Your Paralegal Resume and Professional Email Etiquette Presented by: Curtis A. Linder
Your Paralegal Resume and Professional Email Etiquette April 29, 2010 Presented by: Curtis A. Linder President/Owner Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Curtis Linder Former Litigation Paralegal Paralegal training at the college level (ISU) Paralegal hiring and placement for 24 years Hired and placed hundreds of paralegals on contract assignments or direct-hire jobs at Chicago law firms & corporate legal departments Receives and reviews hundreds of paralegal and lawyer resumes each year Owner of legal staffing and placement firm Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. What We Will Cover Today Your resume – basic formatting How to properly email your resume Your resume – do’s and don’ts Resume types and structure Advanced resume formatting tips Getting your resume to the right person On-line job searching networking Time available for your questions Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Presenter’s Resume Credentials Chicago Daily Law Bulletin’s “Judgment Day” articles; resume writing tips, and resume reviews: Source: www.lawbulletin.com/classifieds/ Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Some Basics Always email your resume… Unless the prospective employer or the job ad specifically says otherwise Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. My Most Important Tip Today is… Name your document correctly: My resume, on my computer is named: “Curtis Linder resume.doc” “resume.doc” is not a good name for your resume Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Why “resume.doc” is a Bad Name Forces the recipient to rename the document if and when they save it. If they do save it, it will replace any other document with same name. Forces recipient to open the document to find out who sent it. Indicates to the recipient that the sender does not understand basis office skills. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Your Contact Information Curtis A. Linder 123 Main Street Brookfield, IL 60513 Cell Phone (217) 555-1234 Email: curtislinder@gmail.com Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Three Main Steps – And Goals In simplest terms: The email itself. To get your resume, as attached, to a recipient. The words in your email. To get the recipient to “open” and view the attached document – your resume. Your resume. Once viewed, to get the recipient to invite you in for a job interview. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Your Cover Email Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Name Your Resume Properly, Not Like This: Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Summary or Objective Section If you do use Summary or Objective – it should be located at the top of your resume – just below your contact information. Objective: A paralegal with formal paralegal training, seeking an entry-level position with a Chicago-area law firm or corporate legal department. or… Summary: A corporate paralegal with two years of experience supporting complex real estate and other business transactions seeking greater challenges. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Combined Summary and Objective SUMMARY/OBJECTIVE: An extremely bright college graduate (cum laude) with formal paralegal training from an ABA-approved paralegal training program – seeking to gain additional law firm experience with a law firm or within the law department of a corporation. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Should Objective be on Resume? Some resume experts say it is fine to have a section called Objective (or Summary) on a resume; other experts say not to have one. If you do place an Objective section on your resume make sure it is well-written. Not a very good Objective: “To work at your law firm”. This expert thinks it is fine to have a Summary or Objective section on your resume. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Should Desired Salary Level or “Salary History” be on Resume? No. That comes later on in process. Since you are likely just starting out in the paralegal field – you should not state a desired salary on your resume. But, if the job ad asks for “Salary History,” place that in your cover letter which as we have learned is your email. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Resume Type Chronological vs. Functional What is the difference? Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Chronological or Functional Chronological Resume shows your work experiences in reverse chronological order. Most recent job position on top. Functional Resume shows your work experience and skills gathered into groups by skill area or job function. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Chronological or Functional? 99% of the paralegal resumes I receive are Chronological With the other 1% being Functional Functional resumes are much more difficult for the reader to use Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Think Like The Recipient Tip of the Day! Great example of a proper way to attach a properly named resume to an outgoing email. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Resume Tips Do not “bury” your name and contact information in the “footer” of the document. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. What Is Wrong Here? An actual email I received… Hi, I am sending you my resume for the paralegal position. I hope that you find interest in my resume. Have a great day! "For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today." A [regional] Proverb Paralegal [first name] [last name] [College Name] University- Paralegal Certificate University of [State], Bachelor of Arts degree Attached to the email was document in MS Word format named: Official_ resume[1][1][1][1].doc Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. More Basic Resume Tips Use proper grammar and punctuation in the “cover” email you intend to send. Do not use “first person” in your resume – such as “I”, “me”, “mine” or “my”. Update your resume quarterly. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. In Outline Format – Use of Bullets? Be careful using bullets points – those little black dots like these show below left: ● This is how they ● Look on your resume ● On your computer ☻They may end up ♫ Looking like this on ♥ Recipient's computer Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Email Protocol Make sure your resume document is virus-free before emailing it as an attachment. Use the email Subject line: “paralegal candidate resume attached”. The body (text area) of your email is your “Cover Letter”. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Email Protocol Use professional looking email address name. Not this: VegasGuy09@PokerPlus.net Email resume to a friend or relative and ask to see how it looks on their computer before sending it out to an employer. Don’t rely on spell check! Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Formatting – Look, Feel and Fit If using a two-page resume, then use all of the second page. See my example on next slide. Balance is key – how does it look when printed on paper? Page margins and font size. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. A “Two-Page Resume” Poorly Formatted Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. More on Formatting Use Reverse Chronological style. Don’t rely on Microsoft Word’s Resume Wizard template as document builder. Check the bottom of the document for any extra embedded “hard returns” (the Enter key) – that will leak word onto an inadvertent or blank second page when printed or viewed. Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Resume Example – Template Microsoft Word’s Resume Template: Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Look Like a Pro – Insider Tips Create in Adobe PDF format Don’t create (or store) your resume on your current employer’s computer - ever If you list computer skills on resume, you better know them Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. More Insider Tips View document in Word’s “Show/Hide” - the ¶ key (slide 35) List interests (hobbies), but only if they carry weight, such as Eagle Scout, private pilot’s license, SCUBA diver, Real Estate Broker license, or advanced certifications Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Advanced Resume Tips Adobe .PDF Files Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Do’s and Don’ts Do not us abbreviations: NFPA, KCC, PACE, IPA, many others. Avoid using Word’s “Insert Tables” style. Have name, contact info. and “Page Two” on page two of your two-page resume. “References Provided Upon Request” – not need (of course they will be). Health, age, marital status, children – No! Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Do Not Insert Extra Line Spaces Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. View and Edit in Reveal Codes Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Let’s talk about Build your profile from your resume It is like Facebook – but professional Employers and recruiter use it Update your profile at least monthly Begin connecting to classmates, Conduct job market research Use LinkedIn’s Job section Strive for 100% profile completeness Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Conclusions Before emailing resume – think what it would look like if you received it. Have your paralegal friends proofread your resume and email to them as a test. Keep your resume current (update quarterly) and store it were accessible. Use email Subject line properly. Name the document correctly! Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc. Any Questions? For practice – you are welcome to email me your resume curtis@linder.jobs Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
© Copyright 2024