” 
5. Create section headings (if they did not previously exist in the resume). These can include “Summary,” “Work Experience,” and “Education.” Use one heading per section (do not combine “Education and Training,” for example), and include an extra return (an extra line) between sections. 
6. Use simple bullets (•) or keyboard characters (*, -, or >). Do not use dingbats or other special characters, as these will not be read properly by the ATS. 
7. Highlight the text and choose a more appealing font than Courier. (Suggested fonts are Arial, Georgia, Tahoma, or Verdana.) 
8. Re-save the file as a .doc. (Under the “File” menu, chose “Save As.” Make sure you choose “Word Document” under the “Format” option.) 

Here's a checklist for an ATS-Friendly Resume:

• Is saved in an approved format — resume is submitted as a .doc, .docx, or .txt (PDF, RTF, and JPG formats are not ATS-friendly)
• Does not use fancy templates, borders, or shading.
• Is in a single column format (no tables, multiple columns, or text boxes)
• Uses simply formatted text of a reasonable size (10 point size or above)
• Includes standard fonts (Arial, Georgia, Tahoma, Trebuchet, and Verdana are all “safe” choices)
• Does not contain complex formatting (condensed or expanded text) — that is, don’t use extra spaces between letters, because the ATS can’t “read” it.
• Include a few, clearly defined sections: Summary, Work Experience, and Education.
• Does not contain images or graphics — or, if they do appear, they do not affect the single-column formatting (Be warned, however, that the simple inclusion of any graphics may be enough to “choke” some applicant tracking systems.)
• Does not include any information in the headers or footers of the document (if saved in Microsoft Word format)
• Has been thoroughly edited and spellchecked and there are no errors. (The ATS will not recognize misspelled words).
• Does not include any special characters or accented words.
• Contains proper capitalization and punctuation. Both of these can affect how information is parsed and assigned within the ATS database.
• Uses the full, spelled-out version of a term in addition to abbreviations and acronyms — i.e., Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
• Incorporates relevant, targeted keywords and phrases for the type of position being sought — i.e., “Photoshop” instead of “image-editing software”
• Has been customized for the position being sought. “One-size-fits-all” does not work with applicant tracking systems.