What did the President say about Jobs in America for 2011?

What industries, jobs, competencies and education can help you with your career in 2011?

Here’s my analysis of the speech and what’s important for job seekers who are looking for competitive jobs and industries for today and in the near future:

• Many of President Obama’s ideas won’t mean new jobs for at least another five years down the road. However, these jobs will likely be the wave of the future, so in order to prepare for this wave, think about what you will do today to prepare for the jobs that will be available, especially if you thinking about what to major in in college, or about preparing for a career change.
• Best competencies and keywords for 2011: Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Imagination, High Performance, High Expectations, Efficiency
• Critical for Success: Specialized Education and Training (Math and Science), Languages, Computers
• Hot Job Industries: Clean energy, high-speed internet, high-speed rail, exports, domestic construction, biomedical research, research and development, renewable energy, electric cars, transcontinental railway, information technology, global business, teacher, trainer, education, government
• Important Government Fixes: Some redundant federal agencies, government spending, improve efficiency in government, sell some government lands, DOD spending, freeze government employee salaries

The President’s Address is excerpted here to emphasize talking points concerning jobs, industries, training and competencies for future jobs:

Creativity and Innovation

President Obama: “None of us can predict with certainty what the next big industry will be, or where the new jobs will come from. Thirty years ago, we couldn’t know that something called the Internet would lead to an economic revolution. What we can do – what America does better than anyone – is spark the creativity and imagination of our people. We are the nation that put cars in driveways and computers in offices; the nation of Edison and the Wright brothers; of Google and Facebook. In America, innovation doesn’t just change our lives. It’s how we make a living.

Kathryn’s Comment: If you are creative in your business or job, this will be important in your career for the future. Keep track of your creative ideas. This is also a KEYWORD for your resume.

Investing in Research

President Obama: “Our free enterprise system is what drives innovation. But because it’s not always profitable for companies to invest in basic research, throughout history our government has provided cutting-edge scientists and inventors with the support that they need. That’s what planted the seeds for the Internet. That’s what helped make possible things like computer chips and GPS.”

Kathryn’s Comment: If you are considering a college major, I would recommend science and information technology. Government funding could be coming for research.

Science – Unleash the Wave of Innovation

President Obama: “Half a century ago, when the Soviets beat us into space with the launch of a satellite called Sputnik¸ we had no idea how we’d beat them to the moon. The science wasn’t there yet. NASA didn’t even exist. But after investing in better research and education, we didn’t just surpass the Soviets; we unleashed a wave of innovation that created new industries and millions of new jobs.”

Kathryn’s Comment: President Obama is all for education in research and new industries. Entrepreneurs in science and technology should be getting more support in the next few years.

Invest in Biomedical Research, IT and Clean Energy Tech

President Obama: “This is our generation’s Sputnik moment. Two years ago, I said that we needed to reach a level of research and development we haven’t seen since the height of the Space Race. In a few weeks, I will be sending a budget to Congress that helps us meet that goal. We’ll invest in biomedical research, information technology, and especially clean energy technology – an investment that will strengthen our security, protect our planet, and create countless new jobs for our people.”

Kathryn’s Comment: More hot college majors: biomedical research, IT, and clean energy technology. Hot jobs in 2015 or sooner!

Electric Vehicles

President Obama: “At the California Institute of Technology, they’re developing a way to turn sunlight and water into fuel for our cars. At Oak Ridge National Laboratory, they’re using supercomputers to get a lot more power out of our nuclear facilities. With more research and incentives, we can break our dependence on oil with biofuels, and become the first country to have 1 million electric vehicles on the road by 2015.”

Kathryn’s Comment: If you are in your engineering degree now, make sure you get a project with an electric vehicle; this could help land a position in the future automotive industry. Write about this in your resume to demonstrate past performance.

Study Math and Science; Get Educated

President Obama: “Think about it. Over the next ten years, nearly half of all new jobs will require education that goes beyond a high school degree. And yet, as many as a quarter of our students aren’t even finishing high school. The quality of our math and science education lags behind many other nations. America has fallen to 9th in the proportion of young people with a college degree. And so the question is whether all of us – as citizens, and as parents – are willing to do what’s necessary to give every child a chance to succeed.”

Kathryn’s Comment: Math and science grades will make a difference for future jobs in clean energy, electric cars, and other high technology positions. Get a tutor if you need one. Math and science tutor positions should increase after this speech.

Teaching or Public Service

President Obama: “In fact, to every young person listening tonight who’s contemplating their career choice: If you want to make a difference in the life of our nation; if you want to make a difference in the life of a child – become a teacher. Your country needs you.”

Kathryn’s Comment: The government will always be hiring. Government positions will require specialized experience, depending on the positions you are seeking. You can read about federal jobs at www.usajobs.gov. You can find jobs by college major, job title, geographic location, and agency name. Teaching positions are available if you have the right education and certifications. Also, some school systems are talking about top student performance salary incentives for teachers.

Tax Credit Increase for Tuition Tax Credit

President Obama: “Of course, the education race doesn’t end with a high school diploma. To compete, higher education must be within reach of every American. That’s why we’ve ended the unwarranted taxpayer subsidies that went to banks, and used the savings to make college affordable for millions of students. And this year, I ask Congress to go further, and make permanent our tuition tax credit – worth $10,000 for four years of college.”

Kathryn’s Comment: After this speech, education will be critical to succeed in these industries. Government jobs sometimes offer tuition reimbursement for students and parents who have student loans. Ask for this if you get a job offer.

Train for New Jobs and Careers in Today’s Fast-Changing Economy

President Obama: “Because people need to be able to train for new jobs and careers in today’s fast-changing economy, we are also revitalizing America’s community colleges. Last month, I saw the promise of these schools at Forsyth Tech in North Carolina. Many of the students there used to work in the surrounding factories that have since left town. One mother of two, a woman named Kathy Proctor, had worked in the furniture industry since she was 18 years old. And she told me she’s earning her degree in biotechnology now, at 55 years old, not just because the furniture jobs are gone, but because she wants to inspire her children to pursue their dreams too. As Kathy said, ‘I hope it tells them to never give up.’”

Kathryn’s Comment: As jobseekers, continue to train to support these new industries. New training and education will be critical for career success. Jobs in curriculum design and planning, instructor-led programs, eLearning, distance learning, train-the-trainer will be growing to prepare people in all of these new industries.

Our Infrastructure Used to Be the Best – But Our Lead Has Slipped

President Obama: “South Korean homes now have greater internet access than we do. Countries in Europe and Russia invest more in their roads and railways than we do. China is building faster trains and newer airports. Meanwhile, when our own engineers graded our nation’s infrastructure, they gave us a ‘D.’”

Kathryn’s Comment: Civil engineers, mechanical engineers, construction trades, administrators, contractors, materials providers, and equipment providers will benefit from infrastructure funding by government and states. Our internet success will grow with more IT specialists, cyber security experts, and IT support personnel.

Increase Construction Industry Jobs

President Obama: “Over the last two years, we have begun rebuilding for the 21st century, a project that has meant thousands of good jobs for the hard-hit construction industry. Tonight, I’m proposing that we redouble these efforts.”

“We will put more Americans to work repairing crumbling roads and bridges. We will make sure this is fully paid for, attract private investment, and pick projects based on what’s best for the economy, not politicians.”

Kathryn’s Comment: This is great news for construction industry jobs. Building roads, bridges, and infrastructure CAN create more jobs!

New Businesses in High-Speed Rail and High-Speed Internet

President Obama: “The third step in winning the future is rebuilding America. To attract new businesses to our shores, we need the fastest, most reliable ways to move people, goods, and information – from high-speed rail to high-speed internet.”

Kathryn’s Comment: These industries will require engineers, IT specialists, as well as supporting professionals in administration, contracts, budgets, and human resources.

Transcontinental Railroad

President Obama: “We have to do better. America is the nation that built the transcontinental railroad, brought electricity to rural communities, and constructed the interstate highway system. The jobs created by these projects didn’t just come from laying down tracks or pavement. They came from businesses that opened near a town’s new train station or the new off-ramp.”

Kathryn’s Comment: Building new trains and jobs across America is another great idea that could create varied positions to support the new railroad.

High Speed Rail

President Obama: “Within 25 years, our goal is to give 80% of Americans access to high-speed rail, which could allow you go places in half the time it takes to travel by car. For some trips, it will be faster than flying – without the pat-down. As we speak, routes in California and the Midwest are already underway.”

Kathryn’s Comment: Again, the President is envisioning a new US-wide industry that will create jobs for many skills, including trades, engineering, administration, customer services, purchasing.

High Speed Wireless to 98% of Business, Faster Internet Into Digital Age

President Obama: “Within the next five years, we will make it possible for business to deploy the next generation of high-speed wireless coverage to 98% of all Americans. This isn’t just about a faster internet and fewer dropped calls. It’s about connecting every part of America to the digital age. It’s about a rural community in Iowa or Alabama where farmers and small business owners will be able to sell their products all over the world. It’s about a firefighter who can download the design of a burning building onto a handheld device; a student who can take classes with a digital textbook; or a patient who can have face-to-face video chats with her doctor.”

“All these investments – in innovation, education, and infrastructure – will make America a better place to do business and create jobs. But to help our companies compete, we also have to knock down barriers that stand in the way of their success.”

Kathryn’s Comment: IT specialists (website) and Telecom fields will grow with more and more people being online and with greater dependence on the internet for business development and visibility.

Goal of Doubling Exports by 2014 Export Jobs with South Korea

President Obama: “To help businesses sell more products abroad, we set a goal of doubling our exports by 2014 – because the more we export, the more jobs we create at home. Already, our exports are up. Recently, we signed agreements with India and China that will support more than 250,000 jobs in the United States. And last month, we finalized a trade agreement with South Korea that will support at least 70,000 American jobs. This agreement has unprecedented support from business and labor; Democrats and Republicans, and I ask this Congress to pass it as soon as possible.”

Kathryn’s Comment: International business development will be growing in the near future. International studies, language , and contracting skills will be required for jobs in exporting goods to South Korea.

Pursue Agreements with Panama Asia Pacific for Jobs

President Obama: “Before I took office, I made it clear that we would enforce our trade agreements, and that I would only sign deals that keep faith with American workers, and promote American jobs. That’s what we did with Korea, and that’s what I intend to do as we pursue agreements with Panama and Colombia, and continue our Asia Pacific and global trade talks.”

Kathryn’s Comment: International studies will be important for global business development.

Freeze Government Spending for Five Years

President Obama: “So tonight, I am proposing that starting this year, we freeze annual domestic spending for the next five years. This would reduce the deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade, and will bring discretionary spending to the lowest share of our economy since Dwight Eisenhower was president.”

Kathryn’s Comment: Even with possible government spending freezes, the government will be hiring more workers to support grants and programs for all of the ideas presented in this speech. Engineers, international experts, contract specialists, IT specialists, administrative, accounting, and many professionals will be needed to support the numerous growth career and industry areas. The government is very interested in hiring new graduates to grow into these new industries.

Freeze Federal Salaries for the Next Two Years

President Obama: “This freeze will require painful cuts. Already, we have frozen the salaries of hardworking federal employees for the next two years. I’ve proposed cuts to things I care deeply about, like community action programs.”

Kathryn’s Comment: The salaries will be frozen, but the career ladder positions in government will still get promotions. The government jobs are still the best in the country with excellent benefits and programs. The performance-based promotions to new grades will still be available to employees.

Department of Defense Freeze

President Obama: “The Secretary of Defense has also agreed to cut tens of billions of dollars in spending that he and his generals believe our military can do without.”

Kathryn’s Comment: Even with DOD freeze and cuts, there will still be DOD jobs to support the warfighters and Defense operations. The jobs could be less, but the positions will be available due to retirements, BRAC ,and other reorganizations in DOD agencies and military bases.

Make Government More Efficient

President Obama: “Let me take this one step further. We shouldn’t just give our people a government that’s more affordable. We should give them a government that’s more competent and efficient. We cannot win the future with a government of the past.”

Kathryn’s Comment: If you have been efficient in your career, when you write your resume, add your efficiency ideas, programs, and projects. This could help you to stand out as an excellent candidate for a government job. Keywords for your resume: efficiency and effectiveness of programs, workflow, and processes.

Technology, Medical Records are Automated, Sell Government Lands

President Obama: Now, we have made great strides over the last two years in using technology and getting rid of waste. Veterans can now download their electronic medical records with a click of the mouse. We’re selling acres of federal office space that hasn’t been used in years, and we will cut through red tape to get rid of more. But we need to think bigger.

Kathryn’s Comment: Automation of records is always important for government programs. If you have skills in records management, automation, electronic medical records, you will be competitive for federal positions. Realty Specialists will be required to sell and dispose the federal office space that hasn’t been used in years.

Merge, Consolidate, Reorganize the Federal Government

President Obama: In the coming months, my administration will develop a proposal to merge, consolidate, and reorganize the federal government in a way that best serves the goal of a more competitive America. I will submit that proposal to Congress for a vote – and we will push to get it passed.

“We live and do business in the information age, but the last major reorganization of the government happened in the age of black and white TV. There are twelve different agencies that deal with exports. There are at least five different entities that deal with housing policy. Then there’s my favorite example: the Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they’re in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them in when they’re in saltwater. And I hear it gets even more complicated once they’re smoked.”

Kathryn’s Comment: When agencies reorganize, they also create many new positions with newly-structured departments. Watch the news for the new agencies that are restructured or blended.

The American Dream

President Obama: “That dream – that American Dream – is what drove the Allen Brothers to reinvent their roofing company for a new era. It’s what drove those students at Forsyth Tech to learn a new skill and work towards the future. And that dream is the story of a small business owner named Brandon Fisher.”

Kathryn’s Comment: The American Dream is wonderful! I am an entrepreneur and am always thinking of new ways to help people land federal jobs and cope with the complex hiring process. This year, I am building a high-tech training room in my office so I can lead more USAJOBS job search webinars that can be viewed by people around the world. I hope that SBA can help support entrepreneurs and small business owners with funding.

New Ideas and Perseverence

President Obama: “Brandon started a company in Berlin, Pennsylvania that specializes in a new kind of drilling technology. One day last summer, he saw the news that halfway across the world, 33 men were trapped in a Chilean mine, and no one knew how to save them. Later, one of his employees said of the rescue, “We proved that Center Rock is a little company, but we do big things.”

Kathryn’s Comment: New ideas can save lives and provide great services to Americans. If you have a new idea, a first step you can take is to enroll in an SBA Business Plan Writing course.

We Do Big Things

President Obama: “From the earliest days of our founding, America has been the story of ordinary people who dare to dream. That’s how we win the future.”

Kathryn’s Summary: President Obama’s speech included many new job and industry ideas. Most of the proposed jobs require specialized training and education. Pay attention to the industries, legislation and programs in support of these programs, and FOLLOW THE JOBS. In the meantime, look up courses and college majors that can support the new industries. A career strategy will be needed to succeed in these new industries. Start planning now, listen to President Obama’s additional speeches to see more activities and movement on these new jobs and training ideas.

Thank you for reading, and please leave me your comments — I would love to hear your thoughts.

– Kathryn Troutman, Author, Ten Steps to a Federal Job and www.resume-place.com

As we count down to 2011, here are my Top Ten federal job search resolutions to help you get a quick jump start back into your federal job search as soon as the holiday festivities are over.

10. Get inspired! Read a book about an expertise that you have.

Find a book on a topic of interest, such as leadership, management, teamwork or supervision. If the book is inspiring, you might feel more energetic and proud of your past accomplishments – which will translate into a good mood and higher confidence. Looking for a federal job? Here’s a great list of Federal Leadership Books!

Sometimes, job interviewers will ask you what you are reading now. You better get ready for this one. Books on leadership, history, or a topic that supports your non-profit or volunteer work would be perfect for the interview (not political books).

9. Be systematic with your online job search strategies.

Keep a list of your favorite webpages, and check them every day, or, at a minimum, once a week, for positions that could be of interest.

You can waste time at the computer if you don’t have a clear list of sites that you visit regularly and search strategies that work. Limit your time on searching for jobs, so that you can move AWAY from the computer and be productive in other ways.

8. Say “Happy New Year” to your references and people in your network.

This time of year is perfect for reconnecting with people you haven’t touched base with in awhile. Your references and network are your most important allies for your job search. Make a clear list of your best references / network contacts. Write to them, or preferably meet with them in person for lunch or coffee.

Talk to your references, update them on what you are doing, and ask them if they have any leads or ideas about positions. Be positive about your skills, experience, and new or renewed determination for 2011. Review your job search strategies with them.

If you don’t have a Linkedin or other online resume, you could work on that also. You can get testimonials and post your entire resume online for searches.

7. Make a new list of keywords, and check it every time.

Keywords are words that you can find in the recruitment advertisement. Look especially for words that are repeated several times in the job announcements. Make sure these words are included in your Work Experience descriptions. The human resources recruiters read or scan for those keywords in your resume.

Make sure you adapt your resume to include your skills, knowledge, and areas of expertise to each position for which you are applying. One resume won’t work! You have to take that one resume and change it slightly for each job announcement and position.

6. Add a few new “competencies” to your resume.

Competencies are the latest “thing” for human resources – both federal and private industry. Examples of competencies are: flexible, adaptable, customer services, interpersonal skills, excellent at problem-solving.

Do you have good interpersonal skills? If yes, say so in the resume somewhere. Are you great with customer services? Make sure it is in your resume. You might think it is OBVIOUS that you have great communications, negotiation, and problem-solving skills, but don’t be bashful now! Say it in the context of one of your accomplishments. Seriously, the HR specialists and managers love a person who get along great with team members, customers, supervisors, and even complainers! Here’s a Top Ten Managerial Competency List.

5. Stay up on the current events.

Keeping up with the latest happenings can help you get an edge in an interview. Stay on top of the news headlines and get out to local cultural activities, such as museums or galleries, which will have the added benefit of giving you a break from the job search.

4. Add pizzazz to your cover letter.

Cover letters are the hottest new item in federal resumes. Update your cover letter and add a new first sentence or paragraph give it a new 2011 zing.

Samples of positive, energetic starter sentences:

– I’d like to introduce myself to you as a Top Notch Office Administrator for your firm. – Are you looking for a person who can multi-task, solve problems, and who has initiative and energy? I’m available. – I can offer your firm outstanding skills in customer communication, problem-solving and project management. I can prove these skills and strengths by success in growing my company’s sales by 300% in 2009.

3. Take a class or course on something relevant.

Interviewers will want to know what you have done to keep up with your skills. Taking a class in just about anything will give you an interesting angle to talk about in an interview or while networking.

If you can take an online or community college course, here are some suggested courses that are helpful for career development: Technical Writing; Computers Skills; Public Speaking; Ethics (always good for any job); Organizational Development; Leadership; Supervision; Teamwork; Social Media Marketing for Businesses; Budgeting; and Acquisitions and Contracting (for government jobs).

You never know, you might also meet someone in class who knows about job for you.

2. Join a job club.

Go to a job club meeting or job fair once or twice per month. Get out of the house, meet people, listen for ideas, pass around your resume, smile and be friendly. You can be your own BILLBOARD.

I teach federal resume writing at several job clubs in the DC and Virginia area. These FREE meetings are invaluable for job leads, meeting other jobseekers and mentors who review resumes, practice for interviews, and help with job search strategies.

1. Celebrate your accomplishments.

What are you most proud of for 2010 (or the last time you were working)? Make a list and read it out loud. These will be your talking-points for your job interview. Review your list of accomplishments to prepare for an interview and compare them to your resume.

Many resumes that I review do NOT contain accomplishments at all. Or if they do, the accomplishments are one line. Expand on your accomplishments. Add the RESULTS. and even add the CONTEXT or CHALLENGE for what you did. Talk about the problems you overcame and how achieved success. It might seem like bragging, but if you are good at something in your job, you have to write it on paper to get the point across to the hiring official.

Best Wishes for 2011!

Finally, just keep up the good work and remember that perseverance is the key to success in this job market.

From Kathryn Troutman, Author, Ten Steps to a Federal Job

Success Story from First-Time Federal Jobseeker (who was from private industry):

I applied for a position in Reston, VA for a HR Asst. The job announcement closed on Monday (12-20-10) and I rec’d a call yesterday from a Hiring Official yesterday to set up an interview for today (12-22-10). After talking with him for 20 mins; he offered me the position!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you believe that?! I owe a huge THANK YOU to you and Kathryn for making me look GOOD!

Last evening, I listened closely to President Obama’s speech for new ideas about jobs for Americans that would give us all hope.

I heard about clean energy jobs, something President Obama discussed during the election, but it was not clear where the jobs would be coming from, or even what jobs might be.

I also heard about ideas for small businesses getting help in the form of tax breaks and SBA loans so they could hire more people. I listened closely to this topic because of my recent difficult experience with it. I am the president of a small business, and two weeks ago I got an SBA loan to grow the business and hire more staff. BUT, it took me one year to get the SBA loan, and collateral I had to put down was disproportionately huge — four times the amount of the loan. Basically, the SBA and the small community bank could take over everything I own if anything ever happens to me or to my business. Very few small business owners have this amount of collateral to support a business loan. So, I was understandably skeptical about Obama’s ideas regarding the SBA loans as a way to create more jobs.

Needless to say, I did not come away from the speech with much positive news to share with you.

This morning I took a new approach. I decided to look past the political rhetoric and examine the actions actually being taken right now to generate more jobs for Americans. So, I read the transcript of last night’s speech to compare Obama’s NEW JOB IDEAS with the NEW AND PROPOSED BILLS that will support those ideas.

This is what I found out:

PASSED BILL (2009):

Recovery Act (passed) to create Construction Jobs This bill has been passed last year and is in action.

BILLS PASSED RECENTLY OR WILL PASS:

New GI Bill and Military Family Bill for more Military Family / Vet Services Jobs This bill has passed, and these jobs will begin to appear very soon.

New Education Bill to create more Education Jobs This bill will probably pass and will create more education / teaching jobs.

BILLS IN PROGRESS:

The Jobs Bill - $154B Bill for Transportation and Instructor Training Jobs This bill has not passed yet.

SBA Loans for Small Businesses ($30B to community banks) to create new Small Business Jobs The Main Street Lending Restoration Act was just proposed in December 2009.

Doha Bill for more Global Exporting / Business Jobs This problematic bill has been in the works for a long time and may not pass.

Climate and Energy Bill to create new Clean Energy Jobs This bill has not passed yet the Senate yet.

and … A NOTE ABOUT THE SPENDING FREEZE: For those of you who have been worried about a spending freeze, the one piece of solid good news I can give you is that the spending freeze will not start until 2011. Let’s move forward with hope that the programs will begin to have a positive impact on our jobs situation soon.

SUMMARY:

My feeling last night was right: the speech did not say much about REAL JOB CREATION TODAY. So, moving forward, I will continue with my federal job search counseling, training, book publishing and other activities as I have been doing. I will continue to encourage jobseekers to write the best possible resume and federal resume. And I’ll keep encouraging people to stay strong and focused toward the future. Don’t think or worry about what the government is doing. It’s all up to each person to figure out their way to a new job and to solve their financial issues. If the government does come up with programs that will help us, that’s GREAT! But I am not going to sit around and wait. I will continue to be the entrepreneur that I am!

Thanks for reading. Good luck with your job search. – Kathryn Troutman Author of several books on federal job search; Founder and President of The Resume Place, Inc. for 35 years; and the lucky recipient of an SBA loan!

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Write your Senators in support of the Jobs Bill, which has already passed the House. This bill COULD make a difference for you and millions of America’s jobless.

• Find out how to contact your Senator »
• To watch the speech or read the transcript »

By Kathryn Troutman, Certified Federal Job Search Trainer Program Director and President, The Resume Place, Inc.

At Yuma Private Industry Council, Reemployment Center, three very busy professional resume writers were telling me about their jobs in writing resumes. Their customers are the 26% unemployed “Yumans” who were not expecting to write a resume any time soon. In 2006 Yuma was written up as a Sizzing Hot Spot with NO unemployment.

This article is about some of the resume problems they see and fix at YPIC. Career professionals all over the US are working hard to help stressed-out jobseekers with resumes, so they can compete in a very tough job market.

Lori Heredia described how the jobseekers are so distraught about losing their positions that they don’t pay close attention to the details they need to write a good resume showcasing their experience and education. They have trouble remembering dates, duties and accomplishments. It’s hard to get them to concentrate.

Katie Fuchs noted that jobseekers often don’t even have a resume when they walk in the door. She interviews the jobseeker, creates the work chronology and writes draft descriptions while they wait. This is a lot of pressure to remember a career history on the spot and types it while the jobseeker tries to create and dictate job titles, companies, dates, duties.

Ralph Villa, Resume Writer and Community Outreach Coordinator / Trainer described his efficient method of writing resumes using O-Net Online to help write position descriptions because jobseekers are just not able to describe their jobs in much detail. He can find Occupations, skills and crosswalk search easily for building a better resume. This is a free program and can help a non-thinking jobseeker write about their past positions.

The YPIC has been providing professional resume writing, job search coaching, and interview preparation for the citizens of Yuma who are seeking new jobs since 1987. I was there to teach the career staff how to help the Yumans how to apply for federal jobs and write federal resumes. But we had to start with a good basic resume before we could convert that resume to a federal resume. So, we had a lot of discussion about a good resume – for private industry job searches or federal job searches.

Katie, Lori, and Ralph have discovered some major resume writing errors that are typical for a stressed-out job seeker:

Here are 10 of their Top Resume Problems that they see:

TOP TIP: START WITH A GOOD CHRONOLOGICAL RESUME. To provide the best quality resume writing services, Lori, Katie, and Ralph would like to have a good chronological listing of jobs, including employers, dates of employment, job titles, and a short position description. With this information, they can then edit, format, and develop position descriptions that are targeted toward specific positions more effectively.

1. Not Detailed Enough – Too many jobseekers don’t include the last employer’s name, specific dates, and job titles with a good position description. Many resumes are just not complete and detailed enough.

2. Functional Format is dead – HR recruiters want to see your specific job duties and accomplishments within the chronology of your positions. Even if the functional is great at highlighting your top level skills, the fact is, recruiters want to see what you did, as well as when and where.

3. Chronological with no focus – A “down the middle”, “everything” resume is okay for your starter resume, but not to submit to anyone. The reverse chronological resume (starting from your current or most recent position), is THE format you need to start with in order to build your focused resume.

4. Too many skills – You can’t do everything, and the HR recruiter isn’t going to hire someone who can “do everything”. People who say that have multiple skills, diverse skills, and will do anything are just not going to land anything. HR recruiters are not going to sit and try to figure out what your best skills are, and your highest level of skills. You have to pick your best five skills and stick with it. You can have two resumes: one with five skills; and another with five different skills.

5. Length – What is too short? One page is probably too short. Go for two pages and give the HR recruiter more details to select from. Give them some examples, details about the customers you served, and some challenges/obstacles that you overcame. Add a skills summary of your five best skills.

6. NO dates – Even if your employment chronology has problems with too many jobs, multiple or long gaps in employment dates, keep the dates and chronology in the resume. HR recruiters are getting used to gaps, multiple jobs, or too many jobs over a short amount of time. The job market isn’t like the old days where someone stayed with one company 20 years. Today, jobseekers routinely have six to eight jobs on their resume and do have some gaps. The HR recruiter is looking for the specialized experience needed for THEIR position. They can find that at any point in the resume. Just stick with the dates.

7. Too many jobs – Yes, a person can have too many jobs and raise a red flag for potential employers. You can reduce the number of positions by taking out any small jobs that you took to earn extra cash between jobs or while employed in a more permanent position, as well as any jobs that were really short term – didn’t turn out for whatever reason. The HR recruiter is looking at your major positions with some longevity. Save them time and leave out the small, short-term jobs; focus on the positions that will present your skills and experience most effectively.

8. No accomplishments – If your resume is all about your competition, your job duties, and what you were responsible for all day long, then this is not going to stand out above the other resumes that are written the same way. If you want to stand out, add two or three accomplishments that show you have initiative, new ideas, creativity, and will go the extra mile to improve efficiency and effectiveness. The supervisors LOVE this and might want to interview you.

9. Too generic – Resumes that contain no specifics about customers, programs, scope of work, dollars, or any numbers are going to put the HR specialist to sleep and your resume will just scoot over to the NO pile in one second. Not good.

10. No direction in sight – Make a decision about the direction of your job search. If your resume includes a list of various jobs with no real skills or mission direction, this could be a problem for the HR recruiter. Many resumes are just a list of various, unrelated jobs that people take to earn money. With this type of resume, it is hard for the HR recruiter to see your best skills and abilities.

To see excellent samples of resumes that feature keywords, accomplishments, details, a chronological work experience section consider this book: Resumes for Dummies, 5th Edition by Joyce Lain Kennedy. The Resume Place, Inc. produced ALL of the sample resumes in this book. Joyce writes about a Core Resume that can be refocused for each resume application with keywords, qualifications, skills. They are on-target and easily changed for each position.