There are very few people that enjoy the task of building a professional resume and the cover letter for resume. Having to distill your career and interests into just two or three pages, with the added pressure of making it sing, is without doubt a daunting prospect.

Worse still, there are so many different ways to present a resume that sorting through how to organize your material can prove extremely confusing. Here lies the importance of working in sync with a reliable recruitment agency.

Resume fashions do come and go. What worked in the job market five years ago likely wouldn’t work as readily in today’s market. Given this, the best approach is to familiarize yourself with some common, overarching guidelines, and tweak the details according to the nature of the job being sought.

One guideline is to keep your language straightforward. As a graduate looking to make a career in Australia, make sure you don’t fall into the trap of dressing up your achievements with adjectives such as “outstanding”, “unique” or “brilliant”. Writing about yourself in such glowing terms is only likely to make the reader believe you have an inflated ego, or you are trying to gloss over some serious failings. Save your personality plays for the interview.

Similarly, avoid highlighting achievements that are seriously dated. It’s fine to mention your major achievements, but if you scored your last big bragging right five years ago then it’s best not to kick off with this. Always point to more recent career successes.

Other pitfalls to dodge include writing lengthy job descriptions – better to bullet-point your own, specific responsibilities; attaching photographs; listing career details ahead of experience and achievements; and drafting a resume that runs to more than four pages.

One standout feature of successful professional resumes is their use of direct language. By simply switching your sentences from a passive to an active voice you will automatically appear strong and confident. Begin sentences with words such as “delivered” or “initiated” and notice the difference it makes.

Red Giraffe, one of the leading recruitment agencies, helps you to build an impressive resume that will assist you in finding the right jobs across Australia. Being a leading recruitment agency in Australia, our objective is to make graduates’ careers as successful as they desire.