50+ Resume Building Tips (Tricks and Writing Advice)

Reduce Your Resume to One Page

When considering these resume-building tips, the first thing to do is reduce it to one page. A single-page resume is a widely held preference for most recruiters and HR leaders. Back in the day, we used to think of a long resume as proof of professionalism, and that’s no longer true. You can still include all the bright moments of your career and many of the different jobs you progressed through. Just try not to elaborate too much, and remember to be concise. If you’re stretching to get your resume to one page, adjust your font to a minimum of 11 for the body, and a max of 14 font sizes for your name.

Below are quick resume writing tips that you should use to highlight relevant skills, your educational background with academic honors, and your work history to reduce a good resume to one page.

1. Only include relevant experiences to the job you are applying to
2. Cut repetitive bullets for different jobs
3. Leave out “references available upon request,” as employers will ask you when they want them
4. Make your name smaller, with max 14 font size
5. Get rid of your objective and skills section, especially if it’s taking up significant real estate
6. Leave out volunteer work if it takes you to two pages unless it’s very relevant to the job to which you’re applying
7. Leave out your high school unless you are in college looking for an internship or summer job
8. Put information about each position on one line
9. Format relevant leadership experience under work experience
10. Adjust your spacing but make sure everything is easy to scan
11. Put your contact information (city, professional email address, phone) on one line
12. Use a smaller font, minimum 11 font-size though
13. Don’t feel pressure to put three bullets but make sure they get your points across
14. Use bullet points with relevant information that makes you stand out
15. Only mention self-explanatory awards that are relevant
16. Leave off irrelevant experience
17. Submit it as a PDF unless otherwise specified
18. Save your resume as “Your Full Name Resume” and not something like “First Initial Last Name Resume Update 2022 March – The Newest”

Decide Whether or Not To Include Your Mailing Address

Should you put your full address on your resume? Yes, you should add some form of location identifier, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be your complete address. There are different opinions about adding a street address to your resume. Some people find it necessary to have your prospective employer aware of your exact location, while others disagree. The consensus seems to point towards adding some form of location identifiers, such as adding just your city or state, your metropolitan area, or that you work remotely.

Reasons to put your full address on your resume include some employers expect it. It makes your resume ATS (Applicant Tracking System) friendly, makes the hiring process shorter, matches time zone compatibility for remote positions, and puts you in consideration for other jobs.

The reasons against putting your full address on your resume include personal security issues, the risk of employer location bias, unintentional disqualification if an employer sets up a location boundary, an outdated look, and space used.

Utilize a Straightforward and Easy Scan Format

Your career timeline isn’t as important as what you learned along the way. When updating your resume, even on an entry-level resume, state the milestones of your professional journey chronologically, and explain how they added to your skillset.

Generally speaking, there are four types of resume formats. Recruiters spend only a few seconds on every resume that lands on their desk. It would help if you crafted yours so that the most vital pieces of information are front and center. The good idea is to choose the proper format for your resume to do this. In some cases, resume templates can help get you started.

1. Chronological
2. Functional
3. Combination
4. Targeted

Maximize the Use of Format Spacing, Margins, All-caps, and Bolded Font for Readability

Browse effective resume formats online for inspiration and choose a clearer and more concise outline than your outdated resume. The aesthetics should first please you, but it should also be straightforward to read without exuberance. Choose a theme that’ll fit the image of your industry and a potential employer.

Below are a few resume formatting tips that may help you stand out and improve your current version.

1. Set half-inch margins on the top and bottom and .7-inch margins on the sides
2. Pick an 11 or 12-point resume font and stick to it
3. Utilize times new roman font for the cleanest, least dramatic look
4. Create a proper resume header format for your contact details with your name in a larger font than your address and phone number
5. Divide your resume into distinct sections, for example, contact information, work experience, and education (add skills, awards, and summary if room otherwise remove)
6. Use relevant bullet points with action verbs to talk about your experience
7. Be consistent with your resume formatting and stick to the same date format, for example, 1–2023, or January 2023
8. Use single spacing for bullets but add white space as necessary for readability
9. Add an extra space before and after each section heading
10. Don’t use photos on your resume unless the job description specifically asks for them
11. Make sure the company, job title, and dates are in all caps, highlighted, or bolded so they stand out and are easy to scan

Remove the Fluff by Sifting Through Dated and Unnecessary Buzzwords

An average human nowadays has an attention span of a little less than a Goldfish. The short attention span suggests that a three-page resume would seem overwhelmingly long. A busy employer will quickly move on to a briefer document and may miss out on your excellent qualifications.

Let’s remove the following fluff or dated items from your resume.

1. An objective or skills section at the top of your resume
2. Weird or potentially polarizing interests
3. Third-person voice
4. An email address from your current employer or an outdated one from Yahoo or Hotmail
5. Unnecessarily big words
6. Tiny, unimportant jobs from 20 years ago
7. Lies

As you know, resume space is vital, and utilizing unnecessary words and verbose language can backfire. Here are more terms to never include on a resume.