If there's one common thread of knowledge out there regarding résumés, it's that action verbs are necessary to get the interviewer interested. However, not everyone knows how to use these verbs to enhance their résumés, and countless candidates don't use them to the best of their advantage.
Run through your résumé and look for sentences that begin with the phrase "responsible for," like "responsible for maintaining accurate financial records," and consider revising these bullet points. The verb maintain is included, but it isn't being used in an effective way. Instead, the point of your responsibilities will pack a bigger punch when you start the sentence with a verb and write "maintain(ed) accurate financial records." Don't stop there — when you add how your records maintenance was flawless or how your detail-oriented self caught several mistakes, you will have officially taken your candidacy up a notch.
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Good points! Looks like I'm going to have to dust off my resume and fix those before I forget (and hopefully long before I need to)!
1This is helpful!!!
2My college provided me with a worksheet of over 100 action verbs, and man has that been helpful!! Especially when you are writing a bullet for the first time, I just look at that worksheet and something comes to me!
3"Maintained" is an action word. "Responsible" is not.
Just do a google search for "resume action words"
4i think that you can also pull up a lot of examples of what's right to use online from templates. i'm in the process of updating my resume, and i've actually been working with a recruiter that's helping me redesign my resume. i thought that i'd always been ok with what i had since i've had success in the past, but i guess there are things that i needed to work on to make it stand out more. using action words just for the sake of using them isn't going to get you noticed any more- it's making sure to use them int he right way to highlight your abilities/skills and strengths
5Thanks Savvy, great tips. I am updating my resume. It's just always good to have one updated, people may ask.
6So funny, I was just reading up on this online.
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