A simple template that's worked for me

Let's get you a solid resume that you can customize for each job. If you happen to already have a good resume, you can 100% use that with success. This is purely a personal preference but since it has worked so well for me, I feel like it would work well for any reader. Note, I did not create or contribute to this resume at all. I stumbled across it on Reddit when I was trying to update my resume and my wife's back in 2018. Colin McIntosh, the creator of the template, also has an AI builder, but I would stay away from that and manually do this yourself. At least for the purpose of this article.

Download: https://sheetsresume.com/resume-template

That link has both a Google doc and Word version of the template. My preference in updating it has always been Google, download as a PDF once you're finished. So, here are the steps to do that.

  1. Click the link above.
  2. Click the "Open Template in Google Docs" button.
  3. Once opened, click "File" and "Make a copy".
  4. Name it appropriately and get started.

He does provide a lot of instructions in the resume in red ink. Nothing in this blog should contradict his notes. This resume has gotten me three jobs, including the current one I've been at for approximately 8 years.

"This resume has gotten me three jobs, including the current one I've been at for approximately 8 years."

The last ten years

Most employers want to see your last ten years of work history. No matter how many jobs in that timeframe, go ahead and list them out with the dates you worked there to make sure you have those ten years covered. Work in reverse chronological order, and just use month/year for your start and end dates. Once you have each job and timespan listed, write three to five sentences on what you did when you were there. If it's a large company, you can probably search for the exact job description. That description will often translate into resume bullet points. Start from the most important things you did in that role, and go from there. It's okay to be wordy and not self-censor these sentences at this point. You're just doing some prep work right now.

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Take the time and handle this before moving on. If you already have a resume you're happy with, you can move on to the next section.

Let's also talk about a scenario where you either don't have ten years of job experience, or you simply have some gaps between jobs. The key here is to be honest. If the gap exists, let it be and prepare to talk about it.

Turn those jobs into IT-focused bullet points

Now that you have your sentences from the previous section, or your bullets from your current resume, let's look at ways we can translate them. Take a look at some of the examples below to see how to translate them. My suggestion is to try to get that IT-focused translation on your own first. If you struggle to find a way to word it right, working with a free AI tool that's good at natural language can help here. Give it the raw sentence you want translated into a bullet point, and tell it to word it in a way that highlights technology, troubleshooting, critical thinking, or customer service skills.

Raw sentence Standard bullet IT-focused translation
I worked the register during the lunch and dinner rush, taking cash and card payments when the lines were long. Operated cash register during high-volume shifts, handling cash and card payments Processed high-volume POS transactions, resolving register errors and payment issues on the spot
I answered the store phone when it rang and sent people to whoever could help them. Answered incoming calls and directed customers to the right department Handled high-volume inbound calls, triaging requests and routing them to the right person
People would come up to me asking where stuff was or wanting to return things, and I'd help them figure it out. Assisted customers with questions, returns, and product selection Delivered front-line customer support, diagnosing problems and de-escalating frustrated customers
When customers were upset about something, I'd listen to them and try to make it right. Handled customer complaints and worked to resolve issues to their satisfaction Resolved escalated complaints, documenting issues and following through to resolution
Whenever someone new started, I'd show them how the register worked and what the store rules were. Trained new employees on store policies, procedures, and register operation Onboarded new team members on internal systems and procedures
At the end of the night I'd count the money in the drawer and make sure it matched the receipts. Counted cash drawer and reconciled receipts at end of shift Performed end-of-day cash reconciliation and audits
"No IT manager is going to think you were restarting servers at Walmart in between stocking."

Remember, you're still being honest. No IT manager is going to think you were restarting servers at Walmart in between stocking. You're simply taking your non-IT work and translating it in a way that showcases the skills you already have that are invaluable to the help desk. Translate each bullet through a lens of customer service, troubleshooting, and critical thinking. For your current job, you'll want three-to-five bullet points that are one sentence each. For any past positions, move down to two-to-three bullets. Your resume shouldn't be more than one page long at any given time. That said, it is okay if you have a master resume that is edited before applying to a job.

The rest of the template

Now, let's assume you've got all of your bullets looking beautiful. On paper, you're a customer service focused techy ready to break into the field. From here, you just need to finish updating the rest of the resume. Let's work through the resume now:

  1. Update your contact information at the top. At this point, you probably don't have a great portfolio or GitHub, so that can be discarded. Remove the red text.
  2. Work Experience: Colin provides a few different examples, and even includes when you've had multiple roles at one company. At this time, my suggestions on this section are:
    1. Current or most recent job gets the most bullet points. As the job gets older or more irrelevant, one bullet point is fine.
    2. Gaps are okay, although the template says if you want to hide them, just provide Year - Year in the span. My opinion on that is that gaps are fine, as long as you can explain them.
  3. In the education section, I've always found simplicity to work best. If you graduated Summa Cum Laude with a 4.0 GPA, include it, it certainly won't hurt.
  4. Certifications, Skills, & Interests
    1. Certifications: Only list them if you have them. Don't put that you're working towards an A+ certification in this section. Also, don't fill it with certifications that aren't IT related. If you have none, it's okay to simply remove that section.
    2. Technologies: List any technologies in here that you may have experience with. O365, Python, PowerShell, or anything that shows you have a higher aptitude for these kinds of things. Also, this is where you could highlight your homelab once you go down that route.
    3. Skills: I'd save this section for your soft-skills including critical thinking and customer service.
    4. Interests: I've never felt the need to share this aspect of myself on a resume. I have no issues discussing it in an interview if it comes up, but it rarely does unless you're vibing with the interviewer really well.

Once you have all of your information on that resume, proofread it a few times. Use spellcheck or an AI to make sure the grammar and mechanics of it look good.

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Make sure all of the red ink notes, the header, and the footer have been removed before using this resume.

Tailor it every single time

If you truly want to get into IT with zero experience, you're going to have to treat every job post as special. Thoroughly read the job description, and try to tailor your master resume to that specific position. Again, you're still being honest, but try to mirror their language a bit. If their description uses "troubleshoot", make sure your bullet point doesn't say "fix". This is why your master template should have more bullet points than you need. You can remove bullets and clean them up as you need to. It shouldn't take more than 15 minutes to do this, and it could be the difference in getting an interview.

The hiring manager should be able to do a quick read on your resume, and see similarities between your resume and the job description. They should be able to feel like the resume was written for their exact posting. Never tailor the master resume. Make a copy, and save the copy that you submitted with YourName_Resume_CompanyName.pdf (or docx if they recommend that for parsing reasons). Tailoring is emphasis, not invention. Keep those same honesty rules that we discussed earlier. You're framing past experience through the lens of critical thinking, troubleshooting, technical aptitude, and customer service.

"Tailoring is emphasis, not invention."

Your first step

Honestly, if you've been following along, the first step is done. You've built a resume that reflects your aptitude with technology and your customer service experience. Once you've got your master resume finished, you're ready to start applying to jobs. Even though a resume is only half of what's needed for a great application, the longer you wait to put in applications, the more job opportunities you might miss. So get out there, apply to jobs, and track where you're applying.

"Perfection is the enemy of good" - Voltaire