Your Six Seconds: 3 Ways To Get Your Resume Read

By Marie Raperto, The Hiring HubYour six seconds, what does that mean?  Studies have shown that hiring managers/recruiters scan your resume and they scan it for 6 seconds.  It's scary to think that a decision will be made in that short time frame.  That's not a lot of time but, as a recruiter, I can tell you that it's enough to get an impression of the candidate.  Whether it's less than six or more, it still means that you have to get your message across quickly and targeted to the reader.  So what can you do?  Here are  things that you can do to make your six seconds count.1.  Make your resume readable.  Your resume must be clear on a desktop, a phone or a tablet.  It must be readable - lots of white space, a nice sized font, not crammed and not too long.  In most instances, only the top third of your resume will be scanned.2.  Your resume must highlight your skills.  The keywords reflecting the job requirements from the ad or description MUST be in your resume and they should be in the first third of it to ensure they will be seen.3.  Don't look like a job hopper.  If you were laid-off and are freelancing, make sure your resume is clear on that.  If you are in a long-term temp assignment, put (Contract Assignment) after the title.  Have a gap?  Use a short explanation - maternity leave,  parental care leave etc., if you can.You want to show that you have the skills to do the job and not have anything pull from those skills.  Keep it simple.  If you pass the one-third scan, you will make it to the next round.