Many people think that having one Resume to send in response to many different job advertisements should do the trick to the job application process. After all, the common belief is that the potential employer has asked for a document and you are responding in due by sending it through to them. ‘How much more does a potential employer expect?’
But what if I told you that you had a big chance at applying for 10 different jobs and having return phone calls from every one of those 10 different jobs? Do you believe that could be possible? What if I told you that there is every way possible and available to increase your chances of getting more responses from potential employers?
It all comes down to that hardy document that you are sending to a plethora of employers. Think of it as a blessing that your Resume is not like a Birth Certificate that is set in stone and cannot be altered. Rather, our Resume is more like a snapshot of our career and experience at any point in time – and it is customisable to every job that you apply for.
‘But that is so much work and I am BUSY!’ I hear you say. Unfortunately, life was never meant to be easy and I am here to tell you that, indeed, true and correct job-searching is a full-time job in itself. Don’t underestimate the power of a few minutes in your day to tweaking a well-written job application.
If you’d like a bigger chance at your next new role, here are some tips to writing your job application more effectively. Let’s get writing a job application that flows beautifully and cohesively, winning the hearts of many more potential employers!
Step 1: Notice the order in which the skills are listed in the Job Advertisement
Have a good read of the Job Advertisement and take notice of the order in which the potential employer has written the required skills for the job. It might be that they have listed the following:
- Qualifications
- Negotiation skills
- Interpersonal skills
Step 2: Tweak the Skills section in your Resume to match the same order
Get to editing and re-arranging the dot points under the Skills section in your Resume to suit that particular Job Advertisement. You will want to re-arrange your dot points to list your skills as follows:
- Qualifications
- Negotiation skills
- Interpersonal skills
Step 3: Begin to write your Cover Letter to match the same order
After you have written your introduction you need to address the points made in the Job Advertisement. You can address the Job Advertisement in the same order:
- Qualifications (paragraph 1)
- Negotiation skills (paragraph 2)
- Interpersonal skills (paragraph 3)
Are you starting to see the picture?
Effectively, the potential employer is looking for these attributes in that order. So go ahead and give it to them in that order.
This way, you will have a very easy-to-read job application that helps the potential employer tick all the right boxes for you.
Remember that the potential employer has only a few seconds to flip or scroll through your documents! You can have the most skillful Resume yet, but if it is not written in a way that is easy to the eye, and easy to the mind, it will go severely unnoticed.
Commit to yourself and your dreams and your goals. Do yourself a favour and take the time out of your busy schedule to spend just a little of your day tweaking each job application to suit each potential employer. Making it easier for them will make it easier for you!
Never underestimate the power of a well-written job application!
Lucid Resumes 