Your number one priority when writing a CV and a covering letter is to imagine what the reader wants to know and hear. And what the recruiter wants to hear is about you. They are not looking for gimmicks and chattiness, they're looking for clarity. That means not listing everything in overwhelming detail but expressing the essence of your themes. It's fine to leave recruiters with further questions to ask at interview, so don't kill the CV stone dead by doing too much. Buzzwords, used in moderation, are useful signposts that help the reader recognise the complex picture you are painting. But avoid yesterday's buzzwords like proactive and business process re-engineering. Grammar can have a stunning effect on readers if it is done properly. But throw away the Word grammar checker. CVs don't follow proper English grammar. There are no sentences and no paragraphs, or there shouldn't be. The CV has its own conventions, based on creating impact and saving space, based on making a few words do a great deal of work. Aim to concentrate what you say and then further edit it down to the absolute minimum. Brevity is the soul of wit - it makes you look intelligent. There are no rules in writing a CV (though cover letters are grammatical and follow fairly precise rules). Start by realising that you are freed from convention. The document you are creating has a series of goals and a number of inputs. Think about your role as an author and have questions like these in the back of your mind, the kind of questions I use myself when writing a CV for someone professionally: The Applicant Side Of Things - How did you approach your role? - What scenario did you encounter and what did you do about it? - How were your methods superior to other ways of handling things? - What legacy did you leave behind when you left that job? - What more did you go on to achieve in the next job? The Recruiter Perspective Your job applications live in a context that goes beyond what you want, what you have done and what you are good at. This is the marketing side of the task and these are the kind of questions to be asking.
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