How to Write a Resume: A Beginner's Guide for New Resume Writers

The other day, someone wanted to know how to write a resume. Instead of answering just that one person, I thought, why not write a blog post about it? This beginner's guide walks you through how to write a resume from start to finish so you have a solid foundation to build on.

How Do You Actually Write a Resume?

Before we get into it, remember that resume writing is a skill you continue to build. Along with this post, you'll want other resources, including resume writing books, relevant articles, and current resume writing best practices.

This guide isn't meant to cover every strategy you'll eventually need as a professional resume writer. There's a lot more that goes into the work, including tailoring, accomplishment statements, keyword strategy, ATS considerations, client interviews, and understanding different industries.

But I don't want to overwhelm you if you're just getting started, so we'll cover those topics in future articles.

Let's start with the foundation.

Before You Start Writing, Gather Your Information

Before you open a blank document, have these items ready.

1. Your Client's Current Resume

Get a copy of your client's current or most recent resume. You'll usually receive it during the 15-minute phone consultation. Use it as another source of information as you draft your client's new resume.

It may include job responsibilities, accomplishments, certifications, technical skills, or other details you can reference as you build the new version.

2. Supporting Documents

Ask your client whether they have supporting documents that can help you understand their background. Not everything is required. Get a feel for your client's background and career goals, then decide what information you actually need. If something is already on their resume, you don't need to ask for it again, though you can ask questions if anything is unclear.

Supporting documents could include:

Their current job description
Performance reviews or customer feedback
Certifications
Their LinkedIn profile
Professional portfolios

A word of caution about job descriptions: don't use them as your only source of information. Many of my clients have sent me their job description from the company website without any additional context. A job description tells you the general duties of the role, but it doesn't give you real insight into what the person actually does.

3. A Target Job Description

When your client completes the intake form for the 15-minute consultation, you'll typically have a link to a target role. Use that link, and ask your client for a couple more so you have a clear picture of what they're targeting.

If the jobs they send are significantly different from one another, talk with them about why a targeted job search is the best approach, and work together to narrow down their target role.

This matters because you're not simply rewriting their work history. You're creating a resume that communicates why their experience is relevant to the type of position they're pursuing.

As you review the job description, identify the skills, responsibilities, terminology, and qualifications that matter most for that role.

4. Your Client Questionnaire or Discovery Call Notes

If your client completes a questionnaire, have it available before you begin writing. If you conduct a deep-dive call instead, keep your notes close by.

Your client's resume tells you what they've done. Your questionnaire or discovery call helps you understand what they actually did, how they did it, and what impact they had.

That distinction is important.

Start With a Blank Word Document

Once you have your information, you're ready to start building the resume.

You may come across phrasing, technology, or duties you're not familiar with, so keep a few resources handy:

O*NET OnLine
Occupational Outlook Handbook
CareerOneStop
The Resume Writing Guide by Lisa McGrimmon (Amazon Affiliate Link)

These resources help you research different industries and careers so you understand the type of work performed.

I recommend starting in a blank document so you can focus on content and strategy first. Once you finish writing, you can decide on the design. If you already know which design you want to use, starting from a resume template works too.

When you save the document, use a naming convention that makes your work easy to find, such as:

LastName_FirstName_Resume

Most importantly, save your work as you go.

What Sections Should a Resume Have?

There isn't one universal resume format that works for every person, industry, or career level. However, there are some sections you'll commonly see on a professional resume.

1. Name and Contact Information

Your client's name goes at the top of the resume, with their contact information directly underneath.

For a basic resume, include:

City, State ZIP Code | Phone Number | Email Address | LinkedIn

You don't need labels like "Phone:" or "Email:" in front of each item. Simply list the information, for example:

Victorville, CA 92392 | 555-555-5555 | name@email.com | LinkedIn

Separate each item with a pipe symbol or another professional, ATS-compatible character.

For LinkedIn, you have two options:

Include the full URL
Use the word "LinkedIn" and hyperlink it to your client's profile

I often prefer the second option when the URL is long and would take up unnecessary space. If your client's LinkedIn URL has a long string of numbers, recommend they customize it to a shorter, cleaner version.

2. Professional Summary

The professional summary usually appears directly below the contact information. However, it's one of the sections I recommend writing last.

Why? Because the summary should tie the rest of the resume together. Once you've reviewed your client's experience, accomplishments, skills, career progression, and target position, you'll have a much better understanding of what to highlight.

Think of the summary as your chance to quickly communicate who this professional is, what they bring to the table, and why their experience is relevant.

3. Core Competencies

After the summary, you can include a Core Competencies section to highlight key skills and areas of expertise. For example:

You can also format competencies into columns. If you have 15 competencies, for example, you could create three columns with five in each.

The format is ultimately a design choice, but the goal is readability. Avoid overloading this section with a giant wall of keywords.

4. Professional Experience

This is where strategy really comes into play.

Your client's professional experience section should show more than where they worked and what their job title was. Think through how you want to communicate their experience to an employer.

When my clients tailor their resumes, I recommend they ask, "When have I done this?" as they read a job description. Apply the same approach: review your notes from the deep-dive call and look for anything that aligns with the job posting your client provided. Then answer three questions:

What did they do?
How did they do it?
What was the result?

Instead of simply listing responsibilities, look for opportunities to show accomplishments, contributions, improvements, scope, leadership, efficiency, revenue, cost savings, customer impact, or other measurable results.

For example, instead of:

Responsible for answering customer calls.

You might uncover something more meaningful, such as:

Managed 700+ customer calls monthly while maintaining a 95%+ quality score.

The second version gives the reader context. It shows both the volume of work and the quality of performance.

How Many Bullets Should Each Job Have?

As a general starting point, a recent or highly relevant position might have 6 to 8 bullets.

But don't force six or eight bullets just because you think you have to. If the content isn't relevant or meaningful, adding more bullets doesn't make the resume stronger.

The opposite is also true. An older, less relevant position may only need one or two bullets. In some cases, you can condense older roles into a Prior Experience section that lists the company, title, and dates without extensive detail.

Again, this is where strategy comes in.

5. Education

After professional experience, include the education section. Depending on the client, it may look like this:

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
University Name | City, State

If your client has certifications or licenses, you can create a separate section or combine them under a heading such as Education, Certifications & Licenses. The right structure depends on your client's background and what's most relevant to their target position.

Side note: If you're working with a recent graduate the education section would be right after the core comptencies.

6. Technical Skills and Platforms

If your client uses specific platforms, software, systems, or tools, consider where that information belongs. For example:

The tools will depend on your client's industry and experience. For technology professionals, this section can become much more extensive and may require a different strategy.

The point is to make sure relevant technical skills aren't buried where the reader will never find them.

7. Professional Development, Volunteer Experience, or Community Involvement

If your client has professional development, volunteer experience, community involvement, professional affiliations, or other information that strengthens their candidacy, consider adding those sections toward the end of the resume.

But once again, don't add a section just because you think every resume needs one. Every section should serve a purpose.

How Long Should a Resume Be?

You'll hear a lot of opinions on this one.

A common guideline is that someone with fewer than 10 years of experience should have a one-page resume, while someone with more than 10 years can have two pages. That's a helpful starting point, but I wouldn't treat it as an absolute rule.

The content should determine the length.

If someone has six years of highly relevant experience and genuinely needs two pages to communicate their qualifications, forcing everything onto one page may not make sense. On the other hand, someone with 15 years of experience doesn't automatically need two full pages.

The goal isn't to fill space. The goal is to include the right information and present it strategically.

If the resume only fills half of the second page, look at the content and ask:

Do I need to adjust the spacing?
Could something be condensed?
Is there relevant information I should add?
Would the resume work better as one page?

If the resume goes beyond two pages, take another look. Can something be removed, condensed, rearranged, or moved into a Prior Experience section?

This is where resume writing becomes more than formatting. You're deciding what deserves space on the page.

Don't Write Just to Fill Space

This is one of the most important things I want new resume writers to understand.

With every line you write, ask whether the information makes sense and presents your client in the best way possible.

At the same time, don't overthink it. Resume writing is a collaborative process. Once you deliver the draft, your client may have feedback, and you can talk it through together.

If you remove or add certain details, explain your approach to your client. You can do this in a brief conversation or in the email that delivers the draft.

What About ATS?

You'll also want to understand applicant tracking systems, commonly called ATS. An ATS is software employers may use to collect, organize, and screen applications.

Formatting, headings, keywords, tables, text boxes, graphics, and other design elements can affect how different systems read or parse a resume.

As a beginner, learn the basics of ATS-friendly formatting before getting too creative with resume design.

And remember, ATS isn't the only audience. A person eventually needs to read the resume too. Your goal is to create something that's easy for the system to process and easy for a hiring professional to read.

What Fonts Should You Use on a Resume?

Commonly used resume fonts include:

Arial
Calibri
Aptos
Helvetica
Georgia
Garamond
Times New Roman

The specific font matters less than readability and consistency.

For the body of the resume, I generally recommend 10 to 12 point font. I wouldn't go below 10 point just to fit more information on the page. Section headings can be larger, and your client's name should stand out more than the rest of the content.

Again, readability comes first. For a list of ATS-safe fonts, check out Jobscan's article, What Font Is Best for a Resume in 2026?

Your Resume Writing Process Will Get Better With Experience

When you're first starting out, it can feel like you're trying to remember a million rules.

What sections should I use? How many bullets? One page or two? What font and size? Should I use columns? What about ATS? Where do certifications go?

It's a lot. So start with the basics: gather the information, understand your client's target, build the content, write strong bullets, organize the sections, and then format the document.

As you gain experience, you'll become more comfortable making strategic decisions based on each client instead of following a rigid formula.

You're building a skill, and like any skill, it gets better with practice.

Final Resume Checklist

Before you send the resume to your client, give it a final review. If time allows, step away after you finish the draft and come back to it with fresh eyes. You can also run it through Grammarly to catch spelling and structure issues.

Side note: Grammarly isn't always right. I've found that it tries to add "the" and "a" where they aren't needed, so keep an eye out for that.

Ask yourself:

Are the client's name and contact information correct?
Is the email address correct?
Does the LinkedIn link work?
Is the resume tailored to the client's target role?
Does the summary accurately represent the client's background?
Are the core competencies relevant?
Do the bullets focus on contributions and accomplishments rather than only responsibilities?
Are the dates and job titles accurate?
Is the formatting consistent?
Are the fonts readable?
Is the resume easy to scan?
Is the content relevant?
Did I remove unnecessary information?
Does the resume work well for both ATS and human readers?
Is the document free of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and formatting errors?

Then read it one more time. Now, you're ready to deliver it to your client.

Talk soon,

TaNiya

Helping professionals clarify their value, strengthen their positioning, and move with strategy in their job search

10 Ways to Land Resume Clients

Website: www.taniyaclayton.com | https://beacons.ai/tclayton

Email: careerservices@taniyaclayton.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/taniyaclayton