0:03 You've applied to hundreds of jobs. You
0:05 tweak your resume, rewrite the bullet
0:07 points, fix the format, but still
0:09 nothing. And at some point, you stop
0:11 thinking about the resume, and you start
0:14 wondering if you're the problem. The
0:15 real reason you're getting ghosted is
0:17 because of mistakes almost everybody
0:20 makes. And no one tells you about it.
0:22 So, in this video, I'll show you secrets
0:24 about what's really getting your resume
0:27 rejected before it even gets read. And
0:29 after reading thousands of resumes in my
0:31 career and sitting in hiring meetings, I
0:33 can tell you this is what will actually
0:36 get you interviews. Secret number one,
0:39 managers hire safe pairs of hands. You
0:41 probably assume hiring managers want the
0:42 smartest, most qualified candidate with
0:45 the most accomplished resume, but they
0:48 don't. They just want someone who feels
0:50 safe, someone who can step in and solve
0:53 problems without creating more. Because
0:55 most managers are already drowning in
0:57 work. They're behind on deadlines,
0:59 stressed about their own deliverables,
1:01 and now on top of that, they have to
1:03 hire, too. They're looking for the
1:05 person who they know won't make things
1:09 worse, who will make their job easier.
1:13 That means your resume has one job. Make
1:17 yourself look like a safe pair of hands.
1:19 But most résumés do the opposite.
1:20 They're vague or they're just filled
1:22 with buzzwords or keywords. and they
1:25 read like a list of random tasks with no
1:28 outcomes. And when a resume feels even a
1:30 little risky, it gets rejected. Not
1:32 because you aren't qualified, but
1:35 because of how you presented yourself.
1:37 So, here's the fix. Every bullet on your
1:39 resume should make you look like someone
1:41 who's already done the job. You want to
1:44 show recent, relevant, clear results.
1:46 Things that communicate, "I've done this
1:48 before and I can do it again." Here are
1:50 the examples of bullet points. Here's a
1:52 bad one. handled various operational
1:55 duties over five years. What does that
1:59 even mean? That's vague. That's risky.
2:01 Here's a better bullet point. Cut
2:05 operating costs by 15% Q2 2024 by
2:07 streamlining vendor contracts, then
2:09 providing some details about the vendor
2:12 or the contracts. Now, I know what you
2:14 did, the impact you had, and that you
2:17 can probably do it for me. If your
2:19 resume makes you look like a safe pair
2:21 of hands, you're already ahead of most
2:23 candidates. But even if you're safe, the
2:25 language you're using is making you look
2:27 junior. And that's the next mistake.
2:30 Secret number two, explain risk on the
2:32 page, not in the interview. Let me tell
2:35 you what recruiters never do. They never
2:38 stop to investigate a vague resume.
2:40 Before you complain, "Well, recruiters
2:42 are lazy." They're not. Imagine you have
2:45 to get through 200 rs in a day and on
2:46 top of that all the calls and all the
2:49 meetings you have. They're not lazy,
2:51 they're short on time. So, if something
2:53 in your resume is vague or raises
2:56 questions like a gap, a pivot, a short
2:58 stint, or a weird transition and you
2:59 don't explain it, we're going to make up
3:01 our own story. Most people think that
3:04 being vague makes them look safer. Like,
3:05 if I don't mention it, they won't
3:07 notice. But in recruiting, silence
3:09 equals risk. Because when a resume is
3:12 unclear, it's going to slow me down. And
3:14 when I'm screening this many, I don't
3:16 have time for confusion. So, here's the
3:18 shift. Your resume should briefly
3:21 explain the risky stuff upfront. If you
3:23 took time off to care for a parent, say
3:25 so in the summary. If you left a job
3:28 after 3 months, give a oneline reason in
3:30 your work experience. You don't need to
3:31 overshare. You just need to make
3:33 recruiters understand what happened.
3:35 Here's a bad example. Operations
3:39 Manager, March 2022 to May 2022. No
3:41 context, no explanation. Here's a better
3:44 bullet point. Operations Manager, March
3:47 2022 to May 2022. Position impacted by
3:50 departmental reorganization seeking a
3:52 role with long-term growth. Now I
3:55 understand. Now you feel safe. And if
3:58 you have a gap, like a career break,
4:01 January 2023 to June 2023, family
4:03 caregiving responsibilities now
4:06 available full-time, that's simple,
4:08 clear, with no mystery. If you don't
4:10 explain your story, someone else will
4:12 and they'll get it wrong. But even when
4:14 your story is clear, the language you
4:16 use to tell it still matters. That's
4:18 what we'll get into next. Secret number
4:21 three, transferable skills are useless
4:23 without translation.
4:25 You know you can do the job. You've got
4:28 the skills, the experience, the results.
4:30 But if you're applying outside of your
4:31 current industry or you're shifting
4:33 roles, here's the problem. Recruiters
4:36 don't read your resume to decode your
4:38 potential. They read it to look for
4:40 signals that they already recognize. So
4:43 even if your experience technically fits
4:45 and you're not using the right language,
4:47 you won't get considered. So here's the
4:49 fix. Every bullet needs to translate
4:53 your past experience into their business
4:55 priorities. That means scanning the job
4:58 description and mirroring their verbiage
5:00 so you sound like someone who's already
5:02 in their world and in that role. So,
5:04 here's some examples. Here's a bad one.
5:07 Led weekly ops syncs to resolve
5:09 escalations between regional managers.
5:12 This sounds really internal. It's very
5:14 jargony and has no context. Here's a
5:16 better one. Resolve high priority
5:18 operational issues across 12 markets,
5:21 reducing delay time by 30% and improving
5:24 team delivery scores by 12%. Now you
5:25 sound like someone who drives outcomes,
5:28 not someone stuck in internal meetings.
5:29 If the right person reads the wrong
5:32 words, it doesn't matter how good you
5:34 are. And even if you do use the right
5:37 language, your resume might still look
5:39 interchangeable. That's the next
5:41 mistake. If you're enjoying this video,
5:42 go ahead and give it a like. And if you
5:44 want to learn more recruiter secrets, go
5:46 ahead and click subscribe. Secret number
5:49 four, the words you use define how
5:51 senior you look. When recruiters skim
5:53 your resume, and we do skim, the first
5:56 thing we see are the job titles and the
5:58 first word of every bullet. And that
6:00 first word tells us a lot about how
6:02 senior you are. If your bullets start
6:05 with help, supported, or worked on,
6:06 you're signaling that you weren't
6:09 leading. Even if you were qualified,
6:11 even if you are running the show, that
6:12 language makes you sound like a
6:15 passenger. So, here's the fix. Lead with
6:18 verbs that show ownership, like led,
6:21 spearheaded, drove, launched, or owned.
6:24 These words don't just change the tone,
6:26 they change how we perceive your entire
6:28 career level. Here are some examples.
6:31 Here's a bad one. Worked on a migration
6:33 project for internal tools. Tools for
6:36 what? What do those tools even do? I
6:38 have no context. I don't know what you
6:40 did, what happened, or what was the
6:42 point. Here's a better one. Led
6:44 migration of internal tools to cloud
6:47 cutting infrastructure costs by 25%. Now
6:49 I know what you did and what you
6:51 delivered. Now an even better example
6:53 was if you would provide additional
6:55 context around the point of the project
6:58 and who it helped. The verbs you use are
7:00 shaping your perceived seniority. Fix
7:02 that and your resume immediately feels
7:04 stronger. But even with strong verbs
7:05 that show ownership, if you only
7:08 demonstrate one type of value, you're
7:10 still missing something. And that's what
7:12 we'll cover next. Secret number five,
7:14 your resume isn't a life story. It's a
7:16 signal. You scroll through your resume
7:18 and it's job after job, bullet after
7:21 bullet going back 10, 15, maybe even 25
7:24 years. It looks complete. It shows
7:25 everything you've done and what you're
7:28 proud of and you should be proud of. But
7:30 here's the truth. Recruiters don't need
7:32 to know your life's story. We're
7:34 scanning for signals that you can solve
7:36 our hiring managers problems that
7:38 they're having today. So, when your
7:40 resume gives equal weight to a job from
7:44 2023 and one from 2004, it all starts to
7:47 blur. Most people think that showing
7:49 everything makes them look experienced,
7:51 but all it really does is bury what's
7:54 most relevant for the job. So, here's
7:56 the shift. Your resume should really
7:58 highlight the last 5 to seven years.
8:01 That's your proving ground. That's where
8:03 your story needs to be sharp. So, cut
8:05 down your older work experience to maybe
8:07 two to three relevant bullet points.
8:09 Again, only if it reinforces what you're
8:11 doing now and that applies to the job.
8:13 Your resume isn't a timeline. It's a
8:15 signal. And if there's too much noise,
8:17 the right signals don't get through.
8:19 Now, even when your signals are clear
8:22 and recent, they need to show range. Let
8:25 me explain. Secret number six, résumés
8:28 need more than one kind of strength. You
8:30 might have the skills, the results, the
8:32 leadership, but if your resume only
8:34 shows one type of strength, you don't
8:37 look complete. And that's the trap
8:39 because you're missing something because
8:40 you're only showing one side of
8:42 yourself. If your resume leans too
8:44 technical, you look like a builder
8:46 without direction. Too strategic and you
8:48 sound like fluff. We wonder if you can
8:51 actually roll up your sleeves and get
8:53 the job done. The best résumés balance
8:54 these three things: technical
8:56 credibility, business impact, and
8:59 leadership. This applies to all jobs.
9:01 Here's a bad example. Senior engineer
9:03 developed an internal reporting tool in
9:05 Python. I don't know what your focus,
9:07 your value, or your outcome was. Here's
9:10 a better one. Senior engineer built $200
9:12 million product line by translating
9:14 research into scalable platforms.
9:16 Developed Python based tool used by 900
9:18 plus engineers, saving $2 million
9:22 annually. That's range, clarity, and
9:24 impact on one line. When you pair
9:27 clarity with substance, that's when you
9:29 get interviews. You just turned your
9:30 resume into something that actually
9:32 shows that you can deliver. Now, the
9:35 next battle isn't on paper, it's in the
9:36 interview. And in this video, I'll show
9:39 you the eight unspoken recruiter signals
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