You may think a resume is just a resume—same old thing for everyone, right? Not quite. A resume can be a vital component of your personal brand. Resumes aren’t just for people seeking employment; they offer a professional overview of your experiences and help distinguish you as an individual whether you run your own business or work for a Fortune 500 company.
The point is, you need to have one no matter what you do–even if you’re not job-hunting. By simply posting the resume on your website, it website, which lends credibility and helps you relate to the corporate world yet still stand out. Your resume needs to not only speak volumes about what you can do, but who you are. That’s where your brand comes in.
How can you relay your brand in your resume?
- Use a not-so-common format. Don’t go overboard with design here, but do take some liberties with formatting. The best way to develop something fresh is to look around at books and Internet resources to see some formats that will work for you. Typically anything that specifies your job duties and then uses bullets to denote accomplishments will be useful for the section on experience—other than that you can create a profile or put in a table with keywords using other tools. The rest is really up to you. Just stick to the same font throughout using different formats such as bold or lower-case capital letters—two fonts max.
- Add your logo if you have one. Think it’s only for business cards? Wrong! A logo, if you have one, definitely gives your resume a one-of-a-kind edge, and works perfect for those who are self-employed.
- Choose fresh wording. A lot of the resumes I craft are strictly corporate, so corporate-speak works fine. When you are your own brand, however, you can think a little out of the box and still originate something professional. Some good words to use in your profile include “capable,” “fresh,” “expressive,” and “vibrant.” Wording is everything—think about your brand before you start typing. What words come to mind? Next, integrate the words into your resume. It can be professional, but it doesn’t have to be stale!
Author:
Kristen is an award-winning copywriter and author who enjoys what she does for a living. Kristen is also a Certified Professional Resume Writer. Kristen writes regularly for MediaBistro, SheKnows and F
