Power Verbs: How to use in a Job Resume 2023

0%

Post Content

    Power Verbs Are Important in a Resume

    Nearly all candidates understand the underlying importance of an up-to-date resume.  However, understanding the importance of using power verbs on a resume is less understood. 

    We’re going to discuss why power verbs are important in a resume and how you can add in these verbs onto your own resume.  Understanding the importance, and need, of power verbs onto your resume will help you to land an interview and impress your future employer.

    When it comes to understanding why power verbs are important in a resume, it is worthwhile to step back and understand the importance of a resume itself.  A resume is, essentially, a living document which showcases an applicant’s previous experiences. 

    These experiences can range from previous jobs, to volunteer work, to educational and academic qualifications.  However, when showcasing these experiences, you want to display the effectiveness and quality of your work.  Therefore, utilizing power verbs can help you fully convey your achievements and accomplishments.

    All-in-all, a resumes true purpose is to help a candidate land an interview.  And while a stellar resume can help land a position, its true purpose is to convey a candidate’s experience, skills, qualifications, and achievements in a manner that entices the employer to invite the candidate for an interview.  Using power verbs on your resume is the best way to entice an employer to invite a candidate to interview.

    The Importance of Power Verbs in a Resume

    Understanding that a resumes purpose is to entice an employer to invite a candidate for an interview allows you to rethink and reimagine your current resume.  Does your resume look, feel, or sound bland, boring, or dull?  Employers often receive upwards of 118 applicants per open job role.  With such a large number of applicants, candidates must work to have theirs stand out from the crowd.

    To Stand Out from the Crowd

    Unfortunately, many candidates opt to utilize pre-filled resume templates when creating their own.  Many of these templates are basic, cookie cutter templates with no pizzazz or excitement.  As a resume is meant to entice an employer into inviting an applicant for an interview, you should look to rewrite your resume in a manner that is more appealing.

    Utilizing power verbs in your resume helps you to stand out from the crowd of applicants.  These power verbs offer apt descriptions of thee work and experience you accomplished.  They provide a more fulfilling sense of your achievements and allow the employer to get a better understanding of the work you completed.

    To Add Quality to Your Resume

    Understanding just why power verbs are important in a resume means understanding the importance of a quality resume.  A quality resume provides depth and substance.  They are meaningful and offer a unique take on your accomplishments, achievements, and skills.  Power verbs help to convey your abilities as an applicant more fully and robustly.

    To Show an Understanding of Your Industry

    Specific power verbs can only work well when utilized for specific job functions or accomplishments.  Therefore, utilizing these power verbs within the proper context can show an employer your deeper understanding of the industry.

    To Match Against the Applicant Tracking System

    The applicant tracking system, or ATS, has become more popular in recent years.  This system looks to review an applicant’s resume against certain keywords listed in the job description.  By utilizing power verbs before a specific keyword, you indicate to the employer your proficiency and understanding of that keyword.  This can help to entice the employer to offer you an interview.

    To Effectively Demonstrate Your Accomplishments

    Power verbs demonstrate your accomplishments in a more effective and powerful manner.  By utilizing power verbs, you are more effectively able to showcase your accomplishments in a manner that enhances the accomplishments you’ve completed.  Power verbs provide a backing to your achievements and allow them to appear greater and more compelling.

    To Avoid Clichés on Your Resume

    With nearly 118 applicants per open job position, you will want a way to stand out from the crowd.  One of the best ways to do this is to utilize power, action verbs.  These verbs will help you to outshine and differentiate yourself from the rest of the applicants.

    Power Verbs Are Important in a Resume

    How to Improve Your Resume Power Verbs

    Now that you understand why power verbs are important in a resume, it’s time to discuss how to edit your resume to take advantage of those power verbs.  Doing so will help you to showcase your accomplishments more specifically and help you to increase your chances at landing an in-person interview.

    1. Review Your Resume and Highlight “Boring” Verbs

    The first step in improving your resume to include power verbs is to highlight and identify so-called boring verbs.  These are verbs that don’t add pizzazz or a wow factor to an accomplishment or achievement of yours.  An example may include, “worked on fiscal 2020 budget”, where you will want to highlight the word “worked” and replace with “negotiated” or “restructured”.

    1. Identify the Meaning

    The second step, after highlighting and identifying “boring” verbs, is to begin asking yourself what is the meaning of what you are trying to say.  Essentially, why did you use a boring verb and what word can you use to convey the message in a manner that is more professional and bold?  Look through the highlighted boring verbs and determine which ones can be replaced while still maintaining the original meaning.

    1. Choose a Stronger, More Powerful Verb

    Once you’ve identified the boring verbs and identified the meaning of what you are trying to convey, it is time to replace them with stronger, more powerful verbs.  These verbs should maintain the original message, but in a bolder sense.  When picking new, more powerful verbs, ensure that the word usage is correct and that the new verbs maintain your original message.

    Power Verbs Are Important in a Resume

    Different Types of Power Verbs

    Now that you understand why power verbs are important in a resume, it is time to list out the full list of power verbs.  While there may be others, the ones listed below are the ones that we have worked to identify as having the greatest and most long-lasting impact on employers.  We have also broken out each power verb for the situation in which you are trying to describe.

    Power Verbs for When You Provided Analysis

    Rather than utilizing the word analyze or analyzed, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    analyzed
    ascertained
    assessed
    compared
    computed
    conceptualized
    concluded
    confirmed
    critiqued
    deciphered

    deliberated
    determined
    devised
    diagnosed
    estimated
    evaluated
    examined
    forecasted
    formulated

    integrated
    investigated
    justified
    measured
    negotiated
    prescribed
    prioritized
    projected
    questioned

    rated
    recommended
    researched
    scrutinized
    studied
    substantiated
    synthesized
    validated
    verified

    Power Verbs for When You Provided Excellent Communication

    Rather than utilizing the word communicate or communicated, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    addressed
    apprised
    arbitrated
    attested
    authored
    clarified
    communicated

    composed
    convinced
    corresponded
    drafted
    edited
    explained
    informed

    interpreted
    lectured
    marketed
    persuaded
    presented
    promoted
    publicized

    queried
    reported
    spoke
    summarized
    translated
    wrote

    Power Verbs for When You Provided Excellent Creativity

    Rather than utilizing the word creativity, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    brainstormed
    constructed
    designed

    engineered
    envisioned
    fabricated

    illustrated
    produced

    shaped
    visualized

    Power Verbs for When You Provided Excellent Flexibility

    Rather than utilizing the word flexible, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    accommodated
    adapted
    adjusted

    altered
    amended
    balanced

    converted
    grew

    improvised
    tailored

    Power Verbs for When You Took Initiative

    Rather than utilizing the word initiative, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    accelerated
    accomplished
    achieved
    acquired
    advanced
    bolstered
    boosted
    built
    coordinated
    created

    dedicated
    demonstrated
    enriched
    established
    expanded
    expedited
    implemented
    improved
    increased
    initiated

    innovated
    inspired
    introduced
    launched
    minimized
    mobilized
    modernized
    modified
    multiplied

    overhauled pioneered
    revamped
    revised
    spearheaded
    stimulated
    suggested
    updated
    upgraded

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Leadership

    Rather than utilizing the word led or leadership, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    administered
    advised
    allocated
    allowed
    appointed
    approved
    assigned
    authorized
    chaired
    coached

    delegated
    designated
    directed
    educated
    elicited
    employed
    empowered
    enabled
    encouraged
    endorsed

    enhanced
    facilitated
    fostered
    founded
    guided
    hired
    influenced
    instructed
    interviewed
    judged

    led
    moderated
    monitored
    motivated
    officiated
    recruited
    sanctioned
    supervised
    trained

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Organizational Skills

    Rather than utilizing the word organized, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    arranged
    assembled
    budgeted
    calculated
    catalogued
    centralized
    charted

    classified
    collected
    compiled
    consolidated
    correlated
    indexed

    linked
    orchestrated
    organized
    oriented
    planned
    processed

    purchased
    recorded
    regulated
    scheduled
    systematized
    tabulated

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Problem Solving Skills

    Rather than utilizing the word problem solving, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    aided
    alleviated
    ameliorated
    augmented
    counseled
    customized
    debugged
    eased
    elevated
    enlarged
    extended

    extracted
    finalized
    fulfilled
    generated
    identified
    interceded
    invented
    lightened
    polished
    procured
    reconciled

    rectified
    reduced
    refined
    reformed
    rehabilitated
    reinforced
    rejuvenated
    relieved
    remedied
    remodeled
    repaired

    restored
    retrieved
    revitalized
    revived
    settled
    solicited
    solved
    streamlined
    strengthened
    supplemented
    transformed

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Teamwork Skills

    Rather than utilizing the word teamwork, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    assisted
    collaborated

    contributed
    cooperated

    mediated
    participated

    partnered

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Assistive Skills

    Rather than utilizing the word helped or assisted, consider using one of the following power verbs:

    Aided

    Accommodated

    Advised

    Alleviated

    Assured

    Bolstered

    Coached

    Continued

    Cooperated

    Counseled

    Dealt

    Eased

    Elevated

    Enabled

    Endorsed

    Enhanced

    Enriched

    Familiarized

    Interceded

    Mobilized

    Modeled

    Polished

    Prescribed

    Provided

    Protected

    Rehabilitated

    Relieved

    Rescued

    Returned

    Saved

    Served

    Sustained

    Tutored

    Validated

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Quantitative Skills

    Accounted for

    Appraised

    Approximated

    Audited

    Balanced

    Budgeted

    Calculated

    Checked

    Compiled

    Compounded

    Computed

    Conserved

    Converted

    Counted

    Dispensed

    Dispersed

    Earned

    Enumerated

    Estimated

    Figured

    Financed

    Grossed

    Increased

    Inventoried

    Maximized

    Multiplied

    Netted

    Profited

    Projected

    Purchased

    Quantified

    Rated

    Reconciled

    Power Verbs for When You Showed Supervisory Skills

    Adjusted

    Analyzed

    Apportioned

    Assessed

    Certified

    Compared

    Controlled

    Corrected

    Correlated

    Developed

    Discovered

    Established

    Examined

    Explored

    Graded

    Inspected

    Indexed

    Judged

    Licensed

    Maintained

    Measured

    Modified

    Monitored

    Officiated

    Overhauled

    Oversaw

    Policed

    Prohibited

    Refined

    Regulated

    Reviewed

    Revised

    Screened

    Updated

    Additional Power Verbs to Consider

    acted
    activated
    added
    admitted
    apportioned
    appraised
    approximated
    attained
    audited
    certified
    commissioned
    committed
    consented
    contracted

    disbursed
    dispatched
    displayed
    enlisted
    excelled
    executed
    exercised
    familiarized
    figured
    guaranteed
    indicated
    instituted
    involved

    issued
    licensed
    maintained
    operated
    performed
    prepared
    programmed
    realized
    related
    reserved
    reviewed
    satisfied
    screened

    secured
    served
    set
    smoothed
    sought
    specified
    submitted
    surveyed
    sustained
    traced
    transacted
    transmitted
    valued

    Conclusion

    Power verbs are important in a resume because they help you to tell a more bold, compelling, and interesting achievement.  The use of power verbs can help to entice an employer to invite you to an interview, substantially increasing your chances of being offered the position.

    In order to enhance your resume with power or action verbs, go through it and identify the “boring” verbs.  These are verbs that are used too often and don’t provide an accurate description of your accomplishments.  Once identified, feel free to replace with a power verb that fully conveys the message you are trying to get across.

    So long as the power verb you decide to use can replace the aforementioned verb, you should be good to use it.  Power verbs can significantly enhance your resume and the description of your accomplishments and skills and should be used where possible and applicable.

    About The Author

    Leave a Comment

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Scroll to Top