As soon as you officially announce the beginning of your job search, there should be several things to take care of initially. Surely, the resume is one of those prime things. It doesn’t matter if you are going to write a brand-new resume or give the old one much of an update.
However, be aware that each job hunter dreams of having a winning, good-looking and accurate document that doesn’t look like anyone else’s.
So, from here people may have different thoughts about what to do next. Should you turn to Microsoft Word? Maybe try using a resume template? Or have the resume been ordered from professional writing services?
Some job seekers may think: that Microsoft Word is too complicated and uncreative, and ordering one is too expensive. Eventually, you end up with the option of using a professional resume template you can easily find online.
And maybe it’d be okay if only some of the online articles, written by professional career experts and experienced HR managers, claim to beware of resume templates, as they won’t help you stand out and impress the employer.
ResumeWritingLab.com Team has looked at the issue from a different angle and tried to find out whether such statements are 100% correct.
TheLadders about Perks of Using Templates
The article from the TheLadders website called “When to Use a Resume Template” takes an interesting turn towards the benefits of using a basic resume template described by Susan Ireland.
She states that a free resume template is more like a tool and even pro writers don’t start with a blank page and use their own template anyway.
Certainly, each resume should be personalized. So if you wonder what should we write in resume headlines to attract recruiters, you shouldn’t stick to templates 100%.
The Truth About Resume Templates
Often marketers are trying to tell people why they shouldn’t be using resume templates. To prove their statements Lisa quotes several career management experts, who also take the idea of using any job resume template very negatively. No doubt, they would criticize the cookie-cutter approach, saying HR managers “…can spot a cut-and-paste resume job a mile away”.
This is done to support the idea of relying solely on professional writers. Seems like you can’t judge experts for any of their arguments, as they’re never wrong. Or are they? Well, they truly are.
First of all, look attentively at which companies those experts represent and you’ll spot one interesting fact: most of them are representatives of career-coaching companies selling $1,000 resumes to people, who are truly convinced to stay away from templates.
Another way, they wouldn’t have that many clients. Besides, there has been a vague statement about one resume template vendor, agreeing on how poorly the design of a word resume template could be. Is the claim trustful enough? Not really!
Conclusion: the whole idea of “only lazy people use resume templates” and “those who used temples are being easily indicated by HR managers” is just an invention of career-oriented businesses and resume writing companies to do their self-marketing successfully.
But you too can turn to self-marketing as well! Just identify your strengths first and then professionally describe them.
Considering this fact, there’s nothing bad about using a template for a resume, provided it looks presentable and well-designed. It is also important to break the myth about how recruiters spot if you have the template or not.
Remember, they aren’t supposed to judge the design over the content. It’s more about finding the right and better simple resume template to help you with organizing the info in a very pleasant-looking manner. You have to become a better employee and then try to sell your skills.
Certainly, you can turn to professionals if you’re clearly sure of their expertise and knowledge. But make sure you’re doing it not because you’re simply afraid of using a template and ultimately having your resume thrown away by the HR manager. Look for better quality and make sure your resume reflects your qualities!
