Elevate Your Career by Enriching Your Curriculum Vitae with Suitable Action Words! Now It’s Your Turn...

Abstract

Educating is one of my greatest strengths, and even though I am not a school teacher I still use my experience and knowledge to educate every single day. 

Now it’s your turn . . .

Where are there recurring themes in your life?

Are you an achiever?

Diplomatic?

Take charge?

A go-getter?

A powerful negotiator?

Ask yourself:

• What am I known for?
• What do my supervisors, colleagues, friends, and family members come to me for?
• What am I most proud of in my career?
• What brings me immeasurable fulfillment?

Try to create a list of at least ten strengths, talents, or skills.

Next search for examples of these strengths in action.

What challenge were you facing when this strength was utilized?

How did you use the strength to take action?

What happened as a result of your efforts?

Before you know it you have the key ingredients to powerful resume bullets that reflect your value.

Keywords

Action Words, Good CV, Skills, Expertise  Accomplishments

Learning Outcomes 

After undergoing this article you will be able to understand about the  use of words in the different sections of the CV.

Introduction 

Good CV words are of two types—action words and keywords. There are dozens of lists that you can use to group your action words together, but if keywords are missing, your CV might not make it to a hiring manager. A good CV contains accurate action words and keywords. This way your chances of having an interview are higher than if it lacks one or the other.

Let's dive into some purposeful words and help someone needy with a perfect CV.

Positive Action Words to Describe Yourself on Your CV

When it comes to your CV, it’s not just what you say but how you say something. You want to present yourself, your skills, expertise and accomplishments in the best possible light which means paying attention to the words you use. Most recruiters will have sorted through hundreds of CVs, so the last thing they want to read is another CV where the candidate states they are ‘motivated’, ‘hard-working’ or ‘have good attention to detail’. Which words and phrases should you use and which should you avoid to make sure that your CV doesn’t get tossed into the rejection pile?

Find here some of the great  adjectives to describe yourself:

1. Able

I am able to handle multiple tasks on a daily basis.

2. Creative

I use a creative approach to problem solving.

3. Dependable

I am a dependable person who is great at time management.

4. Energetic

I am always energetic and eager to learn new skills.

5. Experience

I have experience working as part of a team and individually.

6. Flexible

I am flexible in my working hours, being able to work evenings and weekends.

7. Successful

I have successfully met deadlines on every project I’ve worked on.

8. On Time

I am always on time for organized events, work-related or otherwise.

9. Honest

I am honest and trustworthy when I am counting money after our church bake sales.

10. Imaginative

I work with the team to provide imaginative solutions for our customers.

11. Innovative

I am always coming up with innovative ideas.

12. Motivated

I am motivated to go to the gym before work to stay fit and healthy.

13. Organized

I have organized the staff functions for the last four years with great success.

14. Reliable

Co-workers rely on me to be on time.

15. Sense of Humour

Even though I take my work seriously, I do have a good sense of humour.

Positive Words to Showcase Your Day-to-Day Work on Your CV

These are great words to help you describe your daily tasks in a variety of ways:

16. Delivered

I delivered all projects in a timely fashion.

17. Helped

I helped out at the local care home during my spare time.

18. Identified

In the role, I identified a need for a new system and, with management backing, it has since been implemented.

19. Managed

I’ve managed the team through several large projects.

20. Participated

I participated in my local Race for Life 10k charity run.

21. Supervised

During this time, I supervised swimming galas at my local pool.

22. Presented

I presented my analysis findings to the wider business to achieve buy-in for positive change.

23. United

I united several teams in a large project to achieve real change for our customers.

24. Led

I led the project team in delivering a successful outcome.

25. Provided

I provided much-needed support to my team through the pandemic.

26. Proved

I proved my case for introducing a new system through extensive research and analysis.

27. Ran

I ran weekly project meetings to make sure work was delivered on time and to a high standard.

28. Responded

I responded to unexpected events with speed and professionalism to ensure a positive outcome for our customers.

29. Reported

I reported directly to the Board of Directors…

I reported directly to the Board of Directors with any changes in customer behaviour, along with proactive suggestions on how to address them.

30. Gained

I gained first-hand experience of customer challenges by running a series of face-to-face workshops.

31. Tested

I tested a range of products to determine which ones were most suitable for our clients.

32. Balanced

I balanced my time successfully across 3 key projects in the business, delivering results in a timely manner.

33. Conducted

I conducted several investigations to find out where there were opportunities for cost savings.

34. Focused

I focused much of my time and energy on driving improvements across the contact centre.

Positive Words to Showcase the Skills on Your CV

These are good words to include in your CV to highlight where you’ve really added value in your role:

35. Supported

I supported junior team members to help them achieve their longer-term career goals.

36. Modernized

I modernized the customer complaints process to help make efficiency savings across the business.

37. Saved

I saved time across the business by analysing key business processes and identifying improvements.

38. Volunteered

I volunteered to take the lead in a mental health and wellbeing project, above and beyond my core duties, to help improve the working environment for my colleagues.

39. Developed

I developed a new process to address a gap in the customer experience.

40. Won

I won gold in my very first cross-fit competition.

41. Secured

I secured funding from the Board of Directors for a new WFM system.

42. Savings

I made cost savings on our products by using local manufacturers.

43. Enhanced

I enhanced the leadership team by going on a mental health awareness course and bringing my learnings back into the business.

44. Implemented

I implemented a new WFM system, following several months of research and cost analysis.

45. Nominated

I was nominated for an industry award following the work I did on improving the customer experience.

46. Launched

I launched a new product to market which exceeded sales targets for that quarter.

47. Increased

I increased profits across a variety of products through cost-saving changes to our manufacturing processes.

48. Campaigned

I campaigned for positive changes to our health and wellbeing programme throughout my time at the company, resulting in new initiatives being introduced which helped boost our staff retention rates.

49. Achieved

I achieved a pass grade for my Level 2 Management course.

50. Competed

I competed at industry events for a sought-after ‘best in show’ award and won several times.

Power words and action verbs to include in your CV

If you don’t want to sound like everyone else, which words could you use instead to make your CV stand out? The answer is power words and action verbs on a creative resume template.

Rather than passively describing your responsibilities, power words and action verbs focus on the specific actions you took and the results you achieved. Here are a few to sprinkle throughout your CV:

You achieved something

• Exceeded targets by…
• Surpassed goals by…
• Attained x targets…

You researched

• Investigated…
• Tested…
• Evaluated…
• Assessed…

You supported customers / colleagues

• Advised...
• Coached...
• Mentored...
• Educated…

You managed or led a team

• Mentored…
• Supervised...
• Trained…
• Oversaw…

You managed a project

• Devised...
• Engineered...
• Implemented...
• Spearheaded...

You changed or improved something

• Redesigned...
• Restructured...
• Revamped...
• Transformed...
• Overhauled...

Choosing CV action words to combine with keyword phrases

Choose action words that describe your role in work and projects you've done in the past. Note that whenever a CV is discussing skills and abilities, an action word is used first. So you might include ten to 15 in your actual CV. When discussing skills, abilities and work history, you may also want to include your keywords and merge the two together.

Words to describe yourself in the summary

Reserve the most powerful words for the summary, which is what the hiring manager may scan after appraising your skills. The summary can answer how you define yourself, based on your career for the past ten or 15 years. Mention in the summary how you can apply your skills to the job, and state the company's name, if possible. For example:

CV action words

• assist
• cultivate
• inspire

Job description keyword phrases

• psycho-educational workshops
• mental health awareness
• managing anxiety

Words to include in the experience section

The experience section of your CV talks about your work history. If you're a recent college graduate, it might discuss your volunteer, intern and travel experiences instead. As you're describing your history, add a few of the action words below while writing. For example:

CV action words

• surpass
• succeed
• reach

Job description keyword phrases

• creative curriculum
• autism and neurodiversity
• valuing and supporting people

Combined words

• surpassed requirements of creative curriculum
• succeeded in educating young adults with autism and other forms of neurodiversity
• reached a consistent level of valuing and supporting people