I recently worked with a client who wanted to change careers. and had a good idea of a new field she wanted to try. I asked her to bring whatever resumes she had to our meeting. It turned out that just before our appointment she had revamped her resume to fit the new field of interest.

It soon became clear that the Resume brought to our session was not a good match for it. So we had to start again. This frustrated the client who had invested hours redrafting the resume. We worked together to develop a strategic overview of what was needed to bring out expertise and experience that was a fit for the new job title she was aiming for. We roughly summarised what was needed in the new headings structure and dot points. I encouraged the client to email me a final version for my quick review prior to posting.

From this client experience, here are some tips to save you wasted resume writing time and to get attention of employers.

· If you are seeking expert help in the job hunt and needing a new resume for a specific role, avoid spending too much time before your appointment drafting up what you think might work. Seek out the advice of a career professional first. Bring all your old resumes and portfolio material along.

· Resumes simply serve as a passport to an interview. Your main aim is to get that interview with a good job-fit resume.

· It can take hours to develop a compelling resume that fits middle to senior roles. Don't underestimate the time it takes for a resume targeting a well-paid position.

· There are often several components to a job application. The cover letter, which must be crafted to sell you in a short few paragraphs, your document addressing the selection criteria [which requires a lot of thinking], and often the resume, which must fit the role.

· By all means search the Internet for resume advice. There is an ocean of it. However you need to tailor your job application and resume to the job you are after, not the job you did last.

· Expect to have a box or computer file full of resumes and selection criteria from different applications as you go through your career.

· Remember a CV is really a repository for all your achievements and you draw from this store chest to create specific resumes.

· Make sure you always have a good resume that fits your current role. Always have a latest resume on hand. Even if you go on holidays, pop your key resume material on a jpeg or file. You never know when you can take advantage of it in your work.

· Make sure you regularly update your resume with achievements, new skills and courses completed. Keep it fresh. Keep a work diary and use this as a record of your projects and achievements and as source material for your evolving resume.

· If we are in the workplace or looking for work we all need an evolving resume with current activities. So keep learning new skills, undertaking new courses and working on challenging assignments.

Career Day