Table of contents:
Article sponsored by CVWizard
Creating a resume is not as complicated as you think. You just need to organize your ideas, do a little memory and put everything on paper. In fact, there are many tools that can help you, from online forms to the templates you find in Microsoft Word. Here we are going to tell you what you need to create a good CV to find a job easilyStep by step so that you don't get overwhelmed and so that the final result fits the position for which you are applying.
Make an outline
First of all, know what you are going to do. What information do you need. What is the job you aspire to. And to clarify all this, an outline is the best option, or at least the first step to clarify all the work that comes later.
Take a blank piece of paper, a pencil and write at the top of the paper "CV for..." indicating the position or company for which you will be assigned. Keep in mind that each job is different, and each company looks at one or the other characteristics when hiring new staff. This is key to not losing focus of your curriculum
From here structure what will be your resume. The first point is always personal information.It will be the first section, in which you will include your name, your telephone number, your current place of residence... Of course, taking into account the position for which you are applying, take into account and write down in this scheme if you need to offer information such as nationality, your gender, full address, your marital status or your age. They are indispensable data due to sensitive social implications. So think twice if they are necessary for your next position or not.
Now it's time to choose, in your scheme, if you want to indicate your academic background or your experience first. The usual thing is to start with the latest works developed. The idea is to make the task easy for the interviewer, people responsible for human resources or whoever may be your possible future boss. That is why it is usually placed earlier. However, it is not always convenient to include all your experience. Surely you have heard that "man of many trades, little profit". Think again for which job position and which company you are applying for, and write down in your outline the type of jobs that are related to the offer that you have done.If you remember the dates or the companies, also write it down in this scheme, it will help you to develop it in the final curriculum vitae.
The same goes for training. If you have different careers, or different courses, think which ones are worth keeping in view of the company for which you are applying. Write down these key points on the outline to keep in mind later.
Although it is not necessary, it never hurts to show initiative and voluntariness when creating a CV. For this reason, we recommend that you create one more section in your outline and your CV focused on your skills and aptitudes Think about what experience you have in specific tasks within a job and what They may be related to what you would do for the offer you are applying for. Here you have to specify.Write down clues and details that come to mind in this initial outline, we will develop it later.
It is also common to add a last section to the CV that talks about you A section that moves slightly away from experience and preparation , and that focuses on the personal and, also, on what you are looking for in a job. It can be a section called "about me", where you tell hobbies, special qualities or even details such as the salary range in which you want to move. Of course, think carefully about the approach of your CV before completing it. It is not the same to apply if you do not have a job, where the salary bracket can be variable, to a situation of employment improvement. Do not put doors to the field if what you want is to find a job quickly. Write down in this diagram what you think is relevant to this section.
Formats, fonts and colors
Thanks to the scheme, what we have before us is something like a form, and not a blank sheet to face. Something that will help you focus on each part so that the work is not hard. And also so that you only have to remember what is important, without wasting time thinking about what to put in each place.
The usual format of a resume is chronological from most current to most previous. The last thing should appear first. Especially with regard to the work experience section.
Another important point is the readability and visibility of your CV. Feel free to use a neutral font, without a serif. That is, without decorations, nor too personalized. It must be elegant, simple, ornate, but it should not fall into the overdone and tacky. So simple fonts like Calibri or Arial are good choices. Do not hesitate to look for the one that you like the most without failing these criteria.
Formatting is also important to improve readability. The CVs do not have to be loaded with information, they have to be pills that you can explain in an interview, so a good spacing and a clean outline will help these pills to be more visible and comfortable to see. Less is more, and the cleaner and simpler the better. The same if you choose formats with colored backgrounds and shapes. Something that makes your CV stand out is a good idea, but try not to mislead the information in it. That draws attention but is not the protagonist The best option is to reduce the opacity of the shapes and colors so that they remain in the background as an ornament.
Complete your CV
With all this in mind and already configured in your document manager, all that remains is to fill in. A much easier task than if you did not have the initial schematic. Basically it's completing the points you already have.
Start from hard to easy so the task isn't so hard. The most important thing is work experience. Here you will have to include the start and end dates, the company where you worked and the position you held. It doesn't hurt to develop your tasks with simple and short phrases Here everything is important, from managing resources to performing office tasks.
Afterwards it will cost you less to fill in the academic information. If you have the papers or titles at hand it will be easier to fill in dates. Indicate the date of completion of your college degree, your highest degree, or the most recent course title related to the job for which you are applying.
Easier it should be, and that's why you could leave it for last, your skills and aptitudes. Here you will only have to write, with simple phrases, those qualities that you are good at in a job. Don't fall for redundancies like “I work very well in a team” or “I work very well under pressure”.Express yourself naturally and directly. Do not beat around the bush and say what you want to say Of course, always focused on the company and job position for which you are applying.
When you want to realize it, all you have to do is fill in the personal information and give the last touches of style to your curriculum vitae.
Remember to look professional. Therefore it is better that you print on good quality paper the final result. And, if you are going to send it by mail or you are going to present it through LinkedIn or any other work platform, export it in PDF from Microsoft Word. Just select Save As… and choose the file type as PDF And don't forget to put a neutral file name like “David-G-Mateo- CV-2019”, for example.
