Spectrum Resume Writing Solutions

professional resume writing tips

Looking for professional resume writing tips? You’re in the right place. This guide covers everything you need to craft a resume that gets noticed.

Your resume tells the story of your career. As such, it should be engaging, focused and readable. We aren’t going to write your resume (not for free, anyway*), but we will do our best to tell you how much of what to put where and why. Although a good resume is a critical tool in your job search, a low-quality resume can lose you the job. Take the time to ensure it’s polished, professional, and ready to impress.

Check out the sample resume below and download an editable template here.


YOUR NAME

[email protected]

Phone Number

City, State

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Write 3–4 concise sentences that highlight your expertise, industry focus, and core strengths. Focus on what you bring to an employer, not just what you want. Use specific, verifiable achievements rather than vague adjectives.

Pro Tip: This section should entice the reader to continue reading — target it to the role you’re applying for.

SKILLS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

  • Skills must be transferable, measurable and applicable to the job for which you are applying.
  • These 3-8 bullet points should illustrate actual, quantifiable accomplishments, including size and scope.
  • Use statistics whenever possible, e.g., business development numbers, budget, revenue, cost savings, new customer count, number of employees, et al.
  • Military awards can go here. Extensive military experience can go under work history, especially when it is pertinent to the position.
  • Example: Increased annual revenue by 18% through strategic B2B partnerships
  • Example: Managed $4M operational budget with year over year cost savings of 12%
  • Example: Led a 25 member cross functional team across three global regions

Pro Tip: Tailor this section to the specific job for which you are applying. Keep it fluid. The rest of the resume will remain static.

EXPERIENCE (if your education is more relevant than your experience, move it above this section!)

Current Company Name – City, State

Month Year – Present

Optional one‑line about company: what they do, annual revenue, size of staff, etc.

Current Position Title

  • Focus on key accomplishments and truly relevant experience. Use numbers as proof of your prowess.
  • Exclude unrelated experience completely unless that’s all you have.
  • Additional bullets of responsibilities, results, highlights, etc.

Previous Position Title (Same Company)

  • Bullets of responsibilities, results, highlights, etc.
  • Bullets of responsibilities, results, highlights, etc.

Previous Company Name – City, State

Month Year – Month Year

Optional one‑line about company: what they do, annual revenue, size of staff, etc.

Position Title

  • Bullets of responsibilities, results, highlights, etc.
  • Bullets of responsibilities, results, highlights, etc.

Pro Tip: List no more than 15 years of experience unless earlier roles are highly relevant. If promoted within the same company, group under one company and date range as shown above.

EDUCATION / CERTIFICATIONS

Institution Name – City, State (NO DATES)

Degree

Issuing Body’s Name – City, State

Certificate / License Name  

MM/YYYY (If date matters for validity)

Pro Tip: List highest degree first or any credential most relevant to the position.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION (Optional)

  • Languages spoken (proficient/fluent levels)
  • Volunteer work (only if relevant to the job)
  • Professional associations or awards
  • Security clearances or industry‑specific qualifications
  • Do not include a list (anywhere) of irrelevant personal interests

FINAL PROFESSIONAL RESUME WRITING TIPS

  • Keep it 1–2 pages for most roles; 3 pages max for senior/technical careers.
  • No headshots, no full addresses — city & state only.
  • Save as PDF before sending unless instructed otherwise.
  • Top 1/3 of Page 1 should instantly communicate your value to the employer.
  • Add some exciting verbiage, but avoid flashy fonts. Stick with classic, clean lines and reasonable font sizes (10-12 pt).
  • Leave plenty of white space to help draw the eye around the page and set margins between .7” and 1″.
  • Don’t include references or write ‘provided upon request’ on your resume. If and when the proper parties want them, they will ask.
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