That Mirror Person
If you are like me you grew up listening to the truths about the reflection in the mirror that greets you each morning. That person is your worst enemy, the hardest to change and the biggest obstacle between you and success. May I be so bold to add to the age old tale by including that your reflection is also the most difficult to consider objectively and market to the business world.

If I Had A Nickel
I have written resumes for about eight years for many professionals with varying backgrounds seeking career changes, recovering from layoffs or reentering the workforce. So many have sat across from me with skills leaking out of their pores and falling all over the floor, yet, they were stuck on how to assemble those skills in a resume. I learned quickly that it really is difficult to write about oneself for one reason or another. It is my hope that the following information will help you rethink your skill set and open your mind to write a resume showcasing those skills in a very bright, refreshing light.

What is Common
Consider your day. Think about chasing kids, answering phones, dealing with frustrated employees, impatient clients and all the rest. Stop. Ask yourself this, Who benefits from what I do? Some answers could be my family, my company, my employee's families or the economy. I realize claiming to hold up the economy is a tall order but lets go with it for now. Now ask, How do they benefit? Well, the house stays in order, children are cared for, customers are connected with management in an instant, the front desk is an organized haven of delight, employees are listened to and calmed and frankly they stay at a position that values them and the circle of business product exchange is unbroken. All from answering a phone? you ask. Yes! Look at the BIG picture of your world. Many times we think of what we do as common and uninteresting. But picture inviting Sally Sue the neighbor lady to do your job for a day, not going to happen. Surprise, you really do know what you are doing! Try to think of routine as time saving, second nature as highly experienced and tedious work that bores you to tears as being well trained and detailed.

The Blank Screen
I hope your confidence is built up now and you are ready to type or write about the positive asset you will surely be to your target company. Ready, set, GO! Whoops. The screen is still blank. Where should you start? Organization is key at this point otherwise my fear is a mess of bullets and run on sentences. My advice is to begin with your employment history. List your employers from most recent backwards. List your position with that company, their location and dates of employment. Begin one at a time and list all the wonderful things you did there. Maybe you reorganized the stock room, brought on five new clients or processed paperwork dating back to 1974. Great now list how that was a benefit to that company. Well, an organized stock room increases efficiency, five new customers may have increased revenue by 12% and all that paperwork you processed cleared half out stacks boxes and eventually uncovered Jim in accounting who had been missing since 1984. Sorry, sometimes I get carried away, the paperwork brought books up to date, enabling an accurate accounting history and projection not to mention cleared rows of boxes allowing new office space.

You're So On
Now take this new perspective and rethink what you do and how it benefits others. This new outlook can be applied to volunteer positions as well. Your impact on any organization can be summarized into transferable skills that are considered an asset to a paying position. There are many other important aspects to a resume but I consider this as one of the largest hurdles for individuals to overcome.

Barb Witt has been a resume writer for eight years and assisted many as they seek to attain career goals by producing marketing packages that stand out. For more information on resume strategies and writing you can visit www.admin-concepts.com There you will find samples and tips to further assist you.