wenrich1

From his 02.24.25 email Austin Belcak is the founder of www.CultivatedCulture.com, which provides advice on resumes and other aspects of job search. In an 02.24.25 email, he provided the following advice on using action words in your resume. Picture this. You’re at an event and two startup founders are talking about their company growth from last year. Founder A says, “We had a really nice year of growth in 2024!” Founder B says, “Man, our growth absolutely skyrocketed in 2024!” Whose company do you think grew more? When I share this story in the resume workshops I run, almost everyone chooses Founder B. But neither founder shared any numbers, right? That’s the moral of the story: the words you use matter. And if you’re using the wrong language on your resume? It’s negatively impacting the way your value is being perceived, which means you’re not landing as many interviews as you should. So, with that said, here are 7 words and phrases you might be using on your resume that you need to change if you want to land more job interviews: 1. Responsible for Anyone can be “responsible for” something.  Instead, use more specific, action-oriented language like: – Developed – Spearheaded – Overhauled – Generated Pair those with measurable outcomes for a winning resume bullet: Responsible for customer retention → Generated 30% increase in customer retention via overhauled customer service strategies 2. Hard Working Simply claiming to work hard doesn’t convey tangible results.  Replace this with: – Increased – Delivered – Optimized – Exceeded – Improved Hard-working customer service representative → Improved customer retention by 30% through enhanced service strategies. 3. Results Driven Being results-driven doesn’t mean you actually drove any results. Prove that with better language and metrics.  Replace this with: – Generated – Produced – Reduced – Increased Results-driven marketing specialist → Produced a 200% increase in website traffic through a targeted SEO strategy. 4. Detail Oriented Claiming you’re detail-oriented is meaningless without evidence. Show it through actions and accomplishments instead.  Replace this with: – Audited – Identified – Improved – Enhanced Detail-oriented project manager → Enhanced project documentation accuracy, reducing errors by 30%. 5. Team Player Employers don’t just want someone who says they’re a team player. They want to see the results of those collaborations.  Replace this with: – Collaborated – Partnered – Led – Mentored Team player in marketing → Partnered with cross-functional teams to develop and execute a campaign, boosting lead conversion by 40%. 6. Self Motivated Rather than saying you’re self-motivated, show it with results.  Replace this with: – Initiated – Led – Launched – Created – Developed Self-motivated team lead → Initiated a mentorship program, increasing employee engagement scores by 20%. 7. Communicator (Great Communicator, Excellent Communicator) Don’t just say you’re a “great communicator” or have “communication skills.” Show them!  Replace this with: – Presented – Negotiated – Advised Consultant with excellent communication skills → Presented 30+ workshops to client teams resulting in 37% improved operational efficiency.