From the desk of Kent Lee, CEO of Perfect Resume.

We did an interview coaching session with an Executive Vice President for a large corporation a couple weeks ago who was worried about the fact that she hadn't completed a college degree. We coached her that the strategy to keep in mind anytime you get a question that focuses on something negative is this: Have a confident, short answer (under 30 seconds) that redirects the question to one of your strengths.

Let me give you an example of how this might look/sound in an interview for our client that we coached today:

Interviewer: "I noticed that you don't have a degree. Why didn't you finish your college education?"
Thursday
Candidate: "When I was...

Recently I did an interview coaching session with a high-level executive worried about a potential “red flag” on his resume.

Red flags are warning signs that indicate to hiring managers and recruiters that you might not be a great candidate for the job. Many of you probably have red flags on your resume and might not know the best way to handle this situation during an interview.

Examples of red flags might include:
- A significant gap of unemployment.
- Working for several years in an industry unrelated to the industry in which you are pursuing a job.
- Short employment stints, such as working for several different companies for 1 year or less.
- An incomplete college education.

When ...

Applying for jobs after college graduation can be a stressful time. There are thousands and thousands of new job applicants all competing for the same jobs. In this article, I'm sharing my absolute favorite resume writing tips and tricks specifically for new college graduates.

We've been using these strategies and techniques at Perfect Resume for more than 10 years, and now you can use them too!

1. Don’t Try to Cram Everything on One Page

I tell people this almost every day. The one-page resume rule is the single biggest myth in all of resume writing — yes, even for college graduates! Now, it’s important to understand that I’m not saying your resume must be longer than...

From the desk of Kent Lee, CEO of Perfect Resume.

Most people understand the importance of having an "elevator pitch" during a job search. It's basically a 15- to 30-second spoken commercial that explains to people who you are, what you do, what kind of position you’re seeking, and why you're a great fit for the position. What most people don't understand, though, is that an elevator pitch should also be part of your resume. And, if you don’t have one, you're missing out on the best opportunity to sell yourself.

1. Ditch the Objective Statement. Use an Opening Paragraph Instead.

Just to be clear, an Opening Paragraph (also called an Executive Summary) isn’t an objective state...

From the desk of Kent Lee, CEO of Perfect Resume:

It was one of the biggest mistakes I ever made as a recruiter.

I was recruiting for a Mechanical Engineer with a salary of up to $85K for a company in Phoenix. I found a great candidate in Dallas. Someone who met all the requirements, currently made $85K, and was seeking to relocate to Phoenix.

After 3 rounds of interviews, it was a great fit for both sides, professionally and culturally.

My client extended an offer at $85K and my candidate promptly turned it down. I was confused and called to find out what was going on.

I said, “They offered you $85K, the exact amount you're making in Dallas? Why turn it down?"

She replied, “Kent, yo...

From the desk of Kent Lee, CEO of Perfect Resume:

As a resume-writing service, we speak to dozens and dozens of clients each and every week. Without question, the comments we hear the most from people are that they’re worried their resume is “boring,” and that they want a resume that “stands out from the crowd” and “gets a hiring manager’s attention.” The problem here is that when most people say this, they’re referring to how their resume looks. And, they're using a mindset that is completely irrelevant in today's day and age.

It’s a Digital World…and That Changes Everything

Hear us out, we’re not living in the ‘90s...

From the desk of Kent Lee, CEO of Perfect Resume:

Something that often gets debated in the resume writing world, is where the education section of a resume should be placed. Should it go at the top or the bottom? It's important to understand that there really is no defined rule for this, and either option is acceptable. That being said, I'd like to explain Perfect Resume's strategy regarding this subject.

At Perfect Resume, our content strategy often revolves around "relevance" and "leverage". In short, we are always looking for content that can influence the person who is reading the resume. As a general rule, if someone recently completed a college degree, and they graduated within the las...

From Kent Lee, CEO of Perfect Resume
I'd like to take a moment and share with you 3 answers to the most common questions I get from clients on a weekly basis.

Question: How long should my resume be? Is it necessary to keep my resume to 1 page?

The length of your resume will vary from person to person. However, the 1 page resume rule is the single biggest myth in resume writing. 1 page often isn't enough space to clearly show how you meet all of the requirements listed on a job description. In fact, 90% of the resumes written by Perfect Resume are 2 pages long. Let me assure you, 2-page resumes are NOT too long. Hiring managers, HR managers, and Recruiters will always have time to read a 2-page...

How Tom Cruise Helped Me Write Thousands of Job-Winning Resumes

The Tom Cruise metaphor is a story Perfect Resume CEO Kent Lee shares with clients almost every day to create job-winning resumes. It's a metaphor that helps illustrate to clients that when it comes to choosing content for your resume, less can actually be more.

Here's the Tom Cruise Metaphor:

Let’s say you walk into a bar, and you meet Tom Cruise. He says, “Hi, I’m Tom Cruise, the actor.” You say, “Really? What movies have you been in?”

Tom says, “I’ve been in ‘A Few Good Men,’ ‘Risky Business’ and ‘Jerry McGuire.’”

And if he stops talking righ...