Published: February 22, 2006
Writing a resume can be a painstaking process if you don’t prepare yourself along the way. Employers want you to sum up your life experiences and objectives into one page (in most cases). You can prepare for this early by gathering information on yourself along the way.
Creating a list that is almost like a timeline of your life can turn out to be very helpful. This will give you a sense of progression into the person you have become through the jobs you’ve held, the volunteer work you’ve done, the degrees you’ve earned, and so on.
Set up your time line so that it is in order starting with the most current activity. Give the most general information first, title of position held, name of activity, where the activity occurred, when and for how long, and then leave a space for specific details.
Details should include things such as contact information, references, reason for leaving, duties performed, etc. This will become very important when elaborating on specific skills you obtained from work experiences.
It may be easier for some people to set up a timeline or list by separating it into types of experiences. Most resumes are comprised of several sections including, but not limited to, an objective, education, experience, community, and honors and awards.
It is best to keep this timeline or list up-to-date so that when it comes time to write your resume you will have all the information you need at your disposal.