Objective Can Kill A Resume - Greg Lachs

Objectives in Resume

Most of the objectives we write in the resume and vague, and virtually meaningless. None of them are helpful.

Below are some sample objective

“To grow and be happy.”
“To have an exciting opportunity with XYZ Industries, or any other great job at another company.”
“To obtain a challenging position that utilizes my strengths and skills and offers potential.”
“To pursue employment with a reputable company that will enable me to learn skills in the workplace.”

In a resume, employers look for what you offer – not what you want. An objective is an “I want” statement that doesn’t help.

A recruiter has up to 15 seconds to look through your resume, sometimes half that much time.  The first “real” writing they see is an objective. 

That objective is about what you want, not the employer. Strike One. Usually very vaguely written. Strike Two. Finally, it is the first real impression your resume has made – and it’s not a good one. Strike Three. First impressions can only be made once. Not a great start, is it?

However, you can fix this with a very simple alternative. Take sentence or two and let them know what you specifically have to offer them:

Effective Objectives:

“10 year IT Systems Administrator with Management Experience and Budgeting. Cut Technical Purchase budget by 25% and increased productivity.”

“Sales Professional who has met or exceeded quota over the last five years and has $750,000 in Office Supply Sales in the last 2 years.”

“Administrative Recruiter with 5 years of experience placing talent in Fortune 500 companies.”

The formula:

Your Title/Profession + experience + accomplishment

New to the field? Substitute your education or training for experience. For an accomplishment, that can be from a previous job in another field – or through your volunteer work. Something that anyone might appreciate.

“Business Analyst with MBA and 5 years Volunteer Experience with 211.”

“Technical Support Professional with A+ Certification and Customer Service Experience.”

“Accountant with BA in Business Management and Quickbooks Experience.”

“Electrical Engineer with BSEE and Winner of Sr. Technical Project Award from Syracuse University.”

The short “Summary” you have provided is much more likely to get positive attention at the first glance. The recruiter is likely to read it a bit more carefully; you’ve given her a good reason to.

Just put “Summary” where “Objective” would have been and then use the formula.

Bring your resume “back to life” so you can showcase the talent, experience and education you offer in a way that gets the interest you deserve.

Inspired and extracted from https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140627175348-19974532-how-an-objective-can-kill-a-resume