Your Résumé Should Be One Page Long, And No More
My Unhappy Clients
Nine out of ten clients I serve are happy with my work. But one in ten hates the one-page résumé. To them, it does not have enough detail.
They are usually wrong. In this piece, I will explain why.
Let's think about the purposes of a résumé.
The Ins and Outs of Résumés
What they're for:
- Grabbing attention
- Informing efficiently
- Making a good impression
- Getting you an interview
What they're not for:
- Telling your life story
- Reminiscing about old jobs
- Showing off your creative side
- Proving your sophistication
- Boring people out of their minds
How this works
People are busy. Employers are busy. They get lots of résumés. You won't woo anyone with creativity, big words, or oodles of text. If you think that's how it works, good luck. In that case, I am probably not the right partner for you. I’m not here to help people shoot themselves in the foot!
The résumé opens doors. That's all. More information rarely helps.
What helps?
Make it easy to read. Give them a reason to like you. Give them a reason to want to meet you.
Use a format employers know. They'll find what they need fast. Fancy layouts, fonts, and colors just get in the way. That's why I use the same clean format every time.
Grab their attention with a good summary at the top. Show some personality there.
Keep the rest short and clear. Hit the important points fast. A few good bullet points beat a wall of text.
Make it easy to read. Respect their time. This shows you're efficient and considerate.
Employers want capable people. I focus on my clients' achievements. Real ones. Numbers help. Two or three impressive things you've done will get you an interview.
No amount of words will do better than that.
Want A Sample?
And there you have it. That's why résumés shouldn't be more than one page long. No matter how experienced you are. I can do a glowing one-pager for Bill Gates, Christine Lagarde, or Jack Ma. I can do it for you, too.
Will I always refuse to do more than one page? No. Some rare exceptions apply. Unless such an exception applies to you, I may argue with you about it. But in the end, you're the client. You decide.
If you want to see samples of my work, go to my 👉home page, scroll to the bottom, and sign up for my free résumé checklist. It comes with a couple of sample résumés.
What do you think? Are you convinced?
Got comments or questions? This post is also available on my LinkedIn feed. Please drop me a note there!