Adjectives every resume should include

Can one word make or break your resume?

Some powerful adjectives can set a tone for your resume and help it stand out from the competition. Check out the adjectives hiring experts say can spice up your resume and help you land an interview.

The power of adjectives

Start with “agile” or “flexible,” says Dave Popple, president of Corporate Insights. “These words are definitely the flavor of the month right now. Job seekers should also be prepared with an example of their agility or flexibility.”

Popple also recommends including “resilient.” “Companies believe that their workplace is stressful and want to make sure job seekers can manage the stress,” he explains.

Using the same adjectives an employer uses in a job listing can be helpful, says resume expert Scott Vedder. “Recruiters like me utilize applicant tracking software to search for resumes that best match what we’ve written in the job posting. You can use closely-related synonyms, but it’s best to just use the same adjectives and keywords. It’s important to customize your resume to align with what employers are seeking and the job posting is the key.”

Win the Room CEO Kelly Hadous recommends using “active and positive” adjectives in your resume. For example, “use ‘dedicated’ to show to the hiring manager your passion, willingness and motivation. Use ‘diligent’ to show your love of a good job done. Use ‘confident’ to show that you know who you are as a person and that you can carry any tasks without being afraid or hesitating.”

Amy Wright, who hires assistants, designers and virtual teams for online business owners, says her clients are looking for candidates who include "proactive," "self-starter," '"positive attitude" and "desire to learn” in their resumes. “With these four traits, potential employees and contractors would drool over the chance to work with you — but I'd rather see brief examples of how you have been proactive versus just saying the you are.”

Strategically placed adjectives can highlight your role in a company, says Jennifer Lee Magas, vice president of Magas Media Consultants. She suggests using words such as “thorough," "prompt," "team-centered," "complex," "extensive," "cost effective," "innovative," "versatile" and "customer-focused."

“The best method to determine the adjectives that fit you is to examine the bullet points under your job description and ask the question ‘so what?’ after each bullet,” Magas says. “Use the acronym PAR (project/skill, action, result) to make your descriptions come alive: What was the project you worked on, skill you exercised, and specific role you took on to achieve a measurable result?” Strategic adjectives in these descriptions can help illustrate the value you brought to each project.

An argument against adjectives

Some hiring experts say adjectives aren’t the way to go, though. After awhile, all adjectives sound the same, says Leto Papadopoulos, director of training and development at King & Bishop.

“I spend more time telling people adjectives to remove, rather than picking some to add. Anyone can say on paper that they are visionary, ambitious and collaborative, just to name a few. The idea is to describe how you fit these adjectives through the bullets on your resume—your experience can illustrate them.”

Fine-tune your resume

Whether or not you decide to incorporate adjectives on your resume, your priority should be in making sure it offers clear, impactful evidence of your skills and the value of what you'd bring to the job. Need some help putting all that together? Get a free resume evaluation today from the experts at Monster's Resume Writing Service. You'll get detailed feedback in two business days, including a review of your resume's appearance and content, and a prediction of a recruiter's first impression. It's a quick and easy way to put a little professional polish on your resume, regardless of your word choice.