How to Write Your Resume in Reverse Chronological Order

How to Write Your Resume in Reverse Chronological OrderValerie asked me to write her resume backwards. She wanted to use the chronological order of her job history instead of the alphabetical. She also wanted to avoid using keywords such as 'interview,' 'administration,' and 'sales.' She also wanted to avoid 'manager' as well.Her problem was that Joe couldn't remember everything. I thought that this was a wonderful idea and thought it would be pretty neat to see how that would work. Valerie wanted to write her resume in reverse chronological order. I told her that it would be a good idea if she wrote her job history in reverse chronological order. Here's how I did it.The first thing I did was make a list of job histories. I started by using the alphabetical order of her career and then did a reverse chronological list by using each alphabetical word one time and then another time. I divided each of the jobs by years so that she could do them in reverse chronological order.After she h ad put together her reverse chronological list, I asked her to go through it again. I told her that if she didn't understand something, we should put the keywords down next to the problem. If she didn't understand what it meant, we would use phrases like 'first-year employees'keywords.' Once she went through the list again, she asked me how she felt about doing it in reverse chronological order.In reverse chronological order, I thought it would be really cool if she wrote her job history starting at the top and going down. I also suggested that she write it with three different sections: where she has worked. This would give her a sense of where she started her career and a sense of where she is at in her career. Then I asked her to start at the bottom and go up and write out her entire resume in reverse chronological order. It might seem like a lot of time and effort for someone who knows what she is doing but it is very simple.The benefits that I saw from using reverse chronologic al order were that it made her more creative and her resume would be much more personal. She didn't have to worry about words like 'interview'administration' but she did have to include her job title and her job responsibilities and the duties she has performed. That was all it took to make her resume more personal.Because it was written in reverse chronological order, she could also choose the types of phrases that she wanted in her resume. If she wanted to include her real name, she could have it in there.So, if you are someone who has written a resume before, but can't remember where you worked, the easiest way to remember it is to write it backwards. It will take you less time than you think and will help you put your resume into reverse chronological order, just like Valerie did.