When did you last update your resumé or CV?

Confession: I hate working on mine. There are a lot of things that I would rather be doing, and I still mentally cringe at the thought of dragging out the file for an update.

For a lot of people, updating their resumé one of those chores that only gets done when it’s absolutely necessary; specifically, when they’re applying for a new job, or their current employer is re-working the company website and asks for their blurb. Procrastinators of the world, unite! Tomorrow.

BUT, did you know that the best time to update or re-work it is when you don’t have a pressing need? Here are the reasons why:

You’ll feel calmer about the exercise when you’re not pressed for time. You won’t be rushing around at the last minute in a state of panic over the looming deadline from a job posting advertisement.

Because you’re in no hurry, you can take the time that you want to browse online or on your word processing software for new templates to sharpen the look of your document if it’s seeming dated or tired. You can confirm the contact info for your references, or get new references if you’ve gotten out of touch with the previous ones.

You can take the time to really comb through the text, making sure that there aren’t any mistakes in syntax, grammar, spelling, punctuation, or other errors that you might not catch when you’re stressed. You should consider having someone else look it over for these things as well. These are precisely the types of things that a professional proofreader looks for. Even better, a copyeditor will let you know if certain parts read awkwardly and can help you re-word them. Having a CV that is nicely formatted and free from errors is key to a successful application in the future.

It can be great for your confidence.  How often do we remind ourselves of how many skills we have, or all the experience we have gained?

You’ve had the same job for years, you say. You haven’t anything new to add, you say. What about that giant project you headed, that gave you such satisfaction? What about all those glowing customer reviews you received last year? What about the way you improved the efficiency of the office, raising the profits for the company? What about the courses you took, just to keep busy, during lockdowns? Have you added them to your resumé?

Once everything’s there, neatly laid out in black and white, you may surprise yourself with how impressive you are. That’s right—you did all that!

It offers you peace of mind. Once you’ve done a thorough re-vamp, making sure that your document is solid, error-free and up-to-date, you’re all set!  You can hit ‘save’ and forget about it again, for a while.

Then, if a tremendous opportunity comes your way, you can pounce on it! No last-minute scrambling around, trying to find dates of projects or contact information for references. Maybe having the finished CV will inspire you to apply for positions you hadn’t even considered before.

You still love your current job, and would never dream of leaving, you say? Great! Everyone should be so fortunate. But remember, the confidence you gain from re-familiarizing yourself with all your skills and experience, not to mention credentials, can help you in that job. Maybe it will remind you of a particular skill that you’d like to learn in order to better perform, or maybe it will give you ideas on how you can further help the company, or better serve your clients, or maybe to point out your great worth to your boss, at your next review. Who knows? See what kind of fire it lights in your imagination!