10 Scenarios When You Should Update Your Resume
Despite its importance and the big impact a resume can have on their lives, many professionals let their resumes sit on their computer untouched for years – allowing it to become more outdated with each day. Even when they accomplish career milestones such as getting promoted, receiving an award, or getting recognized for being an asset in their company’s success, they don’t think to update their resume with this information.
It’s only when they have decided to leave their current role or once they have been laid off or terminated do they prioritize hiring a resume writer or carving out time to update it themselves. At this point, time is of the essence. Jobs can open and close on a whim and recruiters can already be waist-deep into the hiring process with several other candidates by the time you apply.
As a respected career professional, your resume should stay current and up to date to keep you primed for anything – unexpected or expected, good or bad. Routine resume maintenance is quicker than doing on-the-spot or time-strapped full-revamps and is easier because of simplicity. Here are 10 scenarios when you should update your resume.
1. 1-2 MONTHS BEFORE YOU START JOB SEARCHING
You know when you’re getting the itch to leave your job or explore something new. Perhaps you’ve mastered your role and there are no growth opportunities, or maybe you’ve decided it’s time for a career change, or maybe you’re bored. Your resume needs to be updated at least 30 to 60 days before you officially begin job searching.
This gives you time to see what positions are in demand right now, conduct keyword research to discover what phrases and terms need to be on your resume, hire a resume writer, or set aside time to revamp it yourself, proofread it, and more. A good resume takes time and extreme care to create – it isn’t put together overnight. Especially if you’re aiming to land a job with a big company or a role that’s highly competitive. Lastly, you don’t want the resume to look like something that was thrown together last minute.
2. IF YOU HAVEN’T TOUCHED IT IN 3+ YEARS
3 years ago you received the best news of your life – you got the job …..And then you started the position and haven’t touched your resume. Since everything has been so great, of course your resume isn’t a priority.
The situation above is very common. Many resumes the Thompson Resume Writing Co. team comes across tend to miss, on average, 3 to 10 years of work experience. Once people start a new job and continue to navigate internally or externally using relationships and their network, they don’t update their resumes as they continue to progress. If you’ve been in your current role for several years and haven’t updated your resume with your latest job along with accomplishments, wins, and other information to highlight your value, it’s time to add it.
3. IF ITS MISSING CURRENT OR RECENT INFORMATION
Does your current resume stop being current after your last job?
Did you move to a new state, but your resume still has your last state of residence on it?
Do you have a new email address?
These are key signs your resume needs a refresh: If the job you currently have is not listed, or several past jobs are not listed, they need to be inserted asap to update the document, so it contains your latest career and job information. The longer you wait to add roles to your resume, the more difficult it can become to remember them later down the line, along with details and highlights.
4. AFTER YOU GET A NEW JOB OR PROMOTION
Look at you climbing the corporate ladder! Your hard work paid off big time and you’ve taken a step up in your career. As soon as all details are finalized, job title, pay, start date, etc., add your new role to your resume. You may not have any value-added statements to insert just yet, but you can list a general overview of the role. Do not copy and paste the entire job description. Summarize, in your own terms, what you will be doing and what your responsibilities are in 3 to 5 sentences. Be sure to list the end date and year of your last job as well.
5. AFTER YOU RECEIVE RECOGNITION OR AN ACCOMPLISHMENT
Congratulations on slashing company spending by 20%, spearheading the entire redesign of the company website, and being dubbed Salesperson of the Year. Now you know what you need to do - add it to your resume!
When you receive kudos, complete a big project, or receive recognition for something, add it to your resume pronto. Value is the main thing recruiters want to see when they read your resume – it’s those big wins, pats on the backs, and “good jobs” that stick out the most to sell you as a solution to the company’s needs. To make sure you’re keeping track of all your successes, keep a brag file and update it with accomplishments throughout your tenure.
6. AFTER YOU COMPLETE A NEW MILESTONE
Recently graduated with a master’s degree?
Did you complete your PMP or SHRM certification?
Have you just accepted your very first leadership role overseeing a team?
Did you join a new professional association?
After you get done celebrating your latest career or professional feat, it’s time to open up your resume and add it to the document. Education, new skills, and software proficiencies can be the key to securing a higher salary and/or a role at a well-known company.
But unfortunately, this tends to be one of the most outdated pieces of information on people’s resumes. As soon as you complete something that increases your worth, strengthens your skills, and adds to your value, update your resume with it and place it in the appropriate section along with information such as dates, titles, and institution names.
7. WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE YOUR JOB IS SHAKY
You just witnessed the entire sales department get laid off. Your boss is acting a little odd. You just made a major mistake you know is not going to blow over well.
Any time your gut is telling you your job is in jeopardy, it’s time to get your resume updated. Sometimes there will be subtle signs and at other times there will be huge billboards with flashing lights. Once you start to get a sixth sense that you could be out of a job soon, you need to prioritize your resume sooner rather than later.
8. AT THE END OF THE YEAR IF YOU HAVEN’T TOUCHED IT
Given that more jobs are available during Q3 and Q4 of every year, it’s a no-brainer why updating your resume towards the end of every year is a best practice. If you haven’t touched or taken a look at your resume all year, October, November, and December are excellent months to get it dusted off in case a new external and internal opportunity opens up. The end of the year is also a great time to reflect, celebrate, and recall the wins and successes you’ve had in the past year.
9. AT THE START OF EACH QUARTER THROUGHOUT THE YEAR
While updating your resume at the end of the year is common, you can choose to revive it every quarter, or every 3-4 months, instead. This makes it easier to recap recent milestones and changes rather than having to compile a long list at the year’s end. At the beginning of March, June, September, and December put it on your calendar to update your resume with new information to keep it current year-round.
10. IF YOUR NAME AND CONTACT INFORMATION CHANGE
Let’s say you got married, legally change your first and/or last name, get a new phone number, or sign up for a new email account with a new username. These are all cases where you need to update your resume to reflect your new personal information. The Thompson Resume Writing Co. team has received many resumes with old phone numbers, email addresses, and names to last us a lifetime! Your best bet is to dig up your resume from one or all of these 4 places when these situations occur.
STOP MAKING EXCUSES – UPDATE YOUR RESUME
When asked why their resume isn’t updated, people give every excuse in the book.
“I didn’t have the time.”
“It wasn’t a priority for me.”
“I’ve been at my current job for years and didn’t plan on going anywhere.”
It’s easy to let months and years go by before you scour your computer or email to locate your resume. But by allowing your resume to remain static and outdated you’re doing yourself a disservice. On top of having thousands of resume writing professionals at your fingertips via LinkedIn, IG, and Google, it’s easy to locate someone to handle this task for you if you’re not equipped to do it yourself for whatever reason. Remember, when opportunity knocks it doesn’t for very long. Keep your resume ready so you’re ready to open the door whenever it comes around.