Many people will hit the job boards with a vengeance as the New Year begins. After all, the holidays are over, and employers are ready to hire, right?

Not so fast!

A key part of job search success is actually in the PREPARATION. In other words, making sure you are ready to put your best foot forward can pay off quickly.

I recommend that you start with a compelling resume to get your New Year’s job search off right. Unfortunately, many job hunters make the mistake of tossing their experience into a piece of paper with little thought to actually MARKETING their achievements.

Take my client Ron, for example.

Ron spent hours poring over his resume, ensuring that every detail was in place. He had carefully crafted a list of his duties and even added some sales figures. His new resume looked fantastic, and Ron was sure it would impress employers.

The problem: his resume was focused on only those details.

The results he received were dismal. Sure, his resume had a lot of facts and figures, but as it turned out, his true strengths were nearly drowning in them. He was left to wonder WHAT he had missed.

What Ron eventually learned was that employers do not have time to gain an impression from numerous details; rather, they need information that actually CONNECTS that experience to the career goal.

After adding a value proposition and career summary to his resume, his phone suddenly started to ring!

I recommend tapping into what you uniquely offer to ensure that your resume gets noticed. This often results in not just more interviews, but more confidence as well.

Laura Smith-Proulx, CPRW, CIC, founder of An Expert Resume and creator of the upcoming book, “Solve Your Toughest Resume Challenges to Win More Interviews! 22 Secrets to Achieving Fast-Track Career Success,” has achieved a 98% success rate landing interviews for fast-track professionals.

Get Laura’s tips on creating a knockout resume and advancing in your career with a complimentary subscription to “The Career Champion,” plus our FREE 7-Part E-Course on “The 7 Biggest Resume Mistakes That Can Keep You from Your Dream Job… And How to Avoid Them” by visiting www.AnExpertResume.com.