At the same time, it is important to be realistic. Fully remote fresher roles are competitive, and many companies are moving toward hybrid or remote-friendly models instead of giving complete work from home permanently. That does not mean remote opportunities are disappearing. It simply means you need to pick roles that naturally work well online, build the right proof of skills, and apply in a structured way.

In this blog, you will find the best work from home careers for freshers in 2026, explained in a beginner-friendly way. You will learn what each role involves, what skills and tools you need to start, how to choose the right path based on your strengths, and how to avoid fake job listings. By the end, you will have a clear shortlist of career options and a practical action plan to start applying with confidence.

Why Work From Home Careers Make Sense for Freshers in 2026?

Work from home careers make sense for freshers because they reduce two big barriers that usually slow down early careers: location and access. When a role is remote, you are not limited to the companies hiring in your city. You can apply across India and even to global teams, which increases the number of opportunities you can realistically target as a fresher.

• Remote roles also match how many modern teams work now. A lot of day-to-day work happens on email, chat, shared documents, and project tools. So if you can communicate clearly, follow processes, and deliver work on time, you can perform well even without years of experience. In fact, for many roles, what matters more than your degree is whether you can produce clean outputs consistently.
• Another reason WFH careers are attractive is that they allow you to build skills while working. Many entry-level remote jobs are “learn while doing” roles: you start with simple tasks (handling support tickets, scheduling interviews, writing basic content, updating reports, doing quality checks) and grow into more specialised work over time. If you choose the right track, your learning curve becomes part of your job, not something separate you have to manage alone.
• Finally, WFH careers can be a smart way to build financial independence early. Even if your first role is not your dream job, remote roles often teach transferable skills like documentation, client communication, coordination, reporting, and tool usage. These skills help you move into higher-paying remote roles later, such as data analytics, cloud operations, product support, digital marketing strategy, or specialised sales roles.

Work From Home vs Hybrid vs Remote-Friendly Jobs

Before you apply, it is important to understand what companies actually mean when they say “remote.” Many freshers waste time because they assume every remote job is fully work from home. In reality, companies use three common models, and each one has different expectations.

• Work from home (fully remote) means you can do the job from anywhere, and you are not expected to come to the office regularly. Some roles may still ask you to work in a specific time zone or attend an occasional in-person meet-up, but day-to-day work is completely remote.
• Hybrid means you work partly from home and partly from the office. For example, a company may ask you to come to the office two or three days a week. Hybrid roles can still be useful for freshers because you get training and team exposure, but it is not a pure work from home option.
• Remote-friendly usually means the role allows remote work, but with conditions. The most common conditions are location restrictions (only certain cities), time zone requirements, or “work from home now, office later” policies. Some remote-friendly roles may also require you to visit the office for onboarding, training, or quarterly meetings.
• When you read a job description, look for clarity on these points: whether it is fully remote or hybrid, whether the role is location-limited, whether shifts are fixed (day/night), whether equipment is provided, and whether occasional office visits are expected. This small check saves you from applying to roles that do not match what you actually want.

How to Choose the Right Work From Home Career?

The best work from home career for you depends on two things: your natural strengths and how quickly you want to start earning. Many freshers make the mistake of choosing a role only because it sounds popular, but remote hiring rewards people who can produce clear output and communicate well. So it is better to choose a path where you can build proof fast.

• If you want the fastest entry, choose roles that hire in high volume and train freshers quickly. Customer support, virtual assistant, recruitment coordinator, and operations roles usually fall in this category. These jobs value communication, discipline, and process-following more than advanced technical skills.
• If you are strong in writing and creativity, content writing, SEO content, copywriting, social media, design, and video editing are good remote paths. These roles usually require a portfolio, but the advantage is that you can create your portfolio at home without needing a job first.
• If you like numbers and structured work, consider junior data analyst (starting with Excel), finance operations, and reporting roles. These can pay better over time, but they require you to build proof through spreadsheets, dashboards, and case-study style projects.
• If you want a high-growth long-term career, you can start remote-friendly tracks like technical support (non-coding), manual QA testing, cloud support, or junior analytics. These roles often need a slightly longer preparation period, but they have strong career progression.

A simple rule is this: pick one track, learn the essential tools, build 2–4 proof samples, and then apply consistently. Remote jobs are not won by random applications. They are won by candidates who show clear evidence that they can deliver work without supervision.

Remote-Ready Skills Every Fresher Must Build

No matter which work from home career you choose, there are a few skills that decide whether you get hired and whether you survive in a remote job. Remote work is less about “working from home” and more about proving that you can deliver work clearly without constant supervision.

• Communication that is clear and professional – In remote jobs, most work happens through messages, emails, and short calls. You should be able to write clean updates, ask the right questions, and explain what you have done without over-explaining. Freshers who communicate clearly are trusted faster.
• Basic tool comfort (non-negotiable) – You should be confident with Google Docs or MS Word, spreadsheets, and simple presentations. Many remote roles also expect you to use task trackers like Trello, Asana, or similar tools. You do not need to master everything, but you should be comfortable enough to work without getting stuck.
• Process discipline and reliability – Remote teams rely on timelines. If you can follow checklists, meet deadlines, and update your status daily, you become valuable quickly. This is a major advantage for freshers because reliability can compensate for a lack of experience.
• AI tool usage, but in a responsible way – In 2026, many roles expect basic AI fluency for drafting, summarising, research support, and improving productivity. The key is to use AI to improve your work, not to fake it. You should still understand what you submit and be able to explain it.
• Proof of work (portfolio mindset)-
• Even if you do not have experience, you can show proof. For customer support, proof can be sample email replies and ticket handling. For content, proof is articles and briefs. For ops, proof is a clean spreadsheet tracker and a process document. For analytics, proof is dashboards and case studies. Proof reduces risk for employers, which matters a lot in remote hiring.
• Basic interview readiness for remote roles – Remote interviews often include practical tests: writing tasks, spreadsheet tasks, or role-play scenarios. You should prepare for a few common situations: handling an angry customer, giving a daily update, prioritising tasks, and fixing a simple spreadsheet or documentation problem.

Best Work From Home Careers for Freshers in 2026

In 2026, starting your career no longer means commuting to an office or waiting years for flexibility. Work from home roles have opened real opportunities for freshers who have skills, curiosity, and a stable internet connection. From digital marketing and content creation to data analysis and customer support, companies are actively hiring entry-level talent for remote positions. The best part? You can build experience, earn well, and grow professionally without relocating. If you’re just beginning your journey, there are plenty of remote careers that offer learning, stability, and long-term growth right from your home.

1) Customer Support Associate (Chat/Email/Voice)

You solve customer problems through chat, email, or calls. This can include answering product questions, handling complaints, tracking orders, fixing basic account issues, and escalating complex cases to the right team.

Why is it good for freshers?

• Many companies hire freshers for support roles because training can be provided. Your communication skills, patience, and problem-solving matter more than your degree stream.

Skills and tools you need

• Clear spoken/written communication, basic English, empathy, fast typing, and basic computer comfort. Common tools include CRM or ticketing systems (you can learn on the job), email, chat tools, and spreadsheets for tracking.

How to build proof (without experience)?

• Create 10 sample customer replies (refund request, late delivery, login issue, subscription cancellation, angry customer). Also prepare 5 role-play scripts for call handling. This becomes strong interview proof.

Growth path

• Support Associate → Senior Support → Team Lead → Quality Analyst / Process Trainer / Customer Success roles

2) Virtual Assistant (VA) / Remote Executive Assistant

You help a manager or team with scheduling, emails, file organisation, research, meeting notes, travel planning, follow-ups, and sometimes basic reporting.

Why is it good for freshers?

• If you are organised, responsible, and good at communication, you can do well even as a fresher. This role rewards discipline and consistency, which remote teams value.

Skills and tools you need

• Calendar management (Google Calendar), email writing, spreadsheets, document formatting, meeting notes, and task tracking. You also need strong attention to detail and the ability to prioritise.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create a sample weekly calendar for a “busy manager,” a meeting notes template, a simple expense tracker, and a task list system (for example, a Trello board screenshot or a written workflow). This proof makes you look job-ready.

Growth path

• VA → Executive Assistant → Operations Coordinator / Project Coordinator / Chief of Staff track (with experience)

3) Content Writer / SEO Content Associate (Beginner Track)

You write blogs, product descriptions, web pages, and sometimes social media captions. In SEO content roles, you also follow basic SEO structure like headings, keywords, internal linking, and readability.

Why is it good for freshers?

• This is one of the easiest remote careers to start because you can build a portfolio from home. Companies care more about writing quality and consistency than your degree.

Skills and tools you need

• Writing clarity, research ability, simple SEO basics, editing, and basic formatting. Tools can include Google Docs, Grammarly-like editing, and simple keyword research tools.

How to build proof (without experience)?

• Write 3 strong sample articles in one niche (for example: careers, finance basics, health, or tech for beginners). Create 1 SEO brief (topic, keywords, headings, FAQs). Publish on Medium or keep as PDFs. This is enough to start applying.

Growth path

• Content Writer → SEO Writer → Content Strategist → Content Lead / Marketing roles

4) Recruitment Coordinator / Junior Talent Associate (Remote)

You help companies hire people. Your work includes shortlisting resumes, scheduling interviews, sending emails to candidates, maintaining candidate trackers, coordinating with interviewers, and sometimes doing basic screening calls using a fixed question list.

Why is it good for freshers?

• This role values communication, coordination, and process discipline more than technical knowledge. Many teams are okay hiring freshers if you can manage schedules smoothly and speak professionally.

Skills and tools you need

• Email writing, spreadsheet tracking, calendar scheduling, basic calling etiquette, and attention to detail. You may use ATS tools (applicant tracking systems), but you can learn them on the job.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create a sample candidate tracker in Excel/Google Sheets, a basic screening scorecard (criteria + scoring), and 2 sample email templates (interview invite, follow-up). This is strong proof for fresher hiring.

Growth path

• Recruitment Coordinator → Recruiter → Senior Recruiter / Talent Partner roles

5) Data Entry and Operations Associate (Legit Ops Roles)

You handle structured operations work like updating records, checking data accuracy, preparing simple reports, coordinating updates between teams, maintaining trackers, and ensuring processes are followed correctly.

Why is it good for freshers?

• This is a common entry point because many businesses need reliable people to manage day-to-day operations. It is also a good remote option because most tasks are done on spreadsheets and tools.

Skills and tools you need

• Excel/Google Sheets, accuracy, speed, and comfort with repetitive work. You should also know basic email communication and how to maintain clean documentation.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Build one sample operations tracker (for example: order tracker, recruitment tracker, vendor tracker), and write a simple SOP (step-by-step process) for how you update it daily. This shows you understand process work, which remote teams want.

Important warning (to avoid scams)

• Avoid “data entry” jobs that promise unrealistically high pay, ask for money upfront, or do not have a real interview process. Genuine ops roles have structured tasks, a real company profile, and clear responsibilities.

Growth path

• Ops Associate → Senior Ops → Team Lead → Operations Analyst / Project Ops roles

6) Sales Development Representative (SDR) / Inside Sales (Remote)

You help a company generate leads and set up meetings. You reach out to potential customers via email, LinkedIn, and calls, qualify interest, update CRM records, and book meetings for the main sales team.

Why is it good for freshers?

This role hires freshers often because companies can train you on scripts and products. If you are confident speaking, can handle rejection, and can follow daily targets, you can grow fast and earn incentives.

Skills and tools you need

Communication, persuasion, basic objection handling, and discipline. Tools may include CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce), email tools, LinkedIn, and basic spreadsheet tracking.

How to build proof (without experience)

Create a sample outreach sequence: 3 emails + 2 LinkedIn messages + 1 call script for a product. Also create a simple CRM-style tracker (lead name, status, next follow-up). This proof helps a lot in interviews.

Growth path

• SDR → Account Executive → Sales Manager / Revenue roles, or move into Customer Success in some companies

7) Social Media Executive (Remote)

You plan and post content, write captions, reply to comments and DMs, track basic performance metrics, and help grow a brand’s online presence. In many fresher roles, you start with execution work such as making a content calendar, posting consistently, and reporting weekly results.

Why is it good for freshers?

• This is a common remote role because the work is digital-first. Companies hire freshers if you can show creativity, consistency, and a basic understanding of what works on Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube Shorts.

Skills and tools you need

• Content planning, basic writing, trend awareness, and simple design skills. Tools can include Canva, Meta Business Suite, scheduling tools, and basic analytics dashboards.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create a 30-day content calendar for one niche (for example: fitness, skincare, finance, career tips). Then create 12–15 sample posts (mix of carousel, reel script ideas, and stories). Add a simple weekly report format (reach, engagement, top post, learning). This becomes your portfolio.

Growth path

• Social Media Executive → Social Media Strategist → Growth/Performance roles, or move into Content Marketing

8) Manual QA Tester (Software Testing – No Coding Start)

You test websites and apps to find bugs before users face them. You follow test cases, report bugs clearly, re-test fixes, and help maintain quality. Most fresher QA roles start with manual testing, not automation.

Why is it good for freshers?

• You do not need coding to start. If you are detail-oriented and can document issues clearly, you can learn and grow fast. Many testing tasks can be done remotely because you only need access to the product and the tracking tool.

Skills and tools you need

• Attention to detail, logical thinking, and clean documentation. Tools include bug trackers (Jira-like tools), spreadsheets or test case templates, and basic understanding of how apps work.

How to build proof (without experience)?

Pick any public website or app and create:

• 20 test cases (login, search, filters, checkout, forms)
• 10 bug reports (with steps to reproduce, expected vs actual, screenshots)
  Package this as a PDF portfolio. This is very strong for fresher QA interviews.

Growth path

• Manual QA → QA Analyst → Automation testing (later) → QA Lead

9) Junior Data Analyst (Excel-First, No-Code Start)

You organise data, clean it, create reports, and support decision-making through charts and dashboards. As a fresher, you often start with spreadsheets: tracking metrics, preparing weekly reports, and building basic dashboards.

Why is it good for freshers?

• It is one of the best long-term remote career paths because analytics work can be done online and pays better with experience. But it requires proof of skill more than a certificate alone.

Skills and tools you need

• Excel or Google Sheets (must), basic charting, data cleaning, and reporting logic. Later, you can add Power BI/Tableau and basic SQL to level up.

How to build proof (without experience)?

• Build 2 dashboards in Excel or Google Sheets using a public dataset (sales tracker, marketing performance, finance tracker). Write a 1-page case study for each: problem, dataset, steps, insights, and recommendation. This becomes a portfolio.

Growth path

• Junior Data Analyst → Data Analyst → Business Analyst / Analytics roles

10) Finance Operations Associate (AR/AP, Reconciliation Support)

You support daily finance processes such as invoicing, tracking payments, following up with customers or vendors, updating records, preparing basic MIS reports, and helping with reconciliations (matching bank entries with internal records). In many companies, this work is done on spreadsheets and accounting tools, so it can be remote or remote-friendly.

Why is it good for freshers?

• It is commerce-friendly and does not require coding. If you are organised and comfortable with numbers, you can grow steadily. Many companies hire freshers here because the work is process-based and can be trained.

Skills and tools you need

• Excel/Google Sheets, attention to detail, basic accounting concepts (invoice, PO, credit note, ledger), and professional email communication. Familiarity with accounting software is helpful but not mandatory at the start.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create a sample invoice tracker, a payments tracker, and one simple reconciliation example (bank statement lines matched to a ledger tracker). Add a short SOP explaining your steps. This is strong proof for interviews.

Growth path

• Finance Ops → Senior Finance Ops → Finance Analyst / AR/AP Specialist → FP&A support (with upskilling)

11) Graphic Design Assistant / Canva Designer (Remote)

You create social media creatives, thumbnails, simple brand templates, posters, and basic marketing assets. Many remote roles are execution-focused at the start: you receive a brief, produce designs quickly, and iterate based on feedback.

Why is it good for freshers?

• You can build a portfolio without a job. Companies care more about your design output than your degree. If you are consistent and fast, you can find freelance and full-time remote work.

Skills and tools you need

• Canva (strong basics), simple design principles (alignment, spacing, typography), brand consistency, and basic writing for design. Optional: basic Photoshop or Illustrator later.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create a mini brand kit for a fictional brand (logo style, fonts, colours, tone). Then design 10 posts (5 carousel + 5 single creatives) and 3 thumbnail styles. Put them into a single PDF portfolio.

Growth path

• Design Assistant → Graphic Designer → Brand Designer / Creative Lead

12) Video Editor (Short-Form Reels/Shorts)

You edit short videos for Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and ads. Work usually includes cutting clips, adding captions, improving pacing, adding music, and following a creator or brand’s style guidelines.

Why is it good for freshers?

• Short-form editing demand is strong and remote-friendly. You can start with basic tools and improve quickly through practice. Portfolio matters more than formal education.

Skills and tools you need

• Basic editing skills, timing, captioning, and storytelling flow. Tools can include CapCut, Premiere Pro, or similar. You also need the ability to follow references and replicate a style.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create 5 short edits in different styles (educational, vlog, motivational, product, podcast clips). Show a before/after cut (raw vs final) for at least one clip if possible. Compile into a portfolio folder and a short PDF explaining your role.

Growth path

• Video Editor → Senior Editor → Content Lead / Creative Producer roles

13) Online Tutor / Academic Mentor (Remote)

You teach a subject online, solve doubts, help students with homework, and sometimes create lesson plans or practice worksheets. Depending on the platform, you may teach school students, competitive exam aspirants, or college-level basics.

Why is it good for freshers?

• If you are strong in one subject, you can start quickly and build income while you prepare for longer-term roles. Many tutoring roles are fully remote and reward consistency and clarity.

Skills and tools you need

• Strong subject clarity, simple explanation skills, patience, and basic online teaching tools (Zoom/Meet, digital whiteboard, PDFs). Communication skills matter a lot.

How to build proof (without experience)

• Create a short demo lesson plan (one topic), a 10-question practice sheet, and a 5–7 minute demo teaching video (even a simple screen recording). This is enough to start applying.

Growth path

• Tutor → Senior Tutor → Curriculum Creator / Academic Coordinator / Coaching content roles

14) Technical Support (Non-Coding Track)

You support users or clients on a specific product or tool. This can include login/account issues, setup guidance, basic troubleshooting, explaining product features, and documenting issues. Unlike general customer support, technical support requires more structured troubleshooting and clearer documentation.

Why is it good for freshers?

• You do not need coding, but you do need the ability to learn product logic and troubleshoot systematically. It is a strong entry path into tech because you gain domain knowledge and can later move into implementation, operations, or product roles.

Skills and tools you need

• Troubleshooting mindset, basic IT fundamentals (OS, browser issues, networking basics), strong written communication, and documentation skills. Tools can include ticketing systems, knowledge bases, and sometimes basic SQL queries (not always, and usually later).

How to build proof (without experience)

• Write a “mini support handbook” for a common product (for example: Zoom, Google Drive, WhatsApp Business, or any SaaS tool). Include common issues, step-by-step fixes, and escalation notes. This shows you can document and troubleshoot.

Growth path

• L1 Technical Support → L2 Support → Implementation / Product Support Specialist → Operations or Product roles

15) Copywriting (Ads + Landing Pages)

You write persuasive short-form content: ad copy, landing page text, email campaigns, product descriptions, and marketing messages. The goal is not just to write nicely, but to drive action (clicks, sign-ups, purchases).

Why is it good for freshers?

• It is remote-friendly and portfolio-driven. If you can show strong writing and structured thinking, you can get freelance or entry-level roles even without formal experience.

Skills and tools you need

• Strong writing, understanding of audience pain points, clarity, and basic marketing concepts. Tools include Google Docs, basic competitor research, and sometimes simple AI drafting support (but your final output must be your own thinking).

How to build proof (without experience)

Pick one product category (skincare, edtech, finance app, fashion brand). Create:

• 10 ad copies (different angles)
• 2 landing page drafts (headline, benefits, CTA, FAQs)
• 3 email sequences (welcome or offer)
  Compile this into a single PDF portfolio.

Growth path

• Junior Copywriter → Copywriter → Senior Copywriter → Creative Strategist / Brand roles

“Best For You” Shortlists, So You Can Choose Fast

If you want the fastest job in 30–45 days (high hiring volume)

• Customer Support Associate
• Virtual Assistant / Executive Assistant
• Recruitment Coordinator / Junior Talent Associate
• Data Entry and Operations Associate

These roles usually hire freshers faster because training is structured and the work is process-driven. Your communication, reliability, and ability to follow SOPs matter more than experience.

If you want higher growth and better long-term pay (but it needs more preparation)

• Junior Data Analyst (Excel-first)
• Sales Development Representative (SDR) / Inside Sales
• Manual QA Tester (Testing)
• Technical Support (Non-coding track)

These roles can grow into higher-paying career tracks, but you should build stronger proof of skill through small projects, test cases, dashboards, or outreach scripts.

If you want creative work from home careers (portfolio-based)

• Content Writer / SEO Content Associate
• Social Media Executive
• Graphic Design Assistant / Canva Designer
• Video Editor (Short-form)
• Copywriting

Here the portfolio matters more than certificates. You can start building proof immediately and apply once you have 6–10 solid samples.

If you are from commerce background and want remote-friendly corporate work

• Finance Operations Associate
• Recruitment Coordinator
• Operations Associate
• SDR / Inside Sales (if you are confident speaking)

These roles match commerce skills like coordination, numbers, follow-ups, reporting, and structured workflows.

Where to Find Genuine Work From Home Jobs?

To find real work from home jobs as a fresher, focus on platforms and methods where companies post verified roles and where you can cross-check the employer’s identity. The goal is not to apply everywhere. The goal is to apply where listings are more likely to be real and where the hiring process looks professional.

1) LinkedIn (best for real companies + direct discovery)

• Use LinkedIn for two things: job listings and company verification. Apply through the job post, but also check the company page, employee profiles, and whether the same role appears on the company’s careers page. LinkedIn is especially good for roles like SDR, recruitment, content, operations, customer support, and analytics internships.

2) Company career pages (highest trust)

• If you find a role on any platform, try to verify it on the company’s own careers page. If it is a real company and a real opening, it is usually listed there as well. Applying via career pages can also reduce competition compared to mass “Easy Apply” listings.

3) Job portals (use filters carefully)

• Portals can work, but you must use strict filters: remote, fresher/entry-level, and specific job titles. The key is to avoid vague listings and focus on roles with clear responsibilities, clear company details, and a standard interview process.

4) Remote-first job boards (useful, but be selective)

• Remote-first boards can be useful for global roles, but they often have fewer fresher openings. Still, they can be good for content, design, marketing support, operations support, and assistant roles if you have a portfolio.

Search keywords that actually work (copy-paste friendly)

Try combinations like:

• “remote fresher”
• “work from home fresher”
• “entry level remote”
• “remote internship”
• “customer support remote”
• “virtual assistant remote”
• “operations associate remote”
• “recruitment coordinator remote”
• “content writer remote fresher”
• “junior data analyst remote”
• “manual QA tester remote”
• “SDR remote entry level”

A simple weekly application system (so you do not get overwhelmed)

• Choose 2 job roles only (example: Customer Support + Recruitment Coordinator).
• Apply to 10–15 relevant roles per week, not 50 random roles.
• Tailor your resume headline and the top 3 bullets to match the role.
• Keep a tracker (company, role, date applied, follow-up date, response).
• Follow up after 5–7 days if you have a contact or recruiter name.

How to Avoid Work From Home Scams? 

Because work from home jobs are in high demand, scams are common, especially for “data entry,” “typing,” and “easy income” roles. A genuine company will evaluate you through a professional hiring process. A scam will try to take money, personal data, or free labour.

Big red flags (treat these as instant rejection)

• They ask you to pay any fee for registration, training, interview booking, background verification, ID card, laptop, or “work kit.”
• They promise unrealistic salaries for simple work (for example, very high pay for a few hours of typing).
• They offer the job without an interview, or the interview is only a short chat with no real assessment.
• The recruiter uses personal WhatsApp-only communication and avoids official email, company domain, or LinkedIn profile verification.
• The company website looks fake, has poor details, or the domain is newly created and has no credible presence.
• The job description is vague: “work from home, earn daily, no skills needed,” with no clear responsibilities.

Simple safety checks (do these before you share details)

• Verify the company on LinkedIn: check employee count, recent posts, and real employees with consistent profiles.
• Search the company name + “careers” and see if the role exists on the company’s own website.
• Check the recruiter: does the person have a credible LinkedIn profile and company email?
• Look for a standard hiring flow: application → interview → assessment (sometimes) → offer letter.
• Never share sensitive documents early (Aadhaar/PAN/bank details). A real employer asks these only after a formal offer and onboarding stage.

How to handle “work test” requests

• A small work test is normal, especially for content, design, or operations roles. But it should be reasonable. If they ask you to produce a large amount of work (many articles, full campaigns, heavy edits) without pay and without any interview, treat it as suspicious.

30-Day Action Plan for Freshers (Work From Home Track)

Week 1: Pick your track and set the foundation

• Choose one role track only for now (example: Customer Support, Virtual Assistant, Content Writing, Recruitment, Ops, QA, or Data Analyst).
• Then list the 5–7 core skills that role needs and start learning only those.
• Set up your basic tools: a clean resume, a professional email ID, a LinkedIn profile, and a simple folder where you will store your portfolio samples.

Week 2: Build proof of work (this is the main differentiator)

Create 2–4 portfolio items based on your chosen track.

• Customer Support: 10 sample ticket replies + role-play scripts
• Virtual Assistant: calendar plan + meeting notes template + tracker
• Recruitment: screening scorecard + candidate tracker + email templates
• Ops: tracker + SOP document
• Content: 3 writing samples + 1 SEO brief
• Social media: 30-day calendar + 12 posts
• QA: test cases + bug reports
• Data analyst: 2 dashboards + short case study notes
  Do not aim for perfection. Aim for clean, complete proof that shows you can deliver.

Week 3: Apply strategically and start interview practice

Create a tracker sheet and apply to a realistic number of roles. Apply to 10–15 highly relevant roles in the week, not random jobs. Tailor your resume headline and top bullets for each role type. Start mock interviews for common remote scenarios: giving a daily update, handling a customer complaint, prioritising tasks, and explaining your portfolio sample clearly.

Week 4: Improve based on feedback and increase quality

Review what is not working: resume, portfolio, role choice, or your interview answers. Improve one thing at a time. Add one stronger portfolio piece. Tighten your LinkedIn profile. Apply again with better targeting. Follow up on earlier applications where possible. By the end of 30 days, you should have a complete fresher-ready profile with proof of work, a clean application system, and improved interview readiness.

Expert Corner

Work from home is not one single career. It is a work mode that suits certain roles better than others. As a fresher, your best strategy is to choose roles where your output can be seen clearly, your skills can be learned quickly, and you can build proof of work without waiting for experience.

If you want the fastest entry, customer support, virtual assistant, recruitment coordination, and operations roles are practical starting points. If you want long-term growth, tracks like junior data analytics, manual QA, technical support, and SDR roles can lead to stronger career progression. If you prefer creative work, content writing, social media, design, video editing, and copywriting can be excellent remote options, but they require a portfolio.

The key is simple: pick one track, learn the essential tools, create 2–4 proof samples, and apply consistently using a tracker. Remote hiring rewards discipline, communication, and reliable delivery. If you build those habits early, work from home can become a stable and high-growth career path, not just a temporary arrangement.

Become a Certified Remote Workforce Manager

The post 15 Best Work From Home Careers for Freshers in 2026 appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Section 1: Education

Detailed Education

In the early stages of your career, your education is a critical part of your CV. Here’s how to make the most of it:

• List all your educational qualifications, starting from the most recent.
• Mention the institutions you attended, including their locations.
• Provide a detailed breakdown of your coursework with correct titles of subjects.
• Include your overall grade and your results in each subject.
• Emphasize the relevance of your education to the job you’re applying for. Highlight specific courses or projects that align with the position.

Remember, clarity is key. Make it easy for the reader to understand your qualifications.

Internships and Training

Don’t forget to mention any internships and training you’ve undergone during your academic journey. These experiences can be valuable assets on your CV, demonstrating your practical knowledge and dedication to your field.

• Describe the internships you’ve completed, along with the organizations where you gained this experience.
• Highlight specific skills or competencies you developed during your internships.
• Explain how these experiences have prepared you for your current job application.

Section 2: Jobs and Work Experience

Job History

As you gain professional experience, this section becomes increasingly important. Here’s how to structure it effectively:

• List all the jobs you’ve held in chronological order, starting with your most recent role.
• Mention the names of the companies, their locations, and the dates of your employment.
• Provide your job title and a brief description of your roles and responsibilities in each position.

Achievements and Advancements

To make your CV shine, it’s crucial to showcase your accomplishments within each role. This can set you apart from other applicants and highlight your contributions to previous employers.

• Describe your significant achievements in each job, such as exceeding sales targets, improving processes, or successfully completing projects.
• Mention any promotions you received and the reasons for your advancement.

Remember, employers value candidates who have a track record of making meaningful contributions to their organizations.

Section 3: Extra-Curricular Activities

This section is your opportunity to reveal your well-rounded personality and interests outside of work and academics.

Sports, Committees, and Interest Groups

• List the sports you’ve played, committees you’ve been part of, and any interest groups or clubs you’re associated with.
• Explain your role or position within these activities.
• Highlight any leadership roles or responsibilities.

Training Courses, Charitable Work, and Hobbies

• Include any relevant training courses you’ve completed, especially those that enhance your skill set.
• Describe any charitable work you’ve been involved in and its impact on your personal development.
• Share your hobbies and interests, as they provide insights into your character.

Achievements Beyond the Workplace

Take this opportunity to showcase your achievements outside of the traditional work environment. This can reveal your dedication, leadership abilities, and passion.

• Highlight any significant achievements, such as winning awards, organizing successful events, or leading initiatives.
• Emphasize the skills and qualities you’ve developed through these experiences.

Conclusion

In conclusion, a well-structured CV is your passport to career success. The best CV format covers your educational journey, professional experience, and extracurricular activities in a way that highlights your qualifications, achievements, and the unique qualities that make you the perfect candidate for the job. Don’t be modest about your accomplishments; showcase your potential and the value you can bring to your future employer. Your CV should be a story of your life, professionally and personally, in a single, compelling page. By following the tips and guidelines provided in this article, you’ll be well on your way to crafting a winning CV that opens doors to exciting opportunities.

The post Crafting the Perfect CV: Best CV Format Tips for Success appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Why DevOps Testing job is a good career choice?

DevOps is exciting this is because you are always working with and integrating new technologies and solving new challenges. Essentially your job is to find a happy balance between Testers and developers. This relationship is quite sensitive and may blow up if not administered intently. As a DevOps specialist your job would be to amalgamate these two different mindsets.

This requires that aspects of IT be securely shared so that you don’t have the blame game Developers need to continually push code and operations want to keep everything running smoothly. The more integrated the systems and processes in use, the simpler it is for each to do his/her job.

This requires that aspects of IT be securely shared so that you don’t have the blame game Developers need to continually push code and operations want to keep everything running smoothly. The more integrated the systems and processes in use, the simpler it is for each to do his/her job.

Let’s just first understand where did DevOps Come From?

DevOps is the successor of agile software development – born from the need to keep up with the increased software velocity and throughput agile methods have achieved. Over the last decade advancements in agile culture and methods exposed the need for a more holistic approach to the end-to-end software delivery lifecycle.

What Are the Challenges DevOps Solves?

Initially to DevOps application development, teams were in charge of writing code and gathering business requirements for a software programme. Then in an isolated development environment a separate QA team tests the program, if requirements were met, and releases the code for operations to deploy. The deployment teams are further specked into safe groups like networking and database. Every time a software program is “thrown over the wall” to an independent team it adds congestion. The problem with this standard is that when the teams work separately:

• Dev is often unaware of QA and Ops roadblocks that prevent the program from working as foreseen.
• QA and Ops are typically working across many features and have little background of the business purpose and value of the software.
• So, when something goes wrong each group has opposing goals that can lead to inefficiency and finger pointing.

By establishing collaborative cross-functional teams DevOps addresses these challenges that share responsibility for maintaining the system. Those run the software and prepare the software to run on that system with increased quality feedback and automation issues.

Thus DevOps is one of the most interesting career paths but to reach there you need to have certain skills. Which are discussed below.

Skills required for DevOps Testing job

DevOps plays an essential role in providing automation in the area of Build, Testing and Release to project teams. Which are today normally termed as Continuous Integration, Continuous Testing, and Continuous Delivery.

That’s why teams today are looking at faster delivery, quick feedback from customers. While providing quality software, less recovery cycle time from any crashes, and minimize defects from more and more automation. Therefore, one needs to ensure that with all the tools used and about the Integrations for the Testing and Operations team to collaborate or communicate later.

Here we have enlisted a few tools for DevOps Testing

Monit

Sometimes the simplest tools are the most useful of all, as proven by the simple watchdog Monit. It ensures that any given process on a machine is up and running appropriately. For instance, if a failure occurs in Apache, Monit will help to restart the Apache process. With hundreds of micro-services it is very easy to setup and configure and is especially useful for multi-service architecture. If you are using Monit, ensure to monitor the restarts that it executes in order to surface problems and implement solutions. You can do this just by monitoring Monit’s log files and ensuring that you are alerted to every restart.

Consul.io

Consul is a great fit for service discovery and configuration even so, in modern, elastic applications that are built from Microservices. This open-source tool utilizes the latest technology in providing internal DNS names for services. Furthermore, it acts as a kind of mediator to help you sign and register names, enabling the access to service names instead of specific machines. For instance, if you have a cluster of multiple machines, you can simply register them as a single entity under Consul and access the cluster easily.

Jenkins

This is quite a well known tool although not the fanciest of all or the fastest. Still very easy to start to use and it has a great ecosystem of plugins and add-ons. It is also optimized for easy customization. We have configured Jenkins to build code, create Docker, run tons of tests, and push to staging/production.

Ansible

This is an open source IT Configuration Management, Deployment & Orchestration tool. It sights to provide large productivity gains to a wide variety of automation challenges. This tool is quite simple to use yet powerful enough to automate complex multi-tier IT application environments.

Collectd/Collectl

Collectl is a very nice feature rich command-line utility that can be utilized to collect performance data that describes the current system status. Unlike most of the other monitoring tools, it does not only focus in a limited number of system metrics. Instead it can collect information on many different types of system resources such as- CPU, disk, memory, network, sockets, IIfiniBand, lustre, memory, nfs, processes, quadrics, slabs and buddy info.

Advantage over using collectl is that it can also play the role of utilities that are designed with only a specific purpose such as- top, ps, iotop and many others.

Git (GitHub)

It was created 10 years back following the Linux community’s need for SCM that could support distributed systems. Git is probably the most common source management tool available currently. After regulating Git internally for a short period of time, it’s been noted that GitHub was better suited. Furthermore to its great forking and pull request features, to facilitate integration and deployment GitHub also has plugins that could connect with Jenkins.

GitHub offers plans free, for both professional, and enterprise accounts.Free GitHub accounts are commonly used to host open source projects.

Along with the knowledge of the required tools you may also take training/certification courses. There are numerous certification bodies offering courses for DevOps Testing, to enrich your skills and improve your chances of getting hired for the best available opportunities.

There are different certification bodies offering the courses-

• The DevOps Institute
• Vskills- India’s largest certification body
• Edureka
• Udemy
• Simplilearn

Tips on getting job easily

Securing a good job is actually a tough thing. Still, with patience and efforts this could be achieved. Here we have enlisted a few tips to get the job you’re looking for.

Save the best job listings for future reference

If you have submitted you application for a job then you should keep a record of the application. Furthermore, do it by copy-paste or printing job listing for future reference. Because, many companies may close their job vacancies if enough of the applications. Henceforth, save the job description and prepare for the interview later .

Customize your resume for every job position you apply to

Applying within the same industry doesn’t mean you would receive the same roles and responsibilities in every organization. Hence, tailor your resume as per the listed job specifications. Thus you get a competitive edge and the hiring manager will know whether you’re suitable for the job.

Identify your skill sets

Many of us begin our job search by just looking at the job position titles. This method might be a successful one. Still it’s suggested that job seeker should look at the required skills for a position instead. By doing so the employer will know and be able to identify the skillsets you already possess and the job that best matches their experience.

Since job titles are constantly vary, hence, focusing on the required skills of a position gives access to job titles which might not match your expertise.

Utilize online resources and company websites

We are in internet days so make a complete and a good use of it in your job search. So don’t just keep your search to newspapers and friends. Now companies prefer to utilize their official website for job openings. Also job search platforms too will help you identify some good opportunities. So, make search for a specific position, along with this look for similar jobs or say suggested jobs that may stimulate your interest.

Companies that Hire

There are many top companies hiring the DevOps testers for their business. Furthermore, top companies like- Dell, Hp, PayPal, Shell, etc. offer a good package. You may think of getting in any of these companies, so for this make sure you possess the right skillsets.

The DevOps Testing job involves the following roles and responsibilities:

• DevOps Evangelist – The principal officer (leader) responsible for implementing DevOps
• Release Manager – The one releasing new features & ensuring post-release product stability
• Automation Expert – The guy responsible for achieving automation & orchestration of tools
• Software Developer/ Tester – The one who develops the code and tests it
• Quality Assurance – The one who ensures the quality of the product confirms to its requirement
• Security Engineer – The one always monitoring the product’s security & health

What is the salary for DevOps Testing job?

Salary varies from company to company and also the Location. So, to get the best possible package try looking for job to metro cities where the top companies are located. Working in top companies could be a dream of many of us, so to make this dream true you need to have specific skills and most importantly the experience.

Job Interview Tips

Research yourself

Self awareness is most important in all aspects. Henceforth, take an intent look at what have you achieved so far. The way you gave acquired all those skills and demonstrated the way.

This way of inspection will help you understand your strengths. This gives you the required confidence and helps you overcome the anxiety.

Practice

Most of the organizations currently use behavioural questions which literally mean they expect you to provide some specific examples of where you have demonstrated the skills they seek.

It’s always suggested to take professional help. A professional is is skilled at drawing examples and refining the ones you have. Although never ram the written script for answering the questions. You cannot predict the question you may come across in your interview. As, learning will make you nervous and confuse at the time of interview.

Build rapport

Be affable. Because people like that!

The simplest way is to relax and assume that the interviewer is from your side. Usually good interviews are never interested in setting you off. Henceforth, approach the interview in a very professional manner. Thus, assuming a good experience will always lead you to the positive results. So, just feel that the interviewer is someone who wants you to perform your best.

Give yourself time

No need to panic, relax and leave plenty of time to get to the interview as rushing procreates panic. Irrespective of the excuse, being late is always in the notice. As, it leads to negative impression and thus putting you behind immediately. Henceforth, allowing waiting time gives you plenty of time to gather your thoughts, compose yourself, and most importantly be mentally prepared. 

Please be yourself

Always be yourself, suppressing your true self was never a good idea. No need to pretend to be someone who you are not.

Sit back!

After making many efforts and following the rules now is the time to sit back. There are plenty of opportunities waiting for you out there. So, remove all the pressure that you hold in your mind, this is not just the only chance that you have got.
Get ready to boost your learning and become a Certified DevOps Testing Professional Now!!

Practice and Prepare with hundreds of mock tests on DevOps Testing to get Certified Now!

Access Tutorials on DevOps Testing

The post How to get a DevOps Testing job as a Fresher? appeared first on Vskills Blog.

But one can also find job for automation tester as fresher. For a fresher manual testing is fine. And, later one can upgrade his skills. Brush up your automation testing concepts and search on net, you will find one with matching requirements. Thus, freshers should focus on automation testing concepts first.

Usually, start-Up companies do not have separate testing teams. Employees perform multiple functions at the same time. But, you can also be a part of startup, with right skills. Start-up companies give importance to skills. Start-ups offer huge opportunities for learning, and multiplicity in roles due to their workload

Here are a few tips to help you get through your journey in finding your dream job as an automation tester.

Why Automation Functional Testing job is a good career choice?

If we talk of testing then yes the success of any software projects and products is highly dependent on their fast deliveries. Every business demands that the software changes must involve bug fixes, enhancements, and new features must be rolled out to productions more rapidly. This is why every software running company as well as non- software companies are adopting Automation testing as if the life of their work depends on it

In the development process, testing is the most important phase. It ensures the hardware and software functionality of the product as per the expectations or somewhere near the target performance, and smoothens out the bugs. However, some tasks are too tedious to be done manually even though they are easy enough to do. This is where automated testing comes in.

The key advantages to automated testing include:

• Firstly by making testing more efficient it saves time and money
• Secondly it improves testing accuracy compared to testing directed by humans
• Then increases test coverage because multiple testing tools can be deployed at once allowing for parallel testing of different test scenarios
• Also, helps developers by finding bugs and errors more quickly

Skills required for Automation Functional Testing job

In the software world, with new age project development methodologies like DevOps and Agile, etc. gradually replacing the old-age waterfall model. Thus, leading to an increase in the demand for automation testing.

Now Testers are now working together with the developers and automation testing is enormously replacing manual testing in many ways. So, if you’re new to automation testing domain then the organization that just hired you would expect you to be quick and present ideas out of the box, be able to detect the bugs and deliver solutions which are rarely though so far by anyone. But now the question arises that with just basic knowledge of testing? What are the skills required to become a successful automation tester? Let’s just figure out.

Skill for Automation Tester

Programming Languages-

Having a little background in programming would be an added advantage. As it will not only simplify those automation scripts to you. But it will also help you to improve reporting with the developer. Not only that, but you can also participate on the in-depth functionality testing, once unit testing is completed. Now, there are 2 different aspects to achieve this skill for automation tester, and how much programming knowledge is required depends on your role and also where do you see yourself in the industry in coming years. The aspects are:

Designing the Frameworks

As a first thing you’re required to have a thorough understanding as well as coding skills in C#, Python, Java, Perl, SQL, XML as well as HTML and CSS. However, what language/s you should be proficient in depends on the programming language used by the developers in the project. For an instance if the project is on Ruby, then you should have at least basic knowledge behind the fundamentals of Ruby

Creating the Test Scripts

Now whether you should have the programming knowledge or not in this phase totally depends upon the automation framework used. Let’s say if your organization is using the Cucumber or SpecFlow for test automation, the scripts can be then written in English where you don’t have to think about the backend logic or coding. So only having sufficient knowledge on selenium web driver is enough, although if you’re using QTP or FTP then you should have a thorough knowledge of programming.

Excellent Manual Testing Skills

In order to become a skilled automation tester, you will be required to have a keen eye and experience in manual testing as well. Don’t forget the following:

The Human Perspective plays a vital role

Whenever something seems to be off while testing, the human eye can detect it easily. This is because visual issues are difficult to detect, using automation scripts. Contemplating software from the perspective of a real-time user helps the tester to identify UI and usability testing for finding bugs which actually is a difficult feature to program in an automation script.

Expertise With Automation Tools

In the era of Agile, the industry looks for both quality as well as speed. The stakeholders and clients across the globe expect the organization to deliver a good quality & bug-free application in a small time. This is why the automation testing is on the rise. Therefore being an automation tester, every organization would expect you to have enough knowledge and experience in the automation tools. Let’s discuss about the tools here:

Selenium

Selenium has become a household name in the world of automation testing as it supports all major browsers. Almost all the browsers ensure that the Selenium is a native section of them. With the introduction of WebDriver- Selenium ensures there happen flawless execution of browser- based web application automation testing. Doesn’t matter whether you’re a fresher or an experienced test automation engineer. You should have an experience in selenium with sufficient knowledge. Also, it’s an open source tool, so if you are already working on any variant of Selenium then you will find LambdaTest to be a quite a promising platform for executing your automation scripts on the cloud. LambdaTest offers parallel test execution for an automation testing with Selenium on more than 2000 browsers with their online Selenium grid.

HP – UFT

Formerly known as QTP, this tool by HP still leads the industry while ensuring smooth execution of automated functional and regression testing of an application. So, if you are a regression tester, then you should have the knowledge and experience, as well as certification in UFT.

SoapUI

This stands to be the perfect tool to test web services and API. It supports both SOAP and REST services and if your project demands automation testing of API. Then you should have knowledge on at least the open source version of this headless tool meant for functional testing.

RFT

Rational Functional Tester abbreviated as RFT is IBM’s in house developed automation tool. RFT supports.Net, Java, SAP, Adobe Flex, Visual Basic and Dojo irrespective of the technology type used for your application. So, if you are into functional or regression testing, you will find learning this tool to be highly useful.

Appium

In this current mobile first age, many organizations are developing complex mobile applications. Appium is the best open source software that makes automation testing a truth for any hybrid or native mobile app. Other than, it is compatible across all OS like Android, iOS or Windows and is must to learn if mobile application testing is your domain.

Apache JMeter

Originally, this tool was designed to measure the performance and load testing of an application. While in the current versions, this tool is also used for API performance and service testing. Being 3rd among the most popular automation testing tools, your organization will expect any skilled automation tester to have knowledge and experience on it. And even if you don’t have any experience, still you can start learning by yourself since the tool is an open source.

Includes education skills as well as job responsibilities and skills required for the job – certification, tutorials, tools and techniques

Tips on getting job easily

It’s a hard truth that you cannot get a job without experience while the irony is how to gain experience without a job. Our few tips get job easily can help you reach where you belong:

Educate yourself

First thing is to educate yourself well it doesn’t only counts your degrees. Take classes, attend workshops, get certificates and diplomas. There are numerous certification bodies offering courses for Automation testing. This will not only give you the knowledge but also an exposure to skillset required. Following are the few certification bodies:

• Coursera
• Vskills – India’s Largest Certification Body
• Udemy
• Edx

Start working (your way up)

By this we mean to start gaining experience by working for little or say no money- this could be an internship or a virtual job. Go check for internship offered by start-ups this will not only help you secure some experience but also an in house exposure to the professional world of testing. Freelancing is another option or you may approach your contacts that have requirement for junior testers to assist them. In your spare time start your own blog and share your experience and knowledge through your words to the world. Assess by attempting free practice tests on Automation Functional Testing.

Strengthen your Network

References have always been the key, a very convenient way to get a job. For this you need to have a strong network so, flourish your network online and offline both. So, make sure you’re clear about your career as an automation functional tester, and be ready to step the elevator. Update your resume and along with that update and boost your LinkedIn profile.

Gain the expertise

To become an expert in your field, interact in forums, read blogs and join groups both online and offline. Make sure, you also know some key names in the business – online and offline; locally, nationally and even internationally. Learn everything that is there on the table about the industry and the job.

Pick people’s brains

People love to get the praise and called an expert or specialist in their certain fields. So, once you have counted the names in your head of those who you’d approach to get the required advice and knowledge on how to start. Learn and note all that you were unaware of don’t rush tings though. Show them your CV and get their views on the same and see if any changes are required to be made. Take their recommendations and apply accordingly.

Note* don’t pile their email inboxes with your CV make sure you establish a good connection first and inform them that you’re sharing your details with them to get their views.

Have a good story to tell

Be sure that you’ve a winning career story that will leave no doubts that you’re the perfect person for the position readily available in your domain. There will be thousands of questions which people may ask you so be prepared with clear and concise answers to those questions. This is the phase where you could impress the hiring manager with your passion and the right skillset.

Companies that Hire

There are many top companies hiring for the Automation functional testing jobs. Companies like- Amazon, Accenture, JP Morgan, Capgemini, etc. for their respective automation testing positions. There are different trending job positions for Automation Functional Testers. You may work as a Python Automation Tester, Automation, Performance Testing Engineer, Automation Testing (selenium), Automation Test Lead – Selenium Webdriver, etc.

There would be different roles and responsibilities as Automation testing involves a number of job roles.

What is the salary for Test Automation Engineer job?

You may expect a good salary working as an automation functional tester. But to expect a good salary need to show your knowledge and skills. Make sure you justify the role or position given to you as an automation functional tester.

Job Interview Tips

Start your search with researching about the company and your interviewers. Be prepared with your answers to the common interview questions. Reread the job description till you’re totally familiar with the role and responsibilities of the job.

Make use of the STAR method in answering the questions. Enlist a few smart questions for your interviewers so, approach a friend to practice answering questions. Prepare a list of references and prepared with samples of your work. Also, plan your attire the night before the interview.

Bring copies of your resume, and a notepad and pen/s. Always arrive 15 minutes early to your interview schedule time. Make sure you make a great first impression.

Treat everyone you encounter with respect. Pay attention to good manners and body language a few days prior to your interview. Win them over with your authenticity and positivity. Most importantly answer truthfully to the questions asked. Strap your answers back to your skills and accomplishments. Keep your answers to the point i.e. concise and focused. Mind one thing never speak negatively about your previous employers.

Also ask about next steps involved. Send a customized thank you letter after the interview to your interviewer.

Get ready to boost your learning and become a Certified Automation Functional Testing Professional Now!!

Practice and Prepare with hundreds of mock tests on Automation Functional Testing to get Certified Now!

Access Tutorials on Automation Functional Testing

The post How to get an Automation Functional Testing job as a Fresher? appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Most executives would agree to the following propositions

• There’s never enough time.
• Interruptions and other unforeseen developments threaten or destroy executive schedules.

It is precisely because executive time is of such supreme importance and they are constantly thinking of how to save time. After all, whatever the executive accomplishes, he does in and with time—that it deserves your special attention.  In this blog on how to save time, we have  cataloged ideas that have worked time saving and effort saving wonders —and can work for you on how to save time. Remember that the successful adaptation and application of just one idea can save hours of precious time—and be worth thousands of dollars to you and to your company.

FIVE BASIC STEPS OF HOW TO SAVE TIME

• Develop an overview of your responsibilities. Your job requires that you perform a particular set of activities—for example, if you’re a line executive, you are responsible for overseeing the output of your department, division, and so on. But also, you must maintain contact with other company departments—Personnel, the treasurer’s office, Production Control, and so on—and long range, seek to improve the production capabilities of your unit. As you consider all these obligations, and the activities they suggest, you clarify the picture of your job, see it in helpful perspective, and get a line on your time requirements.
• Set priorities—pattern your work schedule according to overall organizational needs. Obviously, all elements of your job have some importance. But in developing a realistic work schedule, it’s essential that either on paper or in your mind you set the various elements in a hierarchy according to importance. By setting priorities: a. you know how much relative time to assign to an activity; b. you can reschedule; in case an item of higher priority “heats up,” an immediate low-priority task can be set aside.
• Schedule your routines. Most executives follow both a daily and a weekly schedule. Typically, correspondence is handled first thing in the morning, ongoing tasks checked, progress reports read, communications with other executives made for a variety of operating reasons, and so on, through the day. Weekly items, regular weekly conferences, for example, are fitted in on appropriate days, as required. In developing your schedule, observe two points: a. Consolidate like tasks. For example, all correspondence should be done in a single sitting, all phone calls made consecutively, as far as possible. b. Allow for the unexpected. As experienced executives know, their jobs are prone to emergencies, interruptions, even sudden changes in direction. Be prepared to juggle items on your schedule, as necessary.
• Assigning specific tasks for which you are directly responsible is a major factor in executive time saving and job accomplishment.
• Review periodically. Few executive jobs remain the same, year in, year out. That’s why, every six or twelve months, it’s desirable to assess your job for changes in responsibility and activity. When changes or trends toward change, are spotted, you can make appropriate adjustments in your work schedules.

THE IMPORTANCE OF PACE AS A TIME-SAVER

“He’s a man on the move.”

“He’s got a lot of executive drive.”

Labels like these are thought to spot the outstanding executive. Maybe. Maybe not. The inexperienced manager who says with pride, “It’s drive, drive all day,” may feel he deserves high marks for performance. But the effective manager is one who paces himself: who may be going like a jet for a while, working at a leisurely pace a bit later, and completely relaxing (yes, during working hours) after that. Athletes understand the need for pacing. The miler doesn’t knock himself out of the race by trying to burn up the track the first quarter. Similarly, the real champion has a sense of pace that is partly attuned to the competition, partly to the need for outstanding performance for its own sake. In your own case—

• Only go all out for the tasks that demand it.
• Take breaks—coffee, a walk down the corridor or another building, a feet-on-the-desk interlude—before you reach the exhaustion point.
• Add a relaxation period, when you feel either physical or mental fatigue beginning to appear. How and how much you relax—ten minutes, two hours,—depends on your preference. The rest may take the form of a prolonged lunch, or conversations with colleagues or on-the-job friends. One executive, enmeshed in a month-long grueling project, found a stimulating movie a perfect workbreak and mind refresher. The above points tie in to the matter of your daily energy cycle, the next item.

ADJUSTING YOUR SCHEDULE TO YOUR PERSONAL DAILY ENERGY CYCLE TO SAVE TIME

Undoubtedly, you’ve observed it in yourself: your energies have fairly regular peaks and valleys. There are times during the working day that you feel up to anything, at other periods you would just as soon coast along.

The well-known industrial. psychologist Norman R.F. Maier studied the working efficiency of a group of executives, and charted his findings, as illustrated below.

Remember that the curve represents the rise and fall in efficiency of the “average.” Your own personal energies may closely resemble those charted, or deviate somewhat. In any event, the same factors apply:

Warm-up period. Note the rise from the morning start. Physiologists explain the warm-up on a partially physical basis. Muscles must be limbered; changes in blood pressure and circulation take place.

Fatigue drop. Fatigue is the usual explanation given for the lowering of efficiency in the course of the working period. In some cases, this tends to be cumulative.

End spurt. Although not shown on the chart, there is a tendency for efficiency to increase as the end of the work period is approached. In some cases, a similar increase may occur before breaks in general—lunch periods, completion of a task, and so on.

Your own peaks and valleys. To chart your own ups and downs of daily efficiency, keep a brief record, noting:

• The hours you feel the peppiest
• The times fatigue catches up with you
• The periods you feel most at ease mentally
• The times you find it difficult to work Tabulate the results over several days to pinpoint your strong and weak periods. Then, the final payoff step:

Tailor your daily working schedule to your personal -chart. For instance, save tough, demanding jobs for high-energy periods. Fit routine tasks into low-energy periods. Fill in mental doldrums with the tasks that almost “do themselves.” Tackle new projects, or mentally taxing ones, when your energy peaks are highest.

ONE EXECUTIVE’S TIME TEASER

“May sound like kidding yourself,” says James R. Kray, president of a Los Angeles department store, “but when I have a rush project for my office staff, I set the wall clock an hour ahead. Then, if the job has        to   be done by four o’clock, say, we’ve got an hour’s cushion. Very psychological, but it works.”

HOW TO MAKE ROOM FOR A RUSH PROJECT

Every once in a while, an executive is asked by his superior to “drop everything and push through the X Project.” The executive has an immediate problem of responding immediately to the request. Here are the three possible ways he can answer his boss: O.K. This admittedly is boss-pleasing. But if it’s done off the top of the head, the executive may not be able to deliver. A flat no. If you have the status and the judgment to tell your superior you are not in the position to perform as requested, this may let you off the hook.

However, it may also suggest that you don’t understand certain business considerations or that you haven’t recognized the exceptional case calling for special effort. Maybe. That’s the third possibility. It’s safer all-around, but it can be too cautious in some instances and too promising in others. Any one of the three reactions may be correct, but the executive must choose the best one. There are no hard and fast rules, but the following checklists suggest guides.

Consider okay if

• The boss is willing to accept delays in other work.
• All facts and information are readily available.
• Key employees are on the job or can be called in.
• All necessary supplies and materials are on hand.
• All necessary equipment is available and in good working order.
• You can depend on the group to “give a little extra.”
• Your boss will go along with your decisions on overtime, additional expenses, etc.
• You have checked service departments—everything from Engineering to Safety—to make sure you’ll get any service you need.
• You have checked other units that may be involved in helping process the work, to make sure they’ll work with you on the emergency schedule.
• The company (and you) have a lot to gain by an affirmative answer—and delivering on your promise.

Consider no if you’re sure that the priority of the rush job is less than work currently in the department. You know it isn’t humanly possible to do the job in the allotted time. (This usually means the person making the request doesn’t understand as well as you do what’s involved.)

There’s a modified no answer that really amounts to no, but. Here, if someone up the line can help eliminate an obstacle or qualify the request, you may be able to deliver some effective no, but answers that can make everybody happy, and you look good: “No, I can’t finish by five tomorrow, but I could give you X at that time, and Y by noon, next day.” “If you’d be willing to take the report as a rough draft and finish it….” Or, “If they’d be willing to take them packed in bulk instead of individually. . . .”

Or, “If they could use the order done with regular materials instead of the special formula on the specifications. .. .” “No, we can’t do it unless you can get Fred Bishop and his crew to assist me. .. .”

Consider maybe if .. . In this situation, it’s wise to use maybe only if you’re pretty sure you can deliver as requested.

The executive who says “maybe,” and then comes through on schedule, rates a gold star. The one who falls down, hasn’t added to his reputation for dependability or capability. The fact is, almost every job can be done if—if your boss or the front office is willing to go along with the extra costs, delays, or other inconveniences of making unexpected shifts in work schedules. The other part of the problem rests with the manager and the degree to which he has been able to build flexibility into his department. Essentially, this means making the entire work force understand that emergency jobs or rush orders aren’t a headache, but a challenging part of the unit’s responsibility that must be tackled when the heat’s on.

DEVELOP A SENSE OF TIME to SAVE TIME

We’re notoriously subjective in our time estimates. To the man sitting on a hot stove, a second is an eternity. The amorous swain out with his girl will tell you an evening passes in a moment. Yet, it’s important for us to be more objective about time, because the way we view it will affect what we do with it. These guides can help us develop a realistic and useful view of time:

Be a clock watcher. Check for the correct time in the course of your daily routines. The more you do so, the better you will become at estimating time passage and expenditures. Remember that people tend to underestimate the time involved in what they like to do; overestimate, what they don’t.

Watch out when time drags. This may be a signal of time waste and may call for your tackling another task that puts you under the pressure of immediate activity.

Come up for a breather. Absorption in a task may be fine. But when you’re “lost in work,” take time to ascertain that it’s a job that deserves the time and concentration it’s getting.

Avoid being “rushed to death.” Being caught up in a sequence of tasks may mean you’re very much with it, and swinging along at peak efficiency. But it may also mean that you’re being pushed along by a series of “demand” tasks that have low priority—in which case, you may be wasting time.

Keep the end of the day in view. Knowing that you have “just one more hour to go” may suggest a rearrangement of tasks, so the essential ones that can’t wait for tomorrow, get taken care of.

THE IMPORTANCE OF FLEXIBILITY IN EXECUTIVE TIME SCHEDULING

Whether you use a highly systematic method of scheduling your workday—such as a self-time study—or develop a schedule on a practical, “demand” basis, there are overall considerations about executive time that suggest the need for flexibility. That is, you must be prepared to set aside one task for a more important one, or to drop everything for an emergency situation.

1. The executive job is essentially non-routine. While every executive knows he has recurring tasks—he must cope with the in-box every day, for example—the crucial elements of the job generally do not fit into neat time compartments. A discussion with a group of key subordinates to plan a new project, a consultation with one’s superior, may cut deeply into planned time expenditures.
2. Trouble shooting and fire fighting is a standard part of your job. Any difficulty that develops in the echelons below you tends to be kicked upstairs. It may be a personnel problem, or what to do about a plan gone awry. But you, as the court of last resort, are expected to take over if those below you are unable to cope.
3. Single time expenditures tend to be short. A time study of executive activity showed that few executives can spend more than twenty minutes on a single task. This fact probably accounts for executive “homework,” at least as much as executive overload. The items tucked into executive briefcases for home attention are usually those that need hours of undivided attention. The proper response to such considerations is to build time latitude into your time allotments. Be prepared to do a half-hour task in two fifteen minute takes. Be prepared to do a Monday task on Tuesday, if an unexpected conference with top priority completely shreds your Monday plans.

HABITS CAN SAVE TIME

Some of your daily habits waste time, others save it. Psychologists make the point that habits are of two kinds:

Adaptive: These are useful. For example: you develop the habit of checking the mail first thing in the morning, because it often contains orders or requests that influence the day’s sequence of business.

Non-adaptive: These are illogical, time-wasting. For example: an executive has developed the habit of going through his mail each morning. But since the correspondence only bears on routine matters that have to be taken up later in the day, he will have to reread it all. Non-adaptive habits are usually adaptive habits that no longer have a useful purpose. For example, an executive reaches for a pencil in his vest pocket, only to recall he no longer wears a vest. Getting habits to save instead of waste time means eliminating non-adaptive habits, developing adaptive ones. It isn’t easy, but it’s possible. Here are two ways to proceed:

Will power and won’t power. Take yourself in hand; be tough with yourself. Let’s say, for instance, there’s a tendency to bog down, become enmeshed in the unimportant. Force, persuade, teach your-self to pull out, get back onto a more productive track. The executive mentioned above, who needlessly goes through his mail, can force himself to give up the practice, with the realization that he’ll be doing it later at a more propitious time.

 The systematic approach

Look at the problem in the way a time-study man approaches a work procedure: (a) size up what’s to be done; (b) work out a series of movements that do the job; (c) whittle away at the procedure till it’s efficient. Accordingly, here’s how you can substitute a time-saving for a time-wasting habit:

•  Spot the habits that have outlived their usefulness.
•  Work out a new habit to replace the old.
•  Check the time and other efficiency factors involved; make sure it’s really economical.
•  Follow the sequence through.
•  Repeat.

Keep on repeating, till the new habit is established, the old one eliminated. Finally, in getting rid of non-adaptive habits, remember that it’s easier to substitute an action for a time-wasting habit than to simply try to avoid it. For example, the executive who needlessly reads his mail will stop this time waste more effectively by filling the time by a desirable activity—contacts with subordinates, for example.

SUITING TIME TO TASK

It’s easy enough to say, “Give each task the time it deserves—no more, no less.” But how to do it? These guides help:

1. Take time to take stock. Stop once or twice during the day to see how you’re doing. Are you on schedule? Anything come up to throw you off the track? What can you do to get back, if you’re off (delegate a task, reshuffle your task sequence, get help from colleagues, your superior)?
2. Watch out for time “hogs.” A pet project, an intriguing but low-priority problem, the persuasiveness of a subordinate, may get you involved in disproportionate time allotments. Avoid such diversions.
3. Leave time for long-range elements of your job. Thomas Watson’s admonition to his IBM managers, “Think,” is not misplaced. It’s amazing how seldom thinking appears in a listing of executive activity. Yet planning, problem-solving, and applying creativity to achieving objectives are often the most important, indeed, the payoff elements in your job. If these key items are missing from your work-day, do what is necessary to include them, through delegation, etc.
4. Stay out front. In the race with time, you must lead, or you’re in trouble. The executive, who chases the clock, trying to catch up, is at a disadvantage. Again, if you find you’re falling behind in meeting daily or weekly obligations, get out from under routines you can assign to others.
5. Review a sizable work period for overall stock-taking. You may have to be practical, and adopt the Casey Stengel view that, “You win a few, lose a few.” Everyone has bad days, when the end of the work period finds one’s schedule a shambles. O.K. But assess your performance over a week or a month. If from a longer-range perspective you’re satisfied, forget the occasional “black rock” days. But if you’re dissatisfied on looking back, tackle the problem of self-scheduling from scratch, as recommended on page 15.

USE DEADLINES AND SUBGOALS

You can store up time just as electricity is stored in a battery. You do it by getting ahead. Unfortunately, many executives do the opposite. They dig into their supply of time by transferring items from today’s calendar to tomorrow’s—when a phone call or a short memo could eliminate the items from both. Two devices help:

Deadlines:A deadline puts you in a direct race against the clock. In many cases you find deadlines built into a task: “Let me know by three o’clock tomorrow whether we’ll be able to handle the Johnson matter,” your superior asks. When there is no deadline, you gain an advantage by creating your own. For example, you tell your secretary, “We want to get that report out by the last mail of the day.”

Subgoals:It’s easier to keep track of progress with several sub-goals, rather than one long-term goal. And you have the added psychological spur of dealing with handle able, bite-size segments of time. For example: executive Jim Smith and his staff are starting a project that requires a week for completion. At the end of each day the group meets to evaluate progress, adjust methods of operation, solve problems that have appeared. The alternative, to work with only the final, distant goal in sight, fails to provide the incentive for daily accomplishment. Lacking also is the critique that helps keep them on top of the operation.

TIME SALVAGING

“The moving finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on. . . .” said Omar Khayyam. We tend to agree. We can’t turn the clock back. But, the fact is, time is salvageable. Consider: when you use other people’s ideas, you’re using their time—the time they spent in developing the ideas. By checking other people’s experiences you also save time. You avoid the necessity for repeating the time-consuming moves they had to make before they found the right answers. At the top of the prospect list for time salvaging is your own past activity. Make it a practice to review your own past experience.

For example: you spend time investigating the possibilities of a new office procedure, but end up in a blind alley. That time is not necessarily lost. At a later date you may get the additional information you need to round out the investigation satisfactorily. To recap:

• Check back on your own past efforts, procedures, ideas. Ask yourself whether changed circumstances make it possible to apply them successfully
• Look for the products of time spent by others that you can adapt and apply.

DO TWO THINGS AT ONCE

“You can’t do two things at once,” is an old saying that originated before carbon paper and the coaxial cable. You can do two things at once—and save considerable time in the process. Just to convince yourself: Take a pencil and do a simple problem in arithmetic, say multiplying 916, 345 by 2. At the same time, recite a poem you know by heart. A familiar illustration of multiple activity is the executive who (a) sits in his bathtub, (b) under a sunlamp, (c) reading a fistful of reports. Here are some suggestions to help you get a double payoff from your time:

• Try to design dual-purpose activities. An executive, screening resumes for a stenographer, at the same time watches for the highly-qualified applicant who might be able to start as an executive secretary.
• Link activities that can be done simultaneously. Supervising a subordinate who is preparing a highly-detailed report, an executive catches up on his mail and discusses his plans for the week with his assistant.
• Lump together tasks that can be handled in the same place. An executive, flying across the continent, takes care of several contacts for the company. And bunching telephone calls is another application of the same principle.
• Start simultaneously different tasks that can proceed alongside one another. Where the jobs are to finish at the same time, you start the longer operation earlier.

PUT TRAVEL TIME TO USE

The jet plane is a great time-saver—and a great time-consumer. More and more, executives are taking to the airways to conduct business in person, because it’s now practical to get from New York to Boston, Washington, Los Angeles, London, Sydney, or Tokyo in a reasonably short time. But whether a business trip takes an hour or a day, on train, plane, or boat, even an hour spent commuting can be a waste if it’s spent staring at an unseen landscape, or doing a crossword puzzle (unless you’re a puzzle fan, and you put crossword puzzling under the heading of Relaxation). Fortunately, travel time can be put to productive use. Here are time-saving travel tips:

Avoid “jetophilia.” Some executives seem to get caught up in a travel, do-it-in-person routine. The result: a certain percentage of their traveling is unnecessary. Benefit from their mistake and ask, before committing yourself to a personal appearance, “Is the trip necessary?” Don’t travel if a letter or phone call will do. The personal touch may be just the factor needed to clinch a big deal. But if something less is involved, can you send a subordinate?

Schedule trips at low-pressure times. In arranging for a personal appearance in another city, try to fit the trip into a day or week when you have the most time latitude.

Use a recording machine. Many executives report successful conversion of hours spent on train and plane to productive time by dictating reports, memos, and letters. The newest recorders are small and lightweight. Mailing back the tape, sleeve, or cartridge to the office means the material can be typed and ready on your return. Double payoff: when a report is to be made on the outcome of the trip itself, executives say that dictating the report on the return trip gets it into permanent form while impressions are still fresh, and puts less of a burden on note-taking and memory.

Do brain work. Armed with a pencil and a piece of paper—or pen and notebook, if your prefer—you can tackle problems, do planning, and develop projects, without threat of the usual office interruptions.

Do your “must” reading: The normal reading load of managers has been rising steeply over the years. And some of it just can’t be shunted off on subordinates, or neglected. Trade and industry information, new management methods, business developments, books on subjects relevant and helpful to your professional activities —all these require your attention to prevent gaps in your knowledge. Travel time is often made to order for this type of professional up-dating.

Transact your business at travel terminals: A New York executive recruiter travels from city to city to interview prospects for placement. He saves himself hours of bucking downtown traffic by meeting the job applicants at air or train terminals. Sometimes lunch in a terminal restaurant gives him the “office” he needs. If more than one prospect is to be interviewed, he takes a room at an airport hotel or motel.

Bone up for a meeting: Regardless of where the meeting is held, or for what purpose, going over relevant materials during your trip keeps the details fresh in your mind. Not only can you commit facts to memory, but you can plan your approach or strategy with the advantage of the imminence of the meeting as an aid to your mental operations.

Schedule visiting time as carefully as office time. A frequent problem of efficient use of travel time is travel delay. Many an executive has experienced the frustration and time-waste of train schedule slippage, of being fogbound at an airport, or of being stacked up in an air traffic jam. But barring such efficiency destroyers, you can trim trips by some traditional means:

Travel the most efficient way. If there is a cost differential, consider whether the fastest way may not be worth more to you in dollars and sense.

Have your secretary or travel department check schedules, and put you on the most convenient runs or flights, both coming and going.

Try to schedule the actual business contact so as to permit the best travel arrangements. If squeezing a meeting into two hours instead of three will save you several hours of waiting for transportation, let the others in on the meeting know of your time situation, and streamline the meeting.

Assess percentage of your time spent traveling. Executives occasionally find that, without their being aware of it, more and more of their time is spent “on the road.” It may, of course, be necessary, and time well spent. But it also may mean that an undesirable “travel habit” has been developed—where “I’ll hop down tomorrow,” gets to be the standard response for every minor crisis. Or an increasing travel schedule may mean that your responsibilities have been changing, and too much travel becomes a symptom of job content gotten out of hand. It’s worth your time to conduct an overall review, if you are seeing too little of your office.

TIME: QUANTITY VS QUALITY

Says an executive: “My time’s my own. I get to my office any time I like before nine, and leave when I please after six.” But the quantity of time executives spend on the job is less important than its quality—that is, how it’s spent. Hours devoted to routines better done by a subordinate may be profitless; one inspired thought developed in a few minutes may make your company rich. Recommendation: in your time allocations, favor high-level elements like planning, analyzing, problem-solving, over routines which lend themselves to delegation.

HOW TO MAKE A PERSONAL TIME STUDY

Usually, when a well-intentioned novice writes an article on executive time-saving, it usually starts by directing, “Make a self-time study. Keep a complete, accurate record of your time expenditures over a one or two month period. . . .” There’s a monumental task, tossed off in a sentence. If you at-tempted it, chances are you’d have to stop doing the very things you were trying to record, because you wouldn’t have the time.

Nevertheless, it is possible to do a brief self-study that will yield helpful information. Three steps give you the data on which to base a weekly work schedule. if possible, get your secretary to work with you, both in keeping track of your time expenditures, and writing down the observations.

Keep a record:Select a normal work week. If unexpected developments disarrange a day, restudy this day during the following week. Note the starting and stopping time of each activity. For example: “9:00 to 9:20—Reading incoming correspondence.” “9:21 to 9:40—conferring with Smith about the new display project.

” Keep your record sheets close at hand. Make your notations as soon as possible after a task is finished. Don’t overlook small items.

A number of five-minute jobs can account for a major chunk of working time.

After you’ve kept the record for a week, or its equivalent, and you feel it’s fairly representative of your schedule-

Analyze the data:The next step requires sorting out your time Here is a suggested set of headings. Add to it as your own data may indicate.

After you have distributed the items from your time record under the appropriate general headings, and indicated the time allotments, you’re in a position to evaluate the results.

First question to ask as you look at the figures: is the time desirably balanced? Are your major time allocations going for top priority activities?

Additional questions:

• Am I devoting adequate time for communications with my staff, su­perior, other executives?
• Is sufficient time being allowed for planning, both short and long-range?
• Am I devoting sufficient time to the development of my staff, both as individuals and as a team?

Your analysis can help you remove some standard obstacles to executive efficiency. For example, wasted time may result from your duplicating the work of an assistant. Or, you may find that un­scheduled items—that is, interruptions—consume sizable quantities of time. This may suggest possibilities for delegation or other means of shedding duties that consume disproportionate amounts of your time.

Restructure your time outlays:What you’ve learned in your analysis can be used to revise your schedule. But no radical change may be necessary. Rearranging a few key activities can make a great difference in your efficiency. Here are some possible steps:

Group similar items:You save time if you perform the same types of work in sequence. For example, handle all dictation at one time. Or, consider your contacts with a colleague: you avoid the need to walk back and forth between the same offices, and reduce starting and stopping by transacting all your business at one meeting. If routine matters of mutual interest arise, let them accumulate until you’re ready for another session with him.

Change timing of key items:You may find it advantageous to re­schedule some activities from morning to afternoon, or vice versa. A daily progress check with your assistant, for example, might best take place at the end of the day, and should be rescheduled if it’s been relegated to another less logical time.

Use for the miscellaneous items: Examine the items that don’t fall neatly under any of the headings of your analysis sheet. For example, take a time expenditure like casual conversations with colleagues. If possible, shift these around so that they don’t break up items that would be better uninterrupted. Your purpose is to enlarge as much as possible the time spans you devote to a given task. And don’t overlook the possibility of shifting low-priority in­terruptions and so-called emergencies that can really wait to low­pressure hours of your workday.

The post How to save time at work and succeed in your job? appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Writing professional resume looks like it should be an easy thing to do. However, anyone who has tried it knows that it is not as straightforward as it seems. This is because a CV works at two levels. One one hand it is a straightforward historic record of your skills, qualifications and employment history. On the other hand, it is careful crafted business proposal on why you should be invited for the interview. Writing professional resume is integral to get a great job.

Before any employer will hire you on, they want to know everything about you in detail.

1. The Facts

At its most simple level , your CV is a historical record of who you are, what you have done and your contact details. The first step therefore to write professional resume or even revising an old one, is to ensure that the facts are complete, accurate and appropriate.

Every CV should include the following factual information

• Name and Contact details
• Details of your career history
• Educational record
• Any professional qualifications and /or professional memberships
• Relevant skills and knowledge
• Relevant training and development

This all seems very straightforward, but getting these wrong immediately disqualifies you even if you have landed the job and may exclude you from ever applying again to that organisation.

A. Name and Contact Details

Your name should be the name that you carry on your educational certificates. You may be called something in your private life, e.g. Dicky  or Shorty, but you need to put your formal name i.e. Robert or Richard on your CV.

While writing professional resume, it is acceptable to give only your mobile number on the CV as your preferred point of contact. However, it is important to keep that mobile topped up with money and fully charged up so that if you get a call  you are able to take it.

If you have a voicemail, please ensure that you have a professional and clear voice as that is the first thing an employer may hear. Please keep professional ringtones. Ensure that anyone else who could pick up the phone is ready and equipped to take message on your behalf.

B. Email address

Try using your personal email address for your job searching activities rather than a current email address (if you have one). Many companies now have an internet and email policy that prohibits personal use of this kind. Make sure your email address is suitably professional. Your surname with initials or your surname with your name is very suitable. You can use numbers , however should avoid “0” or “i” unless they are part of a clearly recognisable word. For eg. using an email like freddy000@gmail.com is very confusing as one is not sure whether it is 0 number or O alphabet.

C. Career History

Employers will want to know the details of your work experience, educational background, professional memberships etc

Previous Employers

List all your previous employers with some additional information about their size, turnover, key products or services. You can use this information to draw attention to any similarities between your previous organisation and the one you are applying to e.g. similar turnover, products/services.

Dates of Employment

It is essential to get your date of employment correct while writing professional resume. You can enter the dates as month to month or even year to year if you want to cover a gap of a few months. However, these must be 100% accurate. Employers will check with previous employers the dates you have worked and your bank account will reflect the salaries received, so you cant escape the truth.  Don’t be caught out by some silly error and repent later.

Key duties and responsibilities

For each role, include some brief bullet points about the key duties you performed. Employers would like to know the scope and size of your role so try to quantify this  as much as possible. Do mention the budget you managed, who were your customers and how big was the account you managed.

Certifications and vocational qualifications

List any certifications you have achieved which are industry related or recognised by professional association like NVQs, Vskills Certifications, CFA certification etc

If you are already working in a specific field, you should also list any memberships of compulsory and voluntary organisations. Such organisations often require members to work to certain standards and ethics and take professional exams.

Also include any in house courses taken, external courses taken as part of training and development etc

University or College Education

Write down details of any degree or college courses for which you have studied. Note the grade achieved, the dates of study and the naem of the institution. Where you have more than degree, list them all, with the most recent or the most relevant first.

Secondary School Education

Write down all of the qualifications you attained at school and your dates of study and exam achievements. Normally your CV should include information on your secondary school achievements only if you have less than five years’ job experience and/or do not have a higher academic qualification such as a degree.

However, you could include your secondary school education if you had excellent grades.

If you are a fresher or a first time job seeker, you should also make a note of other school achievements like any awards or prizes won, any position of responsibility head (being head girl or head boy), part of committee managing events etc

Knowledge

Write down specific areas of knowledge that you have which include legal, marketing, maintenance of web servers, knowledge of AWS etc

Publications/Research/Conference

This information is usually relevant to academic staff recruitment and one way to demonstrate that you are an authority in a particular field is by mentioning if you have had something published in a well known journal, or attended conferences regularly on the subject both as a speaker and as a participant.

Hobbies/Interests

It is not strictly necessary to include your hobbies and interests in the CV, but it sometimes have advantages. If you are going into a job of selling mobile phones, it could be helpful if your hobby is to study latest mobile phones in the market. Also, an interesting hobby can lead to a great conversation with the employer and break the ice.  So the important thing here is that if you choose to mention a hobby or an interest , make sure it is genuine and that yo can talk about it in the interview.

Voluntary work

Employers are often interested in socially responsible activities. They indicate energy and team spirit and positive view of community, skills often required in a community.

If you are not working anywhere at the moment, and havea gap since your last job, enrolling yourself to do some voluntary work at least for a few hours a wek will be enormously beneficial for your CV. It will help you answer your interviewer as to what you were doing since your last job.

Additional information

Any other information that you think is useful may be added here like languages known, holding a driving licence etc

Referees

Identify two individauls who will be happy to act as a referee for you. Ideally they should be your current and past managers. If that is a problem, you should find someone of equivalent seniority in the same organization or in a different organization who has dealt with you.

Optional information

Date of birth is an optional information that you may add. In many countries it is unlawful to discriminate anyone based on their age. Employers must consider your suitability based on your skills. If you feel your date of birth is going to work against you, you may not include it.

Similarly some countries require you to have a work permit / working status so it is important for you to mention in your CV that you are legally eligible to find a job and get employed without any visa requirements.

Definitely Not add

Marital/Family status

There is no requirement to mention whether you are married or single as this gives no relevant information to the employer. This was a norm a few years ago and married people were seen as more stable but this is not true today and there is no need for you to write that in your CV at all.

Religion, sexuality, political affiliations

These are completely irrelevant information and should only be mentioned if they are relevant to the job in question as for eg a job opportunity in a certain community group.

Health

Do not mention, periods of ill health , specially if it has no impact in the future on your work performance. If the illness does impact your work in any ways like regular leaves required , mention in the cover letter or the interview.

The post Key Steps to Writing Professional Resume appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Resume writing tips and the Art of Selling Yourself

Resume writing tips to make a winning CV is critical for success. Most Resumes end up in the waste paper basket within 1 minute and nothing more than a glance from the recruiter.  The goal of resume writing is to make the most of that window of opportunity to sell yourself to the recruitment manager. Your CV must sell you.

Top Reasons why people write a CV

1. A job advertisement that appeals to you
2. You want to market yourself by creating a linkedin profile and writing a CV to win some business or be elected to some post
3. You want to work for some particular organization and thought that sending your CV might be the best way to gain their attention
4. There is a chance of an internal job role that you are interested in, within your organization
5. You are going to get a promotion soon and a CV might be required
6. Want to start working on your CV to find other job opportunities with a fear that you might lose your job.
7. Writing a CV might be a good idea to remember and streamline your achievements when you are trying to organize your life.

Selling yourself

A lot of students and professionals are why shy about presenting their best. It is not normal for people to be confident and assertive. If you don’t tell the recruiter, the recruiter has no way to know what kind of individual you are and the strengths you possess. You HAVE to sell yourself. Consider your competition. No one is going to be as reserved as you are, and people are going to blow their trumpet loud and clear.

So while selling yourself is critical, there is a fine line between selling yourself and bad selling.

Imagine these 3 cases

Negative Selling

I did not enjoy my job, so I took a sabbatical and  tried setting up my own business. I tried different things , but failed. So I am now looking for a job again.

Good Selling

After working in my job for a few years, I had an opportunity to run my own start up. I took up this challenge and it offered me great lessons in the importance of teamwork, management and leadership skills. I now seek to utilize these skills in my next job.

Bad Selling

My job was not challenging enough and I think i am intellectually very smart . I left my job to pursue more challenging opportunities worth my time. Then I set up a great business, where everyone agreed i was the best guy and a great leader. Subsequent to that I am now ready to turnaround your business and looking for a job that best suits my skills.

The purpose of this example is to understand that while selling yourself is critical and important, it should not be wild and blatant lies.

Font and Formats

Using a coloured paper or unusual formats are generally not appreciated by recruiters. Any coloured papers used and printed with strange fonts are considered too out of the ordinary and studies have shown , dont lead to shortlisting.

The chances of shortlists are highest when a CV is printed on a white paper with a standard font.

Details

Dont lay out your entire life in its entirety with every detail and expecting the recruiter to pick up the

skills most required for the job and marvel at your honesty at the same time.

Be Positive

If you cannot say something in a postive way, dont say it at all.

Job Fit

Tailoring your CV to the Right Job “Fit”

Recruiters, headhunters talk in terms of Job Fit. You may be highly qualified but if your CV is not matching the job requirements in the mind of the Recruiter, your dont stand a chance.

So how do we know what is a job Fit ?

Recruiters typically scan a CV on 4 main parameters

1. Knowledge
2. Skills
3. Abilities
4. Attitude

Consider a situation that there are 3 candidates Nancy, Rachel and Charlotte applying for a job in retail store managing the point of sale software and the cash till , where the job requirement is to run the accounting software. Let us look at the their CVs that they have submitted for this job role, and see the decision making process from the eyes of the recruiter based on the 4 main parameters of Job Fit.

1. Knowledge

Job requirement – Knows how a point of sale software works and knows how to deal with retail customers

Lets look at the responses

Nancy – Degree in information technology with internship at McDonalds for 6 months.

Rachel – worked in my uncle’s fast food joint for 2 years

Jane – Worked at Mark and Spencers for 3 years

2.  Skills

Job requirement – Good Communication skills and numeracy levels

Lets look at the responses

Nancy – Easily able to handle point of sale transactions including cash and card

Rachel -Easily able to handle cash and card transactions.

Jane – Easily able to handle cash and card transactions.

3. Abilities.

Job requirement – To learn how to use point of sale software, process card transactions and refunds.

Lets look at the responses

Nancy – Can easily learn new skills

Rachel -No difficulty in learning new skills though never have done this.

Jane – Can deal with the new software with some training.

4. Attitude

Job requirement – Punctual, Polite and able to deal with a lot of people calmly.

Lets look at the responses

Nancy – Strong willed and self confident and very assertive.

Rachel -Honest and straight forward.

Jane – Punctual, calm and honest.

Based on these responses, while Nancy does come out as the most educated candidate, she wont get the job, because she fails miserably on the attitude fit. She is seen as a strong headed person by the recruiter, who might get into arguments with customers, something that the job can ill afford.

While different people might look at this situation differently, the point we are trying to make here is that it is important to perceive the job opening from the point of view of the recruiter and then tailor make your responses accordingly as the chances of presenting yourself are slim, and you have 30 seconds only.

Improving the Job – CV Fit

You can make yourself look like the best candidate for the Job , if only you detail the job requirement properly and then tailormake your CV in response to that Job.

Nancy in the above example, might not be a strong headed person. If only she would have said the same thing differently and come out as more customer friendly person, and assertive in a positive way, where she not only helps on the cash counter, but helps customers make the right decisions in their purchase, she would definitely have been hired, given her strong educational background too.

Bottomline is that the CV should always be written with the job in mind. Think about what an employer is looking for before you write your CV. Do your homework before applying for a job. Find about the company through the internet, industry journals and through  friends and relatives working in the company or similar businesses.

Reading through the Job advertisement

Even before you start writing your resume, you need to go through the job advertisement with the following questions in your mind

What dont you understand about the job advertisement ?

What is the industry type of the company and whats happening in that industry ? is it an expanding business opportunity ?

What is the main purpose of the role on offer ?

Why is this role important to the company and more specifically how does it contribute to the profits of the business ?

What type of skills is the company looking for , in this role ?

What kind of personal qualities is the company looking for, in this role ?

Am I qualified enough through my educational qualifications and experience to apply for this role ? If not, what can I do or write to make up for it ?

Once you have thoroughly investigated and figured out an answer to the above questions, now is the time to sit down and make a CV in a way that answers all these questions and is a great fit for the job.

Finally avoid some of the most common faults in a CV ,i.e.

1. Forgetting some potentially impressive achievement.
2. Thinking some of your achievements might not be relevant
3. Underselling yourself by not talking properly about your achievements
4. Including every boring detail in your CV, which is not even relevant.

Building a personal history is important in the CV as all the recruiters are very keen to know your background.

• Stages of Life that recruiters are keen for you to talk about
• Secondary School (typically upto 18 years)
• Vocational Training (16-21 years)
• Graduation / University (upto 22 years)
• Postgraduation (typically early 20s)
• Jobs held in the first 5 years after completing your education
• Jobs held in your 30s
• Job held in your 40s
• Job held in your 50s and so on
• Any life achievements at any stage
• Awards/ sports / hobbies are important to be mentioned to decide the fit.

Now, get ready to create your professional resume with Vskills in just 5 minutes !!

The post Resume Writing Tips and the Art of Selling yourself appeared first on Vskills Blog.

1. My CV should contain all my previous jobs, together with details of my skills and experience.

As we all know your CV is your passport to an interview, it should contain only relevant details that are applicable to that job. It has been seen many times that candidates display a whole list of jobs ever done with full detailing, some of which in no way would be connected to the job. Listing of jobs unnecessarily bogs down the employer. Indeed it is important to list down the jobs done so far but in a condensed format so that the employer can easily trace your career path.

2. The more information I include on my CV is better.

Throwing too much information is equally damaging as providing too less information, since it indicates that you are trying to create a fluff around a weak application. Your CV should be easy to read and supply only relevant information to the employer. Do not be agitated to include very training course, internship or hobby that you have undergone during your career.

3. My CV will be read with interest by every employer who receives it.

You must appreciate the fact that the employer has to go through a whole stack of CV in response to a single job opening. They do not have the time in the world to go through each application deeply and select the most suitable applicants. Since you do not get such an opportunity every time, it therefore becomes crucial to grab the recruiters attention within the first few second of reading but indicating the specific skills and knowledge needed to do the job.

4. My CV will get me the job I want.

The primary aim of CV is to get you towards the interview pedestal. You must have the clarity to differentiate between getting an interview call and getting a job. It has been observed that candidates often approach the whole process of job search with a completely different notion of getting a job, but that does not always holds true. This only leads to frustration when they are not invited for interviews since enough care is not taken while producing the CV.

5. My CV could be prepared better by a professional service.

It is only YOU who knows the best about yourself then how can a professional decide about your presentation skills and knowledge. There are thousands of online applications, firms and free-lancers offering services of CV building who use a predefined format. These formats might not be the best fit in your case. Remember nobody knows you better, so stick to your own style and produce a CV that represents your thoughts, not of a third party vendor.

6. My CV content is more important than its appearance

As it has been said many times before, that CV is a presentation of what you are, so holding a CV with a bad print or some marks will only bring bad impression. No matter how well you are qualified and how well the CV has been written it would only bring a wrong impression on the recruiter. Also you may have heard that bright CV with some graphics highlights looks attractive, but how would it appear if a financial analyst sends a CV on a bright pink paper would definitely bring attention of the employer but it definitely seems unprofessional. It is therefore suggested to send a subtle CV on clean white paper with proper print.

7. My CV will become impressive if I tell a few lies.

The sole objective of a CV is to extract as much information about the candidate about the skills, knowledge and experience which he holds so as to invite him for the interview. Any kind of manipulation in the information provided on the CV not only calls for simple rejection but might cost you heavily in the future as well. You might be tempted to exaggerate your skills and experience to get to the interview stage and to brush it over when called for, but that does not really happen. It then becomes awkward for both the interviewer and the candidate to face such a situation. For instance you may have exaggerated your experience in the CV but it might not be as impressive as the interviewer thought which makes the environment uncomfortable.

8. My CV should be atleast 3 pages long

“Sometimes your circle decreases in size, but increases in value.”

Your CV is not about the length of the CV but the quality of information it contains. It is the first page of the CV that attracts the attention of the recruiter. You must not bore the employer with detailed pages and pages of irrelevant information. It is equally important to not make the CV too short as it may fail to sell your qualities properly. It is suggested to produce a CV of no more than 3 pages in the worst case scenario.

9. My CV should include a recent photograph

Attaching a photograph to the CV will make your profile stick in the mind of the recruiter and you are likely to be remembered by your picture but this may lead to discrimination on the ground of your looks. It is therefore suggested to not place your picture and keep it simple and as per the requirement.

10. My CV should be in my own handwriting

Since handwritten CV’s do not hold the same look and feel as typewritten CV as it can majorly damage your chances of getting to the interview stage. You may assume that your handwriting is legible to follow and easy to go through but this may not be the case with employer then it would certainly blow your chances of gaining the interview. Handwritten applications are only deemed acceptable when you have been specifically asked for but this does not hold well in the general case

The post 10 common Resume building Mistakes that job seekers do appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Nobody can ever underestimate how important it is to write a good resume. Everyone needs to make a resume be it a college student or a working professional. A resume is the first that a potential employer sees. It is correctly said that “First impression is the last impression.” First impressions counts the most, and the first impression that a potential employer will have of a candidate is going to depend on how the candidate presents his/her resume. Presenting resume is one and only chance to capture a potential employer’s attention, or for your resume to be tossed into the file of those they don’t want to pursue. So either it’s a hit or a miss. All the recruitment processes starts with scanning the resume and only after clearing that stage candidates are called for personal interview rounds so that’s the importance of writing a good resume. If we go by the statistical data available to us we would get to know that the employer spends less than 60 seconds on a single resume and if the employer does not get a good impression then he is not coming back to the resume.

Understanding a resume

A resume is a summary of educational background, professional experience if any and skills for potential employers. The resume’s physical appearance a neat and clean resume always gets the attention, and most importantly, what you say and how you say it, will affect an employer’s decision to interview you. The contents of the resume are important but the presentation of the content is most important. Your resume should highlight your qualifications for securing job in that particular firm or field. A resume prepared for one position might leave out information that should be included in a resume for another position. Because a resume may not be suitable for all the profiles. But in all cases, your resume should focus on your qualifications and transferable skills, and suggest future contributions you could make to the organization. Your resume should always be up-to-date, so rewrite and reprint very frequently as necessary- in fact, it is a good idea to update your resume every time you have a new accomplishment or credential. While writing a resume always keep in mind that your resume may get as less as 15- 30 seconds of consideration. Always be pertinent, short, and consistent in your layout and writing style throughout your resume. Another thing to always remember is, “resumes get interview, not jobs!”

Before Writing a Resume

Before you start writing your resume a research about certain things is required:

Begin with researching the company you are targeting. Company’s website can be a great place to start your company research. On the company’s website you would be able to find information related to company background, community involvement, special events, executive bios and annual reports and any other relevant information. If you are not able to get the required or substantive information from the company’s website you may also physically visit the company to know whatever required literature is available. Another thing you can do is you can also call the company directly. While making that call, you are specifically looking to find out how that company is structured, and most importantly what qualities they generally seek in their potential employees, their job openings, names of department heads, etc. Then after researching about the company make sure you research the position you are applying to well. It is always good to research about the position well in advance.

The more you will be knowing about the position and the company, and there will be greater chance that you will be able to match your resume to that position. If feasible, see if you can speak with someone from the same company who does the same job. Interacting with someone already in the similar position can give you valued insight into the different types of things that can be asked to you in the interview. Last but not the least research yourself. The goal of life is not just to find a job. Your goal is to find a job that you will enjoy doing. After finding out all possible information about the company and the position, make sure that it is in line with what you actually want to do and where you really want to be in your life. While you may not spend your entire professional career in that position, it is the base of your lifetime professional career. You might not want to find yourself in a situation where you spend too much time doing something you do not enjoy, working with people you do not like, living somewhere you do not want to live, or in a position that isn’t challenging enough, or worse yet, or may be the one you are not capable of doing.

General Pointers for Resume

There are many small things that matter while writing a resume like the format, length of the resume, writing style and structure of the resume. These things may look very easy but leave a very important impression of the candidate on the employer.

Appearance of the Resume

• Create good spacing with margins one inch wide on top, bottom, and sides of the resume.
• Use bold type, underlining, and CAPITALIZATIONS to highlight information.
• Use non-decorative fonts such as Times and Helvetica and a font size of 10-12 points.
• The resume should be neat. Never make handwritten corrections.
• Produce on a computer using a laser printer. Then you may have professionally copied on white or off-white resume paper.

Length of the resume

• Resumes (not curriculum vitas) should typically be confined to one page. However, in some fields it is fine to have two pages, but never make it beyond two pages. Put name and page number on second page.
• Paragraphs should be no longer than ten to twelve lines or five to seven bullets.

Content of your resume

• Use only current resumes. Make sure all contact information is current. Update your resume every time you apply to a new position.
• Demonstrate your content and transferable skills.
• Quantify and address why your work in your previous job was important. Show results and achievements.
• Do not list personal information or references. It does not leave a professional impression.

Writing Style

• Always check for grammar, spelling, and typing errors. A resume with grammatical errors leaves very unprofessional impression.
• Write objectively – no I’s, me’s, my’s, etc.
• State present position in present tense and past positions in past tense.
• Use action verbs and keywords.
• Avoid abbreviations wherever possible.

Organization

• Place most important material with greatest amount of detail at the beginning of each job description and resume section.
• Use a format that is uncluttered, organized and readable.

Bottom Line

• Always make sure that your resume is telling the employer why you qualify for the job.

SECTION HEADINGS

It is always important to divide your resume into relevant sections and then putting the right thing into right section. You need to very carefully decide about the information you want to include, and how to present it clearly and powerfully to the employer. There is never a set template or one single way to write a resume. Employers generally prefer to see what experiences or other activities you may have aside from your studies and paid work, as they always prefer to employ people with diverse skills and qualities. Therefore your resume should therefore be a brief snapshot of you as a person – your education and work experiences, and all your extracurricular interests and achievements that you have done in your past.

Add a professional touch to resume It is crucial to realize that it is good to make the look and feel of your resume attractive, but it should not be an overdose so as to defeat its main purpose. The writing style and format of your resume should not appear unprofessional. It is okay to use colors but use them carefully. They must not clash with the formality of your resume. Keep in mind that potential employers have specific criteria for selection of candidate.

SECTION HEADINGS

It is always important to divide your resume into relevant sections and then putting the right thing into right section. You need to very carefully decide about the information you want to include, and how to present it clearly and powerfully to the employer. There is never a set template or one single way to write a resume. Employers generally prefer to see what experiences or other activities you may have aside from your studies and paid work, as they always prefer to employ people with diverse skills and qualities. Therefore your resume should therefore be a brief snapshot of you as a person – your education and work experiences, and all your extracurricular interests and achievements that you have done in your past.

Add a professional touch to resume It is crucial to realize that it is good to make the look and feel of your resume attractive, but it should not be an overdose so as to defeat its main purpose. The writing style and format of your resume should not appear unprofessional. It is okay to use colors but use them carefully. They must not clash with the formality of your resume. Keep in mind that potential employers have specific criteria for selection of candidate.

What should be included in a resume?

Job description of the profile should be kept in mind while deciding on what to include in your resume. But in all cases these things should be included –

1. Name: Begin with your NAME (we suggest upper case bold for name only), and complete contact information (address, phone and email address). Make sure you cross-check this information as it is very important part of your resume.
2. Certifications: List professional certifications with dates received. If you have undertaken any professional courses or training then make sure you include them in your resume to give a good impression.
3. Education: Put your education in reverse order, begin with your last degree or the one you are enrolled in currently. Make sure you include your school name, city, state, degree, major, date degree was – or will be – conferred and honors or any other relevant information. Include your scores CGPA or percentage with university name or board name.
4. Courses: To sharp up your resume to a specific job, you can also include a list of “relevant courses.” This also fills space if you have little experience.
   5.Awards and Activities: You can make use of one or more categories as you deem appropriate, mention your achievements such as scholarships, leadership roles in clubs in your college or university, campus/community organizations, sports or other accomplishments.
5. Research/Project Work: You may also include special projects or research, mention your significant relevant classroom learning experiences such as research projects, special presentations, and major papers if you have done any. Make sure you add two three lines describing the project.
6. Work Experience: Your experience, regardless of what type it (be it full time or part time jobs, internships, community or college service) is usually of main interest to the potential employer. For each position, include: Job Title (include dates of employment), Employer, City, Emphasize (put first) either employers or job titles, Describe your roles and responsibilities, duties and accomplishments, preferably using list format with appropriate bullets.
7. Relevant Skills: Include computer hardware and software knowledge, fluency in foreign languages if any, or any other technical skills you possess. If you have several of each, use separate categories.
8. Free time Interests: List interests only if you have good knowledge about something it or you are very good at it. This section is optional.
9. Affiliations: List relevant professional or volunteer affiliations/memberships (if any). Include any offices/position of responsibility held.

Important Features for a successful resume

Most candidates for a specific job often have similar degrees and work histories, if you are applying for college placement then all the students have same degrees and many times same background. So it becomes really important that you show how your application is different from others. Mere putting some points in your resume is not as convincing as signifying how you have used the skill. Here are some important pointers:

• Make use of action verbs to include your duties and achievements, depicting yourself as someone who gets the job done.
• Use a good vocabulary list. Put more emphasize on skills and experience relevant to that job you are applying and to the potential employer’s needs.
• When you are describing your work experience be it community service or any internship, use more detailed descriptions that give the employer a picture of you as an individual avoid giving vague descriptions that make you sound like everyone else.
• Quantifying your work leaves a very good impressions. Citing your work done by numbers, percentages, etc., where appropriate. But do not unnecessary include numbers.
• Describe the most relevant and impressive achievements first and continue in that order. How to market your

Work Experience

The work experience section of your resume is one of the most important section your resume. It allows the candidate to describe to the employer the skills and roles you have done in your previous jobs. Experience can be of any kind be it paid, unpaid, volunteer, community, family business, or any other significant educational achievements such as co-ops, internships, research projects, business collaboration projects, and any other extracurricular. Here are some points to keep in mind while writing this section of your resume.

• Use reverse chronological order in each experience section. Begin each full experience description with employer, city and state, your title, and dates – typically on two lines and arranged identically for all experiences within a section.
• Describe your skills, accomplishments, and responsibilities. Expand on parts of your experience most relevant to the employer.
• Begin each statement with an action verb.
• Make sure that you write objectively – no I’s, me’s, my’s, etc.
• State present position in present tense and past positions in past tense.
• Use bold type, underlining, and CAPITALIZATIONS to highlight information.
• Creating Experience Headings
• Divide your experiences into most powerful to least powerful sections to

THINGS TO REMEMBER

• Always understand the insistence and audience of your resume and try to cater to their needs.
• Choose a style and format that you think presents you well.
• Include facts that are updated and relevant, and try to exclude information that isn’t relevant to the profile.

Things you should avoid: Don’t use pictures in your resume. Try to not include work experiences which are not backed by documents (like: letters of appointment and release). Never write you’re the salary you are expecting, wait for an interview call, salary negotiation can always happen there over the call. Do not include unnecessary references in your resume; they are important but provide them only on request. There is no need to add your hobbies unnecessarily.

Highlight your skills

Create a section for your “Skills,” which you should briefly list. The most important skills you can convey to potential employers—the hard and soft skills that are not easily conveyed by your work experiences. If you possess any relevant skills that are in predominantly high demand, then emphasize them first.

This section may include also languages you are comfortable in speaking, any programming/computer languages you’ve mastered, any specialized areas of knowledge, certifications you have outside of those required by the jobs in your work experience section. And always include the soft skills, which are becoming increasingly important for any job profile.

Always make sure that the language you are using to describe your skills matches what’s in the job description

Interests & Achievements

Try to make this section of your resume as short as possible but this section is still essential, it does not only shows an employer what type of person you are, personality wise, but could also highlight skills that are relevant to a particular role. You don’t have to give many information .But without giving so much information, make sure that your interests reflect your personality type and who you are. If you are interested in creative writing, perhaps say more about this.

Travel: Took part in a voluntary scheme where you traveled to any place.
Now it is also possible that some of your interests may relate to a job and can show that you are different from other applicants. Your achievements can be any awards you received in your school, college and any other top classifications, scholarships or impressive facts that may show leadership and successes.

Conclusion: Make sure that your resume does not include all those principally that may be rejected through screening software. Always bear in mind that the basic information remains the same but you may be required to make modifications to cater to different employers or different businesses you are applying every time. Finally at the end go through your complete resume and search for any typos before taking out a hard copy.

The post Process of Developing a Resume appeared first on Vskills Blog.

Imagine receiving getting something without any notification. You would be surprised and little hesitant to open it, as it might have something unwanted. Similarly a cover letter is a must when you are sending your resume, the hiring managers do not so much time to go through all the resumes in depth. At times the cover letter is sufficient enough for the employer to call you for the interview.

Be it any position you plan to apply for you would need to write an impressive cover letter or letter of application. The main aim of the cover letter is to introduce you, purpose for writing, thereby highlighting your key experiences or skills, and requests opportunity to meet personally with the potential employer.

Remember a cover letter represents the face of your resume and it is the first touch point with you and your skills. So you must take great care to write an impressive and effective cover letter. The cover letter not only tells of your accomplishments but also tells how effective your Communication skills are.

You should vary the content, format, and tone for application according to your profile and personality. Once you have framed the outline it becomes equally important to ask someone who has experience in hiring in your field to critique your letter and offer suggestions for betterment.

Some of the key points that you must keep in your mind when drafting the cover letter –

• You must limit your cover letter to a single page, employer does not want to read your life history. He is only interested in knowing how beneficial you would be for the organization.
• You must first understand the employer’s needs and then match your skills accordingly. The requirement of the employer and your skills must be matched in such a way that it appeals the employer’s self-interest.
• Try to customize your cover letter to each job opportunity. Also highlight your knowledge of the organization you are applying for, if possible.
• You must use a mature and clear writing style; with simple and easy sentences; avoid complex sentences and jargon.
• Try to use some action verbs and the active voice.
• You must convey confidence, optimism, and enthusiasm in your cover letter together with respect and professionalism.
• Do not hard-sell yourself; avoid gimmicks, and do not unorthodox the cover letters.
• Lastly arrange your points in a logical sequence; and organize each paragraph around a main point.

A great cover letter needs good formatting some of the tips to format a cover letter are,

• Use a word processor, type each letter individually.
• Use good quality bond paper.
• Address each employer by name and title, to show professionalism.
• Your letter should be grammatically correct, properly punctuated, and perfectly spelled.
• You cover letter should be clean and free of errors.
• Use conventional business correspondence form.
• Remember to proofread it carefully.

The post How do you write a great cover letter? appeared first on Vskills Blog.