1. A résumé primer -- Tools for the task -- The résumé tool : asset or liability? -- Employers and candidates usually view résumés as having different purposes -- You need to do more than write a résumé to get a job -- A résumé is most effective when it follows face-to-face or voice contact with a hiring manager -- A support person or computer program will probably be the one to screen your résumé -- Résumés are not read thoroughly -- You won't always need a résumé to land a job -- Then why write a résumé? -- And why this book? -- Some success stories -- Your most important tool -- Top 10 tips to create résumé magic -- 2. How to use branding and advertising strategies to get an interview -- Elements of your career brand -- Authentic image -- Advantages -- Awareness -- The proven ad agency formula -- Step 1 : how to grab your reader's attention -- Headlines and hard-hitting leads -- Visual appeal -- Step 2 : how to capture your reader's interest -- Selling points--front and center -- Where's the center of the page? -- Place supporting information below the visual center -- Skimmable material goes at the bottom of the page -- Step 3 : how to create desire for your product--you! -- Why you buy -- Why employers buy -- Prove your superiority -- Step 4 : call to action -- Top 10 résumé strategy tips -- 3. How to choose the most flattering format to support your résumé strategy -- Two tried-and-true winning formats : chronological and functional -- The chronological format -- A chronological format worked for David -- The functional format -- A functional format helped Grace get a new life -- A "wonder mom" goes back to work -- Marching to new orders -- Genetic variants of the two main résumé types -- The accomplishments format -- An accomplishments format worked for McKenzie -- The combination format -- Condensing 30 years of experience -- The creative format -- Themed résumés -- Using specialty paper -- The curriculum vitae (CV) -- The dateless chronological format -- A dateless chronological format helped Anne -- The international résumé -- The linear format -- A linear format worked for Richard -- The newsletter format -- Some newsletter formats that worked -- The reordered chronological format -- A reordered chronological format helped John -- The targeted format -- A targeted format helped Fred -- If it works, it's right -- Top 10 résumé formatting tips --
4. The blueprint for a blockbuster résumé -- Data bits, or contact info -- To list or not to list your business telephone number -- Other solutions for daytime contacts -- Sample résumé headers -- Three data bits -- Four data bits -- Five data bits -- Six data bits -- Seven data bits -- Eight data bits -- Objective, or focus statement -- Key features, or qualifications summary -- Professional experience -- Skills -- Education, credentials, and licenses -- Affiliations -- Publications, presentations, or patents -- Awards and honors -- Bio bites -- Endorsements -- Keywords -- What not to include -- Putting it all together -- Top 10 résumé blueprint tips -- 5. How to write great copy -- Keywords -- What are keywords? -- Where to find keywords -- How to position keywords -- Top 10 résumé keyword tips -- The objective or focus statement -- Cover letter focus statement -- Title statement -- Traditional objective -- Exercise for assembling a focus statement -- The qualifications summary -- Professional experience -- How far back? -- Where to find material for your job descriptions -- How long is too long? -- Solutions for downplaying less-relevant positions -- Recently demoted -- Demoted several months ago -- Most recent position title sounds like a demotion, but isn't -- Obscure titles -- Skills -- Focusing on skills worked for Jan -- Education, credentials, licensure -- Recent high school graduate -- Recent college graduate -- Degree obtained a number of years ago -- Degree in a field different from your major -- Degree not completed -- Two-year degree -- Degree equivalent -- No degree -- Including credentials, licenses, and certificates -- Affiliations -- Publications, presentations, and patents -- Publications -- Presentations -- Awards and honors -- Bio bites -- Endorsements -- Top 10 tips for writing great copy -- 6. Accomplishments : the Linchpin of a great résumé -- What's in it for me? -- Words to woo employers -- Buying motivator #1 : make money -- Buying motivator #2 : save money -- Buying motivator #3 : save time -- Buying motivator #4 : make work easier -- Buying motivator #5 : solve a specific problem -- Buying motivator #6 : be more competitive -- Buying motivator #7 : build relationships/image with internal/external customers, vendors, and the public -- Buying motivator #8 : expand business -- Buying motivator #9 : attract new customers -- Buying motivator #10 : retain existing customers -- Strategies for presenting accomplishments -- Numbers : the universal language -- Comparison--a powerful form of communication -- ROI--how quickly can you deliver? -- The company's mission statement--make it your mission -- The CAR technique--challenge, action, and result -- Where to find material for your accomplishments -- Performance appraisals -- Your career management file -- Impact-mining : probing questions to unearth hidden treasures -- Sifting through the accomplishments you've gathered -- Focusing on accomplishments worked for Patrick -- Use impact statements to portray yourself as the right fit -- Top 10 tips for writing accomplishments --
7. Editing : résumé-speak 101 -- Development editing : a primer in power writing -- Top 10 tenets of developing your résumé -- Examples of résumé-speak -- The keys to writing compelling copy -- Address the needs of your audience -- Summarize by using the ABC method -- Focus on transferable skills -- Résumé-speak 101 -- Deliver the goods up front -- Start sentences with action verbs or noun phrases -- Sidestep potential negatives -- Give outdated experience a feeling of real time -- Avoid an employer pet peeve : baseless personality -- Attributes -- Convey confidential information without giving away proprietary/trade secrets -- Technical editing/copyediting : the mechanics of résumé-speak -- Abbreviations -- Acronyms -- Active Voice -- Articles (in absentia) -- Auxiliary or helping verbs -- Capitalization -- Colons and semicolons -- Commas -- Commas that separate -- Commas that set off -- Comma trauma -- Contractions -- Dashes -- Ellipsis marks -- Elliptical sentences -- Gender equity -- Hyphenation -- Numbers -- Parallel sentence structure -- Parentheses -- Parts of speech -- Passive voice -- Periods -- Possessives -- Prepositions -- Quotation marks -- Sentence fragments -- Slashes -- Split infinitives -- Tense -- Verbs -- Writing in the first person -- Prune, prune, prune -- Proof, proof, proof -- Top 10 résumé proofreading tips -- 8. Visual artistry : the missing link -- Design elements -- Create a visual pattern -- Consistency counts -- Use tab stops sparingly -- Apply white space liberally -- Make bullets work for you -- Think in threes -- Keep headings to a minimum -- Segment paragraphs -- Segmenting made Martin's résumé more readable -- Balance is beautiful -- Pay attention to vertical balance -- Balancing a two-column format -- A two-column format worked for Gail -- Balancing a full-width layout -- A full-width layout worked for George -- Balancing unevenly distributed copy -- Patricia's résumé became a good balancing act -- Balancing impact statements -- Justification--ragged right or full justification? -- Hang it on the wall! -- Use typefaces tastefully -- Choosing a font -- Fonts that buy more space -- Use discretion in mixing fonts -- Go easy on bold, underline, and italic -- Establish a logical sizing hierarchy -- Tweaking tips -- Technical tools to create tables -- Add white space -- Change line height -- Expand character spacing -- Tricks to make text fit -- Use bullets strategically -- Creating bullets -- Adding or subtracting spacing between bullets and text -- Changing the type of bullet -- Using the right bullet size -- Use rule lines -- Other graphic elements -- Visual artistry made the difference -- Top 10 visual appeal tips --
9. E-résumés, e-portfolios, blogs, social media, and profile sites
Résumés in MS Word .doc or .docx format as e-mail
Attachments or Web form uploads
The advantages and disadvantages of MS Word résumés for e-mail attachments and Web form uploads
MS Word résumé do's and don'ts
ASCII text résumés as e-mail body text or Web form upload
The advantages and disadvantages of ASCII résumés
ASCII résumé do's and don'ts
Steps for ASCII conversion
Converting to ASCII for E-mailing using MS Word
Converting to ASCII for pasting into e-forms
Quick cleanup of an ASCII conversion
How to post an ASCII résumé to a Web site
Web résumés, e-portfolios, and blogs
The advantages and disadvantages of Web résumés
The technical how-to's of web résumés
Use an online résumé-builder service
What to include in a Web résumé or e-portfolio
Getting on the blog bandwagon
Using RSS (really simple syndication) technology
Social media sites and online profiles
Scannable résumé do's and don'ts
Applicant-tracking systems : what happens after you e-mail or post your résumé?
Positive aspects of applicant-tracking technology
Negative aspects of applicant-tracking technology
Top 10 technology tips for e-résumés, E-portfolios, and blogs
10. Cover letters and other parts of the puzzle
The segments of a cover letter
Example of intrigue [new graduate]
Example of inspirational quotation
Example of an interesting fact
Missed a filing deadline?
Request for salary information?
Writing to a recruiting firm
a chance to resell yourself
Other pieces of the puzzle
When and how to ask for references
How to improve the traditional reference list
Sending your cover letter and résumé
Futurist career management
Appendix A. Worksheets to catalog professional history
Appendix B. Survey : what executive recruiters really want in a résumé
Appendix C. Sample résumés by professional writers
