VerbLand - Resume Action Words and More Resume Writing Tips

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VerbLand

Résumé Action Words and More Résumé Writing Tips

Templates look like templates. Don't use templates or automated do-it-yourself services. Your résumé is too important. These free or cheap tools and/or services are no replacement for time and thought.

If you don't have it already, buy and read The Elements of Style by Strunk and White (only 105 pages and around eight bucks) before you write. Really.

Use a dictionary (or use OneLook.com).

Don't make stuff up.

Exclude the word "I." Start every (brief!) sentence with a verb.

Exclude the words/phrases "which," "that," "there," "was," "is," "were," and "responsible for."

Exclude bullets. Use 3-6 (brief!) sentences in a paragraph as your sales blurb for each relevant position.

Exclude "References available on request." (Employers know this already.)

Exclude hobbies, interests, age, marital status, health status, attempts at humor-- all are inappropriate.

Exclude your work phone number. You do not want to be seen as someone who uses (and will use) an employer's time and resources to find another job (exception: if you've been laid off, but your employer has been good enough to provide a temporary desk/phone/fax specifically for you to use for your search).

Use reverse-chronological (newest to oldest) format. Most employers prefer it.

Spellcheck is not an editor: "form" vs. "from" escapes spell-check, as does "their" vs. "there" vs. "they're," among many other such examples.

Read your document slowly backwards to catch typos. This will slow your reading and allow you to focus on each word.

Have your document reviewed by at least two other people who hire people and whose writing skills and candor you respect.

Remember to use present tense for current position and past tense for all previous positions.

Do not post your résumé on the web unless you are completely comfortable with 1) your co-workers and employers seeing it, 2) headhunters using it, and 3) any format or content errors being sent everywhere.

Want to write your own résumé? Learn more about my new book, The Elements of Résumé Style: Essential Rules and Eye-Opening Advice for Writing Résumés and Cover Letters That Work, available now online and in bookstores everywhere from American Management Association's AMACOM Books. Ask for it!

Now, live from VerbLand, the stars of the show (some of the action words that appear in the book):

Accelerate
Access
Accomplish
Achieve
Acquaint
Acquire
Act
Activate
Adapt
Add
Address
Adjust
Administer
Advance
Advertise
Advise
Aid
Allocate
Alter
Amend
Analyze
Answer
Anticipate
Apply
Appoint
Appraise
Apprise
Approve
Arbitrate
Arrange
Ask
Assemble
Assess
Assign
Assist
Attain
Attend
Attract
Audit
Augment
Author
Authorize
Automate
Avert
Award
Balance
Boost
Brief
Bring
Broaden
Budget
Build
Calculate
Calm
Canvass
Capture
Catalogue
Categorize
Cater
Centralize
Chair
Challenge
Change
Chart
Choreograph
Clarify
Classify
Coach
Collaborate
Collect
Combine
Comfort
Communicate
Compare
Compete
Compile
Complete
Compose
Compound
Compute
Conceive
Conceptualize
Condense
Conduct
Conserve
Consider
Consolidate
Construct
Consult
Contact
Contract
Contribute
Control
Convert
Convey
Convince
Cooperate
Coordinate
Copy
Correct
Correlate
Correspond
Counsel
Craft
Create
Criticize
Critique
Cultivate
Customize
Cut
Debate
Debug
Decrease
Deduce
Define
Defuse
Delegate
Delight
Deliver
Demonstrate
Depreciate
Describe
Design
Designate
Detail
Detect
Determine
Develop
Devise
Devote
Diagnose
Diagram
Direct
Discipline
Disclose
Discover
Dispatch
Dispense
Disprove
Disseminate
Dissuade
Distribute
Diversify
Document
Double
Draft
Draw
Drive
Earn
Edit
Educate
Effect
Elaborate
Elect
Elevate
Elicit
Eliminate
Emphasize
Employ
Enable
Encourage
Endorse
Enforce
Engineer
Enhance
Enlist
Enrich
Ensure
Establish
Evaluate
Examine
Exceed
Excel
Excite
Execute
Exhibit
Expand
Expedite
Experiment
Explain
Exploit
Explore
Extend
Extract
Extrapolate
Fabricate
Facilitate
Familiarize
Fashion
Finalize
Finance
Find
Focus
Follow
Forecast
Form
Formalize
Formulate
Foster
Found
Frame
Fulfill
Gain
Gather
Generate
Govern
Grow
Guard
Guide
Handle
Harness
Help
Highlight
Hire
Identify
Illustrate
Imagine
Implement
Improve
Improvise
Incorporate
Increase
Infer
Influence
Inform
Initiate
Innovate
Inspect
Inspire
Install
Instill
Institute
Instruct
Integrate
Interest
Interpret
Interview
Introduce
Invent
Investigate
Issue
Join
Judge
Justify
Launch
Lead
Lecture
Leverage
License
Lighten
Link
Liquidate
Listen
Lobby
Log
Maintain
Manage
Market
Master
Maximize
Mediate
Mentor
Merge
Minimize
Mobilize
Model
Moderate
Modernize
Modify
Monitor
Motivate
Name
Narrate
Navigate
Negotiate
Nurture
Observe
Obtain
Offset
Open
Operate
Orchestrate
Order
Organize
Orient
Originate
Oversee
Participate
Perform
Persuade
Pinpoint
Pioneer
Plan
Practice
Praise
Predict
Prepare
Prescribe
Present
Preserve
Preside
Prevail
Prevent
Prioritize
Probe
Process
Procure
Produce
Program
Project
Promote
Propose
Protect
Prove
Provide
Provoke
Publicize
Publish
Purchase
Quadruple
Quantify
Raise
Realize
Receive
Recognize
Recommend
Reconcile
Record
Recruit
Redesign
Reduce
Reengineer
Refer
Refine
Register
Regulate
Rehabilitate
Remodel
Render
Reorganize
Repair
Replace
Report
Represent
Request
Research
Resolve
Respond
Restore
Restructure
Retrieve
Revamp
Reverse
Review
Revise
Revitalize
Revolutionize
Reward
Route
Save
Schedule
Screen
Search
Secure
Segment
Select
Sell
Serve
Service
Settle
Shape
Shop
Simplify
Solicit
Solve
Spark
Speak
Specify
Sponsor
Stabilize
Staff
Stage
Start
Stimulate
Streamline
Strengthen
Stretch
Structure
Study
Submit
Succeed
Summarize
Supersede
Supervise
Supplement
Supply
Support
Surpass
Survey
Synthesize
Systematize
Tailor
Target
Teach
Tend
Terminate
Test
Thank
Thrive
Trace
Track
Trade
Train
Transact
Transfer
Translate
Treat
Trim
Triple
Troubleshoot
Turn
Tutor
Uncover
Unify
Unravel
Update
Upgrade
Use
Validate
Verify
View
Volunteer
Widen
Win
Withdraw
Write

Do you know of other useful-for-a-résumé verbs not on this list?
If so, please share them with me by e-mail so I can improve this list. Thank you.

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