The purpose of the resume is to take an aggressive approach in selling you and your area(s) of expertise to potential employers. It is mot meant to be a simple listing of basic skills and employment history. To be successful, you have to think of yourself as a product that you are selling to the reader. It may sound strange, but it is true. Today's job market is very competitive, and you have to set yourself apart from the many, many other resumes floating around out there. Keep reading this article and you will learn how to write a killer resume that will not only get you noticed, but just might land you the job of your dreams.

As stated above, today's job market is very competitive, so you must think of your resume from the reader's viewpoint. You must assume that he/she is viewing hundreds of resumes along with yours. Some may even be more qualified than you for this job. Therefore you have to show the reader why he/she should hire you. You have to be more aggressive in calling out your accomplishments - things that show what you bring to the table over all the other candidates.

Below are four areas you must emphasize very clearly in writing a killer resume:

1. Many people like to highlight their key career accomplishments at the top of the resume. Instead of simply highlighting them, this actually weakens them because it takes them out of a frame of reference for the reader. The reader does not know when, where or under what conditions you achieved them. It is best to keep them in the experience chronology where they can appear with the jobs they are associated. Many employers will probably skip them if you leave them at the top and go straight to the experience section anyways, so just put the important facts in the experience section.

2. The resume must adequately narrow the focus of your job search from the very beginning at the top of the first page. Your opening summary should immediately set in the mind of the reader the following information: target, experience level, and industry or area of expertise. It is here you must clearly state your area of focus.

3. The ideal job description briefly summarizes your duties in paragraph format. Many resumes try to use bullet points here, and that is a mistake. The purpose of bullets is to draw attention and they are usually best left for results and accomplishments. By using too many bullets, you lose the initial intent of pulling the readers eye to the content. A killer resume has job descriptions that start out strong and keep interest by highlighting key skills in a brief and powerful manner. Don't be vague, but do provide a a broad scope of your experiences.

4. A killer resume must be written in active voice, not passive. In an active voice, the subject acts, in a passive voice, the subject is acted upon. Examples of a passive voice are "responsibilities included", "responsible for". Active voice is natural, direct and emphatic.

Master these concepts and get noticed.

Make your resume stand out from all the others.

Learning how to write a killer resume is very important to landing the job of your dreams. But equally as important is a great cover letter. A great cover letter should complement a resume, not duplicate it. It's purpose is to interpret the resume and add your personal touch creating a critical first impression. Writing a good cover letter can seem like a daunting task. But there is an easy way to crank out professional cover letters in a matter of minutes.

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