Transitioning to new year with a promising CV

By PETER KAMURI

KENYA: An up to date curriculum vitae (CV) is vital when looking for any job. That is why you should constantly breathe a new life into it.

This will give you leverage in your search. So when is the best time to do this? Though there is no definite answer to this, doing it regularly is commendable. However, career experts reckon that the beginning of the year is one perfect time to update it. This provides you with an opportunity to reassess your career goals and objectives.

Freshening up your CV at the beginning of the year is important because there are employers and recruiters who search for possible employees by viewing the most recently updated CVs, by year of update.

Major achievements

Reviewing a CV at the beginning of the year is a good opportunity to reflect on the past year’s achievements. This helps to present yourself as positively as possible in what you have achieved in the year ending.

A CV that has been reviewed this year may have a favourable rating compared to one updated last year. Most employers would be comfortable reviewing the most current CV as it reflects the status of the individual that time. Beginning of the year is the best time to look back at the year ending and consider what needs to be integrated into your CV.

What special recognition did you get in the past year? Did you earn a promotion based on your abilities?

What special responsibilities did you carry out?  Your CV’s objectives must be up to date all the time. It is essential to ensure it is updated all the time. The objectives you had last year may not be the same ones you have for the New Year.

A CV format that may have looked appropriate in past years may be out-dated and you may require another one in the New Year. Then how do you update your CV? A CV is a tool for marketing you.

This means you have to highlight you achievements, skills, interest and experience to attract the eye of the employer. Start by reviewing the past year and what you have achieved. What projects did you accomplish? Did you get a promotion? Did you enroll for a refresher course and underwent some specialised training? Capture these in the CV.

 Look at the last position your held and ask yourself if it is still relevant to your job search. If you consider it irrelevant to your job search, discard it and have one that will give you more advantage.

Professional advice

If you are not sure about your CV writing skills, consider seeking assistance from experts. Look for professional writers and editors near you. They have experience in writing top CVs and they know exactly what companies are looking for.

When you write your CV, have somebody to read through it as this will help you significantly improve it.

Mistakes like incorrect address and on occasions even misspelling your own name are not uncommon in CVs. Be aware that by making new changes, you are likely to introduce another error. This can portray you as a reckless person.

Having a good CV is a question of having it as current as possible. This means you have to think about the changing trends and skills by rewriting and editing it as you go along.

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