This Domain For Sale. Contact us for more information.

Create A Rappin' Resume

(Percussion sounds emanating from who knows where while you listen to the cadence of the words below.)

It's time to sell yourself.

May the words light up the way.

It's now your chance to shine,

And it's soon gonna be your day.

So make sure you show them

All the many things you can do.

It's now your chance to shine.

With a resume just for you.

No, no, no! Wait a minute! This isn't the kind of "RAP" that you should use for your resume. Although, there would be some shock value, and the person doing the paper screening would surely get a laugh and not likely forget your name. The WRAP to which I am referring is W, written wisely and well; R, review, rewrite, re-read; A, analysis and awareness; and P, proofread and proofread again.

The WRAP approach needs to envelope all that you are and all that you can be, as it specifically relates to the position which you are seeking. In other words, you have to sell yourself, and don't sell yourself short. Think of it as wrapping yourself up in a package that someone is going to open to find a pleasant surprise. Think of yourself as the one person who can best fill the position and the one person who can demonstrate that fact to the decision makers. Getting through the paper screening process, and making sure your resume stands out, is the first step in securing the job you are after.

Here is a systematic approach (WRAP) you can use as you fashion a resume that genuinely and professionally reflects your Ability, Potential, Talent, Independence, Tenacity, Understanding, Determination and Exuberance. In other words, your APTITUDE.

W - Writing your resume may be one of the most difficult and crucial chores that you can ever do for yourself. It calls for you to bring forth all of your "word-smithing talents" and apply all that you have ever learned about professional and quality written communication. Making the decision about what to include and how to word it and display it, should not be done without carefully considering each phrase and word choice and its impact on the overall document. Post It Notes (which have surpassed the use of 3x5 cards) can be used to organize each of your thoughts or phases and can be put into an orderly sequence that describes your attributes to those who read that one or two page document.

In writing your resume you need to ask yourself a few questions, as a checklist of what you should consider. Did you do your homework? Did you find out all about your prospective employer or company? Did you choose a format (chronological, functional, targeted, etc.) that best packages your aptitude? Did you include your contact information at the top of your resume? Did you include the major categories of Education, Work Experiences, Other and References? With that done, start typing from your post it notes and get those words down on the page. Yes, you will change it many times before you are finished. This is all a part of the WRAP process that leads to the next logical step of your packaging.


R - Review, rewrite, and re-read are the three R's in the "Review Your Resume" step. Did you use action verbs, and were you consistent in the voice used throughout the document? Did you use a bullet format or other easy to read style that leads the decision maker through "your story"? Did you use a thesaurus and choose each word wisely so that key words were not overused? Did you look at it from the reviewer's perspective? Would you be impressed by this document if someone sent it to you and you were the decision maker? Getting the initial information written out in the previous step is not nearly as difficult or demanding as this self-reflective step. Take your time with this.

A - Analysis and awareness of the completed product is the next area to be tackled. A basic checklist for this step includes: choose an off white, high quality paper; use a font size of 10, 11, or 12; choose a professional looking style font such as Arial or Times Roman; leave out graphics, underlines, and italics; and use spacing that is appropriate and pleasing to the eye. This is the step where you want to scrutinize the overall look of the document, asking yourself if it could be improved in any way. Never, ever, ever have any kinds of smudges, folds, corrections or other visible elements that detract from your resume. What would that say about you? Just remember neat, neat, neat.

P - The final step of proofing and proofing again cannot be over done. One of the most difficult things to do is find your own errors. You just don't sea them. (See what I mean.) This is where you need to get others involved. Show the final product to your spouse, significant other, trusted colleague, or your best friend. Pick any two. Ask them to be brutally honest. That is the only way you will go away with a document that is as near perfect as you can get.

Writing about yourself and expounding upon your desirable qualities and characteristics is not something a person does easily or naturally. Keep in mind that what employers want are candidates who have good communication skills, are honest, display integrity, have great interpersonal skills and are highly organized. A resume, if done effectively, can provide a prospective employer with positive impressions linked to the attributes an employer seeks. Ask yourself one final question, "Am I trying for perfection in my resume?" Good! You should be because employers can tell if you are.

Read more about writing a killer resume at: http://www.sbmag.org/resumes

Copyright usage: No permission is needed to reproduce this story. The About the Author statement must remain in tact. Request for reciprocal links will be considered: mailto:barb@sbmag.org

Barbara Snyder is a retired California Distinguished School Principal and Coordinator For Human Resources. She has a master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction. She holds elementary education, secondary, community college, and administrative credentials. She is currently the publisher of http://EducationResourcesNetwork.com, co-publisher of Strictly Business Magazine, http://www.sbmag.org.


More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting

More Careers & Employment Information:


Related Articles

The Ripple Effect of Fear
Unemployment carries a lot of emotional baggage for most of us and fear is a major component. We fear the financial fallout of no longer receiving regular wages.
The Surefire Way To Getting A Pay Raise
If you are working for someone else, it is important to remember this fact: No one gives you a raise, you must earn it. You've got to prove you are worth the additional money you are asking for.
Work Attitude Ethics For Progress
This "fruit for thought" article is for all human beings, who somehow find themselves in the role of breadwinner and striving to improve their living standards.The heading of this article could just as well have been "How to position yourself for promotion" or "How to position yourself for career advancement" or "How to climb the success ladder" or something similar.
Handling the Dreaded Why Did You Leave? Question
If you left your last job under less-than-ideal circumstances, you probably dread the "Why did you leave?" question that almost always comes up at job interviews. Here's how to handle it.
Resume Writing - Importance of a Professional Summary
The Summary is the preview of your entire resume. This may be be the only part that an interviewer or employer might read for shortlisting your resume.
How To Get Promoted - Take Control Of Your Destiny!
It Is Up To YouSo, you want to get promoted. The possibility really lies in your own hands.
Career Change - Is Your Career A Good Fit Or Is It Causing Pain?
Do you leap out of bed in the morning looking forward to the day ahead?Do you love your job and find that your working day goes past in the blink of an eye?Are you a solicitor, secretary, scientist or social worker because your parents or your careers teacher thought it was a good idea?Would you choose to do your job, even if you were not being paid? No?Well, take heart because the same goes for others! So many individuals are working in jobs which they find unfulfilling and meaningless. Many work in jobs which are inappropriate for them, simply because the pay is good.
Identity Theft and Your Online Job Search
While identity theft is nothing new, the Web has opened up whole new world of opportunity for identity thieves.According to the FBI, identity theft is the top online fraud.
Business Careers: Keys to Moving on from Retrenchment
You may be astonished to realize that retrenchment may occur more than once during the life of the modern day worker. In fact, career advisors report that we could expect to be made redundant up to three times during our working life.
Prepare for Your Performance Review Before You Start the Job
When you start a new job, you probably realize the first three months are critical to your long-term success. Everybody's eye is on the "newbie" as you learn the ropes.
How To Pick The Best Career For You, Part 1
In Part One we'll look at how Positioning or "Coming to a Theater Near You" simplifies and expedites your employment hunt by reinforcing employer buy-in through justification of the sale.Rapidly gain employer agreement that you're the right person for the job by proving how their organizational needs are met through your specific abilities to solve their identified problems.
Telecommuting Interview Tips
Telecommuting Interview Tips- By Nell TaliercioYou've made it! Your cover letter and resume got you to the interview process..
Job Search Campaign Tip: An Activity Diary
Looking for a job involves a wide range of responsibilities: preparing a resume, looking at ads, contacting employers, calling and visiting friends and acquaintances, follow ups, interviews. While none of us ever plan to be out of work for very long, it can be very useful to immediately start documenting your activities and your feelings to provide a road map of where you have been and where you want to go.
What Recruiters Hate About Resumes And Cover Letters
Today, I'm going to share with you the awful truth about resumes and cover letters.Here it is: Most of them stink.
Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Try, Try, Again
This article relates to the Career Opportunities competency and explores issues such as internal growth opportunities, potential for advancement, career development importance, and the relationship between job performance and career advancement. Evaluating the Career Opportunities competency in your organization will determine whether your employees believe they have a chance to grow within the organization.
Stepping Stone Jobs
What we name something matters.It sets a tone that alters our attitude.
Leaders Meet Challenge Heads-UP With Confidence --
Maybe "buck" is better referred to as the Boss' Challenge. Business owners are faced with making lots of decisions - some quickly made - others take more time with greater consequences.
Resume Tune Up
Employers have fears, uncertainty and DOUBT (the FUD factor) over your ability to actually do what you claim you can do in your resume and cover letter.Combine this with the fact that EVERY candidate looks good on paper, no-one leaves their previous job because they were paid too much, the work was too interesting and all the people were fantastic, and you can see the challenge you're facing.
Take Charge of Your Job Search: 12 Steps to Success
Despite what many people may say, a job search does not have to be an unpleasant experience. There are those people who choose to take charge of the process, who actually find the process to be very rewarding and stimulating.
The 10-Step Resume Critique
Your resume will generally receive a 15- to 30-second scan upon first review by an employer. With that in mind, it is critical that your resume -- your "paper handshake" -- makes a positive first impression and compels the reader to put your resume in the "yes" pile and possibly call you in for an interview.



/html>