Should You Pay A Professional Resume Writer?
Im sure all of us have wondered if we should pay a professional resume writer at some point in our lives. For the most part I’d say no. Here’s why.
- Resume Wizard on Microsoft Word is so easy to use that it’s made it possible for everybody to create a professional looking resume.
- They can be expensive.
- As a hiring manager, you can usually spot a professionally prepared resume a mile away and I tend to wonder why the person didn’t just prepare it themselves.
- They are too high on fluff and too low on quality. Resume’s ought to be straight to the point.
- The writer won’t be able to capture your personal style and a resume ought to do that too, on some level.
I interviewed sombody recently who had a resume that had these cute little comments in left margin of the resume that were quotes about her that had been made by previous managers. It reminded me of captions on a picture. We all thought it was adorable when it came right down to it, we weren’t looking for adorable.
Don’t be intimidated by writing your own resume. Just open Microsoft Word and try the resume wizard. If you don’t know how to find that then click the “help” button on the top of the screen and type in “resume wizard” and follow the directions.
Good Luck!
Another reason a person should not use a professional resume writer is because the person doesn’t really know you or what you have accomplished. I read a resume written by a professional resume writer and all of the information including the accomplishments were embellishments. The “voice” in the resume didn’t sound like the person that was sitting in front of me. As a result, it created many questions for me and the person finally admitted that they had not written the resume and that the information in the resume was not really how things were in their previous job. My assessment was that the person was misrepresenting themselves to me and that is great way to be removed from the hiring process. I was coaching the individual. I told them to rewrite their resume and advised them not to use it as a tool in their job search. If I had been a hiring manager, I would have ended the interview and they would not be considered for the job.
If you want to use a professional resume writer, that is certainly an option for anyone looking for a job. Make sure you guide them as they write YOUR resume. Make sure the resume uses words you are comfortable using in the interview. Also, simple is always better than fluff. Tell them who you are, share accomplishments in your own words. And if you are using a resume writer, you shouldn’t be paying hundreds of dollars. You can get a great resume for under $30. That’s my two cents!
Darlene
Interview Guru
http://www.interviewchatter.com
WOW….I never thought I could agree with the reasoning and then actually disagree with the final answer at the same time. All of the reasons you listed are actual reasons that one SHOULD NOT use a professional resume writer. The one that always gets me is the third person, when they write in that frame and forget they should be writing as if the person was doing it themselves.
All that being said, I do believe that most resumes are horrible. They simply are lists of responsibilities with little for the hiring manager to take in, much less give them a reason to want to pick the phone up and speak to them. Resume writing has become so boring that today you cannot tell the difference between someone that took 2 minutes and 2 hours.
The recommendation for a template, frankly is a disaster. Coming from someone that views 100 resumes plus a day - I would rather saw my arm off than look at yet another paper in the pile. The interesting ones, or at least ones that do not follow the boring format of the mindless drone templates are normally brought forth from people that are skilled yet understand the need for impact. We are not talking something out of left field here, but at least asking to be read instead of begging for the trash can.
I have never used a professional resume writer but I have used some resume writing software just for some extra help and pointers.
One thing I do recommend is get someone else you trust to review your resume before sending it out.
Andrew
An interesting read. I have been writing resumes professionally for 2 years and I believe a lot of people benefit from a professionally written resume. The key is finding a good resume writer and working with your writer to create a document that you are 100% satisfied and comfortable with. When I write resumes I work with clients to make sure I understand their previous jobs and their career objectives. I spend anywhere between two and four hours creating a first draft and it is so much more than listing job duties.
~ Win
I agree with Jason and Win. As a Resume Analyst I would also rather saw my arm off than read another boring resume. Many professionals simply do not have the gift of presenting themselves well on paper. So many clients I have worked with come back with success stories of how their new resume helped them land THE job they had targeted. Competition is stiff with the economy as it is and job seekers need every advantage possible to help them stand out from the crowd and be noticed. After all, if your resume doesn’t even get you to the interview…what chance do you have?