Ok, so we are going to kill two myths with one stone here. First off, believe it or not, we at Dynamic Web Resume do still believe in having a paper resume. Your Web Resume and paper resume should work together. A paper resume is so traditional and is the current norm so you cannot 100% trade your old paper resume in for your shiny new Dynamic Web Resume.
The second myth has to do with the length of your paper resume. People always say keep it short and all on one page. I get resumes in everyday where people go down to 8 point font to try and fit everything into one page. Do you really want to make a potential employer squint their old eyes trying to read your resume?
The main reason why 1 page on a resume is the rule of thumb is because people usually put too much fluff on their resumes. Take a recent college graduate for example, they were in chess club, have volunteer activities, lifeguard certifications, and even CPR!!!! The list of fluff goes on and on. Yes, that inexperienced and unemployed person should keep it simple and down to one page. But, what about the young professional with about 5 years experience? Can they fit all their accomplishments and experience into one page of a resume… I hope not. After being in the workforce for 5 or so years I hope that you have built up enough responsibilities and experiences that you are spilling over to the second page.
When developing a two page resume I would separate the two pages out distinctly. One page should be dedicated to showing your education, personal characteristics, accomplishments, and all the warm fuzzy stuff that you think people want to see. (Again this is where you put some of the fluff… I can’t stop people from adding fluff to their resume so I am just starting to accept the fact that there is going to be some.)
The other page is going to be your power page. If you are a professional that is building your first two page resume then you most likely hold an authoritative position in a company where you may manage a couple people and are kicking ass. That is why you are pulling together a new resume because you want to move into a position with a TITLE. Your power page should show how much you are dominating at your current position.
Take a couple days and keep a journal of your day-to-day activities. If you really are dominating and lining yourself up to climb the latter then the content to put on your power page will be right there. If not… keep your resume to one page because you are not ready for two.
If you have any questions or comments please leave them below or contact us at [email protected].
Written by Donny Grover