What do I put on my summary for a resume?

[Jocelyn]

Im in high school and want to apply to a yogurt place to start off.

[Kathrine]

Elements of a Strong Resume Summary Statement:

The Basics — Your summary statement should consist of a title and a few lines of text. The text can be in paragraph form and/or use bullets.

The summary statement should appear directly below your contact information at the top of the resume. and should reflect a general (or specific) idea of your career goals.

Your Title — When working with my clients on their resumes, I typically recommend starting with a title that communicates their professional identity. Think of it as a headline that will catch the reader’s eye and help them see your fit for the position at hand.

Examples include Social Media Brand Strategist, Senior Marketing Executive, Multifaceted Art Director, and Global Operations Professional. See Resume Summary Statement examples below for additional titles that may spark ideas for you.

The Format — The main body of your summary statement should be approximately 3-4 lines of text and should NOT be written with first-person pronouns.

If you are tempted to make your summary statement longer to squeeze in more details, resist the temptation. Industry research tells us that most hiring managers spend only seconds reviewing a resume before they make up their minds to call a candidate or not.

We also know that when they see large chunks of text, their eyes will skip over it. Therefore, it is vital to limit the length of a summary statement to ensure it gets read.

Here are several examples of “written elevator speeches” or summary/branding statements with titles.

PROFESSIONAL WRITER

A versatile and creative writer fuss a background in journalism and academics with expertise in business writing to deliver quality, customized material spanning news, marketing, web content, curriculum, and career development. Provides sales support and high-rated client service and excels in meeting deadlines in quick-turnaround settings.

FINANCIAL & OPERATIONS SUPPORT PROFESSIONAL

Blends academic training in economics and business administration with hands-on experience in sales and operations support to offer employers a track record of delivering on tasks accurately, efficiently, and quickly. Known for providing best-in-class customer service and communications in a variety of business settings.

SENIOR-LEVEL EXECUTIVE

A proven leader of US and international sales organizations offers expertise in developing successful growth strategies and training both individual representative and team leaders in product benefits and customer service techniques. Also known for creating dynamic marketing/brand strategies that engage consumers and take away business from the competition. Effectively manages P&L on multimillion-dollar, multi-product lines of business.

We have limited space, it’s important to carefully plan what goes into your summary statement. Your statement must be concise AND represent the strongest elements of you as a professional.

Here are three steps to writing a strong summary statement for your resume:

Step 1: First, think of three or four things that define you as a professional. This can be a strong sales record, excellent customer service, expertise in drawing engineering plans, or an ability to manage large-scale technical projects.

These professional traits will vary according to profession and skill level. Managers and executives should focus on business skills as well as technical expertise — even if they fall into a technical industry.

Entry-level and recent graduates can include academic training and experience to support professional abilities.

Step 2: Next, think of the things you enjoy the most in your work. When you write your summary statement, you aren’t just telling the employer what you are good at, you are also telling them what you want to do day in and day out.

Ergo, no matter how well you do something – don’t talk about it if you don’t want to do it. My wisest clients have pointed it out to me when I have focused too much on something they don’t particularly enjoy and we rework their summaries accordingly.

Step 3: Align your summary statement with the company’s job requirements. Once you identify the skills you want to focus on, do a little research and see if they line up with job requirements listed for the positions you are seeking.

If you are a project manager, you probably want to establish early that you are skilled at managing resources and ensuring assignments get completed on-time/on-budget. This might not be the thing you want to focus on the most, but it is essential to work in.

Focus on your most important selling points, Skip the “I” and “me” stuff, Use of “I, me, my” places the focus on the applicant and the goal of the resume is to sell the employer on what you can do for THEM.

By telling the reader what you “do” and what you are “known for,” you get the reader thinking about how you can do those things for them. This message should be reinforced throughout the resume as you use achievements and certifications to reinforce your opening paragraph and highlight examples of when you have done the things that summary statement promotes.

Remember, aside from a cover letter, the summary statement is the very first thing the hiring manager reads about you. It is your handshake long before you meet the interviewer.

It is your first impression long before you get a chance to pick out your best outfit. It requires more than “I am seeking a job as….” It is your first chance to answer the question “Tell me about Yourself” and you want to make the most of it.