With Daylight Savings time in full effect, we will be seeing warmer, longer days, more sunshine and less free time as Summertime approaches. Right now is the perfect time to update your resume and tweak your job searching persona – long before the warm weather hits and you find yourself on the beach with a cold drink in hand. Even if you are not actively job seeking, opportunities tend to present themselves when you least expect them. So be ready!

Here are a few quick tips for conducting a springtime refresh:

  1. Update your resume. Tweak your content by adding a few new skills and accomplishments, verify that the information is up to date and correct. Also, do a spell check! If Microsoft Word’s built-in spelling tools are not enough (or whatever device you use to edit documents) check out plugins like grammarly.com and whitesmoke.com which can help with grammar and spelling on everything you write – resumes included. Rule of thumb: you can never do too many spell checks, and a resume can never look too perfect.
  2. Next, let the world know you have made a few updates by emailing a current copy to your favorite Masiello recruiters. Also, be sure to refresh copies on any online job sites you use. Many folks also don’t realize that job seeking websites use the date of upload as a timestamp. If you have not refreshed your resume online in a year, you probably will not be seen by potential employers. Load fresh copies to the most popular sites like monster.com and www.indeed.com and be sure to have an easy to email, working copy (pdf and word) on the ready just in case you stumble upon a terrific opportunity.
  3. Tweak your LinkedIn. No need to go crazy here, but make a few changes, clarify a few phrases, and add a couple of projects or accomplishments, just to keep it fresh. Don’t have a LinkedIn profile? You should! Make sure when you google yourself by name that you can be found, and the information is up to date. Don’t have a website? No problem. LinkedIn solves that problem – so be sure your content is fresh. The internet has gotten very good at knowing when the content was last updated, so even the slightest changes to an online profile can mean a refreshed view from the outside. Try to add to one of the areas that better describe you as a person, like projects or volunteering opportunities, or just take a moment to change out the photos in your banner or your headshot. Headshot looking a little old and stale? Read on!4
  4. Get an updated, professional (looking) headshot. Even if it is just a snap taken from your phone (preferably on a neutral background) make sure you have a couple of good, professional photos on hand and uploaded to your job seeking sites. A current, up-to-date headshot speaks to an overall sense of professionalism and demonstrates that you invest in yourself. So just do it!

If you have any questions regarding your resume or need further tips and tricks on how to stay current – give the recruiting team at Masiello a call at 603-358-1000. Our recruiters are here diligently working jobs year ‘round and ready to help!