Resums for Freelancers

This booklet describes the difference between the content and style of a traditional resum and the functional resum, which the authors recommend for freelancers seeking work. A skills-based resum is a more effective strategy for freelance editorial professionals because potential clients can identify at a glance whether the freelancer has the skills required for the job.

For serious freelancers committed to self-employment in the communications and publishing industries, the traditional resum is fundamentally flawed. It doesn't accommodate the variety of projects an experienced editorial professional may have worked on as a freelancer. If their last full-time job was years ago, the reverse chronological approach makes it look like they've been unemployed since then. More importantly, a traditional resum doesn't tell a potential client whether the freelancer can do the job.

Managing editors looking for proofreaders, for instance, don't really care about previous job titles or where an applicant went to college. They want to know that they'll do a good, fast, accurate job on schedule and on budget-in other words, that they'll be a reliable professional.

One of the best ways to present oneself as a freelance editorial professional worth hiring is with a functional resum. This type of resum focuses on a freelancer's skills, abilities, and accomplishments, though it may mention previous job experience and educational attainments.

For a self-employed editorial professional who wants to get freelance work, a functional resum extracts valuable skills hidden in the traditional resum and highlights them to emphasize writing and editorial skills for specific clients.

To create a solid functional resum, rethink the old chronological resum. Look at the skills used in all prior jobs, including those outside publishing. Skills developed through volunteer work also count.

The authors have provided four sets of before/after resums to assist the reader's understanding of the differences between the two and to envision how the functional resum might work for them as they pursue self-employment or work on marketing their small business.

In addition to explaining the benefits of the functional resum, this booklet discusses elements of resum design that take into account artificial intelligence screening as well as human foibles that might affect a job offer.

The authors also describe ways to supplement your resum, leverage LinkedIn effectively, target your job search, build your network, and protect yourself against scammers.