Ask a Manager

Here’s an exchange I had with a reader recently which I thought might be helpful to other people. Reader: I have a question regarding resume writing. As an autistic person, this process is like pulling teeth for me. I understand all of the concepts behind how to write a good resume, but I deeply struggle […]

A reader writes: I am going to school for a master’s degree for a health adjacent profession (think psychologist, clinical social worker etc) and I have a question about the best way to format my resume. Most of the things on my resume take up maybe half of the space on a line. For example: […]

A reader writes: Like many people, I am desperately applying for jobs right now. I have also been frequenting job-seeker forums to get advice and tips. One thing I keep seeing is tips on how to embellish your resume and then “cheat” the background check. For example, imagine your actual job title was “administrative assistant,” […]

A reader writes: My sister and I have a difference of opinions on whether an MLM (multi-level marketing) consultant could put “business owner” as their title on a resume. My sister’s opinion is, “You’re putting your own money into it, you’re paying to use the name, you’re hiring your people, and responsible for all sales, […]

A reader writes: I’m looking to move out of arts/media, where I’m currently director of a small department, and into business operations, probably looking for director of operations and similar jobs. I’m part of a three-adult-one-child family and act as family CFO/COO/HR, and I’d like to reference that experience when I’m applying for jobs. We […]

If you’re like most people, your résumé is … not great. That’s not because your work history is bad or your accomplishments aren’t impressive (you are undoubtedly Very Impressive). It’s because you suck at writing a résumé. Most of us do. It’s hard to be good at something you probably only do once every few […]

A reader writes: I’ve been going through the resume topic on your site recently, and while you’ve discussed resume length, I didn’t see anything on how much time a resume should encompass. Generally, how far back should a resume go? As far back as will fit, or is there an amount of time hiring managers […]

A reader writes: I recently heard the advice that job seekers should leave dates off their resumes’ employment history. I was at a job seekers networking event, and an retiree looking for extra work shared it as advice she had received to shield her from age discrimination before the interview. A recent college grad enthusiastically […]