I was once told that hiring a professional resume writing service is for the foolish; “Why would anyone want to hire someone to write about them? It’s ridiculous!” the person remarked.

I retorted with a simple, “Why would one hire someone to write their biography then? Isn’t that equally foolish?”

Having your resume professionally written does not spell foolish, or underline your incompetence. It just means you are hiring a professional who understands what employers look out for, and is able to tailor your resume to speak volumes about you. Many commit cardinal resume sins without even realising it, and they become frustrated with their endless job search!

Here are five reasons why you should hire a professional to oversee your resume writing needs:

Because this is the one document you use to market yourself. Are you using the write words to really speak about how great your achievements have been? Because you cannot figure out how to condense your current 5-page resume into a 2-page one. Remember that a lengthy resume only bores an employer – make it crisp and effective. Because you are transitioning between jobs. You have the right skills, and you know it. But an employer is looking for certain experiences that you obviously don’t have. The right words can make the big difference. Because you have a boring layout and you think adding colour is what will make you stand out. So wrong! Because you don’t know how much of what to include. Resume advice is aplenty online, but you still don’t know how to word everything in.

Remember that your resume has a life expectancy of about 15 seconds with each employer – make every second count. An effective resume is crisp and powerful, highlighting impressive experiences while downplaying not-so-important ones. It is about the perfect words that say the right things.

Image taken on 2009-09-28 14:08:53. Image Source. (Used with permission)