Resume Revisions, Does It Ever End?

I was recently working with a friend of mine regarding her resume to make sure it demonstrated her experience for a job she was applying for. In our discussion she made the following comment;
“I will be happy when this resume is done and over with and I won’t have to play with it any more.”

Now, this struck me in a funny way that I had to chuckle in sympathy with her for a second and then I realized that resume revisions are never over and a resume is never final. So I explained to my friend that my resume has evolved over the last 11 years to include the words that are commonly searched by recruiters in my field and my own search terms as a professional when I conduct research. I also change, add, and edit wording almost religiously, with new experiences, situations, and projects as they happen so I don’t forget when the time comes to hand out my resume.

I would like to strongly suggest to everyone, be prepared for the unexpected positive or negative situations we may encounter in our careers by editing and revising our resumes regularly. Your resume is a living document. As you evolve in your position, career, and experiences, your resume should evolve in real time too.

You may be completely happy with your job, but on occasion, as you are cruising Jobing.com to see what is out there (come on, I know you do it) ask yourself, “Is my resume updated should my dream job be out there today?” Because, as a jobseeker, we don’t have time to spare when it comes to applying for the right job.

Think of the times when you have been networking and the people you are speaking with ask for your resume. How many of us have scrambled to update it by the next day? I know I have in some cases. Then, because we did not say the right things, forgot experiences, projects, etc. we send three or four revised documents. How well did that make us look in terms of being prepared, proactive, or detailed?

Resume are never finished, they are a real time, living, and evolving documentation of your skills, experiences and passions about your career.