Stijn Van Colen

After 20+ years in recruiting, I can tell you this 👇

Recruiters are NOT reading your entire resume.

I know…

That sounds ridiculous considering that’s literally part of the job 😂

But in reality?

Most recruiters are scanning for one thing first:

Immediate relevance.

And one of the first places they look is right at the top of your resume:

Your job title.

Then your professional summary.

Those first 3–5 lines underneath your name can determine whether they keep reading…

Or move on to the next resume.

💬 If I can’t quickly figure out why you might fit the job, you’ve already made my job harder.

Here’s how to fix it 👇

🧠 Think of the top of your resume like a billboard.

You’re not trying to tell me your entire life story.

You’re trying to make me think:

“I need to keep reading.”

So instead of:

❌ “Experienced marketing professional looking for an opportunity to utilize my skills and grow professionally…”

Give me:

✅ “Marketing Manager | 8+ Years B2B Growth | Generated $2M+ Through Paid + Organic Campaigns”

Now, in seconds, I know:

✔️ What you do
✔️ How experienced you are
✔️ Why you’re relevant
✔️ What you’ve actually accomplished

That’s what gets attention.

And attention gets the rest of your resume read.

🛠 BONUS:

Use this ChatGPT prompt:

“Here is the job I’m applying for: [PASTE JOB DESCRIPTION]

Here is my experience: [PASTE RESUME]

Write me a powerful 3-line professional summary using my target job title, years of relevant experience, important keywords from the job description, and my strongest measurable result. Make it concise, specific and recruiter-friendly.”

And if you want the resume template built around this exact structure…

Comment TEMPLATE and I’ll send it to you.

📌 Save this before you apply for another job.

And send it to someone whose resume isn’t getting interviews.

#resumetips #jobsearch #interviewtips #careeradvice #hiring