Times, they are a changin'

So I just purchased the latest edition of "Resumes That Knock 'em Dead" (9th edition). The previous edition that I was working from was the revised 3rd edition, published in 1998. And after reading through the new book (and making notes on important items), I've come to the conclusion that the resume that I've been working from for the past two years is wrong. According to the book, a resume should be about two pages long instead of the one page length I had learned previously. I had figured that since HR departments were getting inundated with resumes these days, they'd want them to be brief. I figured wrong.

Another thing that employers don't want is any dense reading material. They don't want your life story. Which I knew, but kind of sucks when it comes to writing out details and selling myself. I'm apparently limited to bullet points and two-word key phrases to describe my skills and what I bring to the table (if I want to find work).

So resumes need to be longer, but use small "sound bites" for most of the text. Does that sound kind of oxymoronic and insane to anyone else? In a world where our own televised news is relegated to brief clips and even shorter sound bites that are supposed to inform the viewer, places of employment have apparently decided to follow that trend... on twitter.

Ok, maybe I'm oversimplifying (with some added snark). It's just kind of annoying. So not only do I have to deal with prejudice from potential employers about being out of work for a period of time, but I also have to overhaul my resume in order to get through their computerized keyword filters and into the hands of someone who works in the human resources department. It's like they don't even want us to apply in the first place.

Regardless, I'm rebuilding my resume from scratch (using the book as a guide) and hopefully I'll be gainfully employed in the very near future. Wish me luck.