Mar 08, 2014

Would you leave home on a road trip without any idea where you’re going? Of course not. How about flying a plane without a flight plan? Never. Whenever you travel, even if it’s just a short trip to the store, you probably have an objective.

It should be no different with your career.

I have heard some people infer that objective statements are no longer useful and that employers don’t look at them. I tend to disagree.

The objective statement in your résumé tells recruiters and interviewers exactly what your goal is. Having a great objective statement to start your résumé can make sure someone takes the time to actually read the rest of your résumé.

This can also be a drawback if your objective statement is generic and doesn’t have anything to do with the job for which you have applied. Make sure that if you are including an objective statement in your résumé, you tailor it to the job. I have discussed carbon copy résumés here and here and the same rule applies to the objective statement.

The more you can tailor your résumé to specific jobs, the more it will be noticed.