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Chapter 12 ➤ The Big Winner: An Achievement Resume

Professional Titles Count

Thomas Redding cleverly highlighted his professional roles
throughout his achievement resume by doing the following:

➤ He put “P.E.” next to his name in the Heading to show that
he’s a certified civil engineer.
Job-Hunt Hint
➤ He stated his professional title immediately below his heading.
➤ He stated his professional title immediately below his heading. Think of your resume as a
brochure of the type of work
➤ He highlighted his professional roles at the beginning of each
you want to do next. What hats
achievement statement in the body of his resume.
would you like to wear on that
➤ He listed his former job titles in his Work History, all of which job? Make those hats stand out
support his job objective. on your resume by using bold,
uppercase letters, bullet points,
One can’t help but identify Thomas’s expertise in civil engineering and white space. Chapter 11,
from the highlighted titles that pop out all through his resume. “Step Six: The Big Production,”
has more information on resume
production.
Be a Celebrity
You may not be a celebrity in your field (yet), but you can some-
times make a darn good impression by listing industry celebrities
that you know. In the following resume, Marlon James promi-
nently mentioned some well-known folks he worked for as a body-
guard. “You mean Forrest Gump and Jerry McGuire?” you ask in
disbelief. Okay, for security reasons, I had to make this resume
anonymous by taking out the famous names and inserting ficti-
tious characters.
Job-Hunt Hint
List a well-known person (or short list of them) on your resume if
My unofficial survey shows that
doing so enhances your perceived worth. In other words, your list
should tell employers at least one of the following: when given two lists side-by-side
to read, most people will read
➤ You have a Rolodex of contacts that will be valuable on your
down the list on the left, and
next job.
then down the list on the right.
➤ You’ve carried a high level of responsibility and therefore can For that reason, I recommend
do the same for your future employer. prioritizing your lists vertically
➤ You understand the protocol required to operate at high levels instead of horizontally.
in your field.

By “well-known person” I mean anyone who is either world famous,
recognized in the employer’s field, or an associate of the employer to whom you are applying.

Number One in Sales

The achievement resume is often an excellent format for the sales professional. With four or
five dashing accomplishment statements, the salesperson can sweep an employer off her
feet and close the deal. I’ve seen many sales professionals win an interview in record time
using an achievement resume. Take a look at Wendy Fowler’s resume to see how effectively
it sold her.

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