By: Kandice Thorn
I am constantly emphasizing the importance of a *PERFECT* resume and cover letter, and today I'm going to give you a powerful tool to help you get there: using your senses.
Obviously, I am not suggesting that tasting or smelling your resume will bring it to the next level - that would be gross and creepy and ultimately useless. But here is how engaging your senses of touch, sight, and hearing can help you make your document perfect.
Touch: I can't explain why, but something happens when you print a document out versus just looking at it on the computer screen. While holding it in your hands, you interact more with the document and suddenly errors you didn't realize were there pop out at you. Before you submit a document, always print it and give it a quick read that way.
Hearing: Reading your document aloud helps you hear your document the way others will read it. It's easy to skim over awkward words or typos when you are just looking with your eyes, but these errors become impossible to ignore when you read aloud. It forces you to slow down and consider every word in your document. It also helps you get a better sense of how your sentences flow together.
Sight: Obviously, you use your eyes to read, but you should remember to use your eyes to see the overall structure of your document as well. How does it look on the page? Is it easy to skim? Do you use white space effectively on the page? What about headings? What elements take up the most room on the page - are those the most important? Use your eyes to review your document both up close and from afar.
You can use these techniques for any document you draft: resumes, cover letters, research papers, contracts, and so on. I'd bet that the more you use them, the more you'll wonder how you ever got by without them!
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