How to Improve Your Resume in 9 Steps in 2025 [+ Examples]

Looking for a job in 2025 means more competition and less room for “good enough.” A resume that only lists past roles won’t get you noticed. You need one that tells your story, highlights your strengths, and shows employers why you fit the role.

The good news? Making that shift isn’t complicated. Small changes—like tailoring your summary, adding measurable results, and polishing your formatting—can turn your resume into a document that grabs attention and wins interviews. With the right tools and resume tips, you can build something that feels professional and still reflects you.

In this guide, you’ll see why improving your resume matters, how it can open doors, and the exact steps to make yours stand out in today’s job market.

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Struggling to create a resume that stands out? Try Teal’s Resume Builder for free.

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Why should you improve your resume?

Your resume isn’t just a list of jobs—it’s a tool that can shape your career path. While many job seekers view their resume as a simple career history, employers see it as a strategic snapshot of your skills and impact. Used well, it can dramatically influence your career trajectory.

Hiring managers often review hundreds of applications, and a resume that highlights the right details can be the difference between getting an interview and getting passed over. That means knowing how to structure your document, choosing the right resume best practices, and making sure your experience speaks to what hiring managers actually want. 

A well-crafted resume does more than list your experience. It tells a compelling story about your professional journey and demonstrates your potential value to prospective employers.

Every update you make—whether it’s tailoring keywords, quantifying results, or refining your formatting—helps you stand out. You’re not just filling space on a page; you’re building a stronger case for why employers should pick you.

Benefits of improving your resume

A strategically enhanced resume doesn't just look better—it works harder for you throughout your job search.

A well-optimized, improved resume can ensure you:

• Get more interviews by targeting applications to the right roles
• Show up in applicant tracking systems (ATS) with the right keywords
• Make a stronger first impression on hiring managers
• Feel more confident every time you apply
• Hear back more often from recruiters who see your value
• See your skills more clearly and communicate them with impact
• Match with the roles you actually want, not just the ones you qualify for

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👉 Want to see how your current document stacks up? Use Teal’s Resume Checker for instant feedback and ways to improve.

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How to improve your resume effectively

Here are nine steps to improve your resume, so that you can position yourself as an ideal candidate and make a great first impression on hiring managers.

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1. Choose the right resume format for your story

Your resume’s format is the foundation—it decides how your experience and skills are organized. Picking the right one helps recruiters quickly understand your background and makes tailoring easier.

The three most common formats are:

• Reverse chronological: Lists experience from most recent to oldest. Best for steady career growth.
• Functional: Focuses on skills over work history. Best for career changers or those with gaps.
• Combination: Highlights both skills and experience. Best when you want to show transferable skills alongside a solid work history.

Most job seekers should stick with a reverse chronological format, but if you’re pivoting careers or balancing multiple skill sets, a combination resume can work well.

💡 Further reading: Not sure which format feels right for you? Explore Teal’s wide range of free resume templates, so you can start with a structure that matches your career needs:

• Reverse chronological resume templates
• Functional resume templates
• Combination resume templates

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2. Tailor your resume to each job description

One resume won’t work for every job. While it might be tempting to use the same version of your resume for multiple applications, this approach often falls short. Hiring managers can quickly identify generic resumes, and they're looking for candidates who demonstrate a clear understanding of their specific needs.

Tailoring your resume for each role you apply to is therefore one of the most crucial steps in improving your job search success—and it aligns with current resume trends that prioritize personalization, relevance, and clarity. Plus, it shows employers you’ve done the work to connect your experience to their needs.

Every job description contains valuable insights about what employers are seeking in their ideal candidate. Think of it as a cheat sheet: it tells you which skills, tools, and experiences to spotlight.

When you take the time to customize your resume, you do more than check boxes—you prove that you understand the role, the company, and how you can add value. This tells potential employers you’re not just skimming job posts, but actually connecting the dots between your background and their requirements.

To effectively tailor your resume:

• Highlight the top 3–5 skills or qualifications that show up most often in the job posting
• Mirror the language in the job description so your resume feels familiar to both recruiters and applicant tracking systems (ATSs)
• Match your expertise to their specific needs
• Include relevant keywords naturally throughout your resume

Pro Tip: Use Teal's Job Description Keyword Finder to automatically extract the most important keywords from any job description, making resume customization quick and effective.

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3. Write a professional summary that grabs attention

Your summary is the first thing employers see—think of it as your “elevator pitch” in writing. It sets the tone for your entire resume, introduces your qualifications, and should grab the hiring managers attention in seconds.

A strong resume summary bridges the gap between your experience and the role's requirements, showing employers exactly how you fit into their organization.

When crafting your summary, focus on:

• A clear statement of your expertise level and years of experience
• Key achievements that directly align with the target role
• Relevant skills and specializations that match the job requirements
• Industry-specific keywords that demonstrate your knowledge

For example: "Experienced marketing professional seeking new opportunities" in seconds

Instead: Make it specific and impact-driven: "Digital Marketing Manager with 5 years of experience driving engagement through data-driven campaigns, resulting in 40% average growth in conversion rates and $2M+ in additional revenue"

📌 See more inspiration: Browse Teal’s collection of resume summary examples to spark ideas for your own.

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💡Having trouble writing your summary? Teal’s AI Summary Generator takes your experience and the job description, then builds a personalized summary that highlights your strengths and impact—helping you move forward faster.

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4. Show your impact with numbers

Numbers speak louder than vague statements. As you build out your Work Experience section, replace any vague statements with concrete, quantifiable bullet points.

When you show results with real data, you instantly make your accomplishments more credible. Hiring managers don’t just want to know what you did—they want to see the scale of your contributions and how you moved the needle.

Think about the key performance indicators (KPIs) in your current and previous roles. Ask yourself:

• What goals did my team or company track?
• How did my work contribute to growth, savings, or efficiency?
• What data proves that I delivered results?

By including these details, you create a compelling story that shows employers exactly why you’re valuable.

Quantify your achievements by focusing on:

• Percentages of improvement or growth
• Dollar amounts saved or generated
• Time saved or efficiency gained
• Team sizes managed
• Project scopes and budgets
• Customer satisfaction scores

For example: Instead of writing "Responsible for improving team performance" as a bullet point‍

Try: "Led cross-functional team of 12, increasing productivity by 35% and reducing project delivery time by 20% through implementation of agile methodologies"

Want more examples and guidance on adding metrics? See Teal’s full guide on how to quantify your resume for concrete examples of how to use data, percentages, and outcomes to make your accomplishments pop.

💡 Pro Tip: One of the perks of Teal’s Resume Builder is its AI-generated achievements feature. It can pull in keywords from the job description you’re targeting and turn them into strong, impact-driven bullet points—saving you time while making sure your resume speaks the same language as employers.

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One of the advantages of using Teal’s AI Resume Builder to craft your resume is that it comes with an AI-generated achievements option—helping you instantly draft achievements using keywords from the job description you’re working with:

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5. Optimize your formatting for readability

The visual presentation of your resume is just as important as its content. Even the most impressive achievements can get lost in poor formatting.

It helps to think of format and formatting as two different things. Format is the overall structure of your resume (like reverse chronological, functional, or combination). Formatting is the detail work—fonts, spacing, margins, and alignment—that makes your resume clear and readable. This step is all about formatting.

Hiring managers and recruiters often scan resumes in a matter of seconds before deciding whether to read more deeply. Your formatting choices can dramatically impact this initial scan, either encouraging further reading or causing your resume to be overlooked.

The goal of a well-formatted resume is to create one that's both visually appealing and functionally efficient.

Essential formatting elements include:

• Consistent spacing and alignment throughout sections
• Clear, distinctive section headers
• Strategic white space to improve readability
• Professional, ATS-friendly font (like Arial or Calibri)
• Consistent bullet point formatting and indentation
• Margins between 0.5 and 1 inch on all sides

Harriet Clayton, a senior graphic designer with over a decade in the industry, explains it well:

"Format and design work best when they’re in sync. A well-structured resume with thoughtful design makes your experience easier to scan and your strengths easier to see.”

Overall, think of your resume's layout as a roadmap guiding the reader through your professional story—it should be intuitive, clean, and purposeful in its organization.

💡 Want formatting that looks sharp without the hassle? Teal’s Resume Builder automatically applies clean, ATS-friendly formatting. For more best practices, check out our guide on the best resume formats.

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6. Use the right keywords to match what employers want

Including relevant keywords is more than just sprinkling industry terms throughout your resume—it's about demonstrating your fluency in your field while ensuring your resume is well-aligned with what the hiring manager is looking for.

The key is to weave keywords in naturally. Don’t just drop terms into a skills list—work them into your achievements and responsibilities so it’s clear you’ve applied these skills in real situations. That way, your resume sounds authentic to human readers and still checks the boxes ATS is scanning for.

Consider your resume's keywords as part of your professional vocabulary. The language in the job description tells you exactly what employers value most. Use that as a guide for which terms to highlight.

To include relevant keywords, focus on:

• Job-specific technical skills and competencies
• Industry-standard certifications and qualifications
• Tools and technologies mentioned in the job posting
• Methodologies and frameworks relevant to your field
• Soft skills emphasized in the role requirements
• Keywords in context within quantifiable achievements

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💡 Not sure which keywords matter most? Teal’s Job Description Keyword Finder instantly pulls the top skills and terms from any posting, so you can tailor your resume with confidence.

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7. Cut the clutter so your best work stands out

A powerful resume is often more about what you leave out than what you include. Every word should align with the requirements of the job description, while contributing to your professional narrative.

This doesn't mean creating an overly sparse document—rather, it's about ensuring every element serves a strategic purpose in showcasing your qualifications for the target role.

Think of your resume as prime real estate where space is at a premium. Each resume section should directly contribute to demonstrating your fit for the position you're targeting.

This focused approach not only makes your resume more impactful but also shows respect for the reader's time.

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As you review your resume, focus on removing:

• Outdated or irrelevant positions that don't support your current career goals
• Generic or obvious skills that don't differentiate you
• Personal information beyond basic contact details
• Lengthy job descriptions without concrete achievements
• Roles older than 10-15 years (unless highly relevant)
• Hobbies or interests unrelated to the position

Unsure if something belongs? Ask yourself: “Does this detail prove I can do the job I want now?” If the answer is no, cut it.

As J.T. O’Donnell, LinkedIn Top Voice and job search expert, puts it:

 “A lot of people think they should put everything they’ve ever done on a resume to make themselves sound bigger and more important. We call that yelling and selling, and it does not work. It overwhelms the recruiter… and if something is missing, we’ll assume you don’t have that skill because you’ve included everything else. You could actually screen yourself out by having too much information. The goal is to have just enough—stick to the facts, create white space, and entice me to want to contact you.”

(From the LinkedIn Learning course Making Recruiters Come to You)

📌Red flags that weaken your resume

• Listing a full street address (city + state is enough)
• Including salary history or reasons for leaving jobs
• Adding high school education when you have college experience
• Using phrases like “responsible for” instead of impact-driven verbs

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8. Power up your resume with action verbs

Action verbs turn bland job duties into achievements that grab attention. Instead of describing what you were “responsible for,” action verbs show how you drove results and made an impact.

Including strong action verbs immediately engages the reader and provides insight into how you work. And selecting the right ones can elevate even general responsibilities into meaningful contributions. They signal to employers that you're not just an employee, but an active driver of results. They also keep your resume lively and easy to scan.

Each verb should be carefully chosen to accurately reflect your accomplishments.

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How to strengthen your resume with action verbs:

• Replace passive phrases like "responsible for" with dynamic verbs such as "spearheaded," "implemented," or "orchestrated"
• Use present tense verbs for current roles, past tense for previous positions
• Vary your verb choices to maintain reader interest and showcase different aspects of your capabilities
• Select verbs that match the level of responsibility and impact of each achievement
• Choose industry-appropriate terminology that reflects your professional level

💡Struggling to find the right verbs? Teal’s guide to 171 best action verbs for your resume gives you dozens of options—organized by category—so you can showcase your skills in the strongest light.

9. Proofread to give your resume a final polish

The final polish on your resume can make the difference between good and exceptional.

Thorough proofreading is about more than just catching typos—it's about ensuring every element of your resume works together cohesively to show your qualifications.

Take time to review your resume from multiple angles: as a hiring manager scanning quickly, as an ATS system processing the content, and as a colleague evaluating your qualifications.

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As you proofread, be sure to:

• Check for spelling and grammatical errors
• Ensure consistency in formatting across all sections
• Verify all metrics and achievements for accuracy
• Confirm contact information is current and correct
• Test readability by reading the content aloud
• Make sure your resume meets the target job requirements

Pro Tip: Save time and get a second pair of eyes with Teal’s AI Resume Checker. It not only flags errors but also gives you feedback to strengthen readability, consistency, and alignment. For more best practices, explore Teal’s full guide on how to proofread your resume.

Bonus: Use AI (like ChatGPT) to boost your resume-building

AI can help you work smarter, not harder. Tools like ChatGPT and Teal’s AI features let you quickly brainstorm phrasing, tailor content for different roles, and sharpen your resume’s impact while staying true to your own voice.

To make ChatGPT your resume sidekick, prompt it to:

• Draft bullet points from a job description to reflect specific skills
• Turn vague statements into action-packed, results-oriented phrases
• Compose personalized summaries that align with each role’s needs
• Provide feedback on tone and clarity by running sections through AI for friendly edits

And research backs this up. A recent study by MIT Sloan found that job seekers who used AI to improve their resumes were significantly more likely to get interviews and job offers compared to those who didn’t. That’s proof that the right AI prompts can do more than save you time—they can actually increase your chances of landing the role.

The catch? Your results depend on the quality of your prompts. AI only works as well as the instructions you give it. That’s why it’s essential to learn how to give clear, direct prompts. The sharper your guidance, the stronger the AI output.

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💡 Pro Tip: ChatGPT can spark ideas, but Teal’s built-in AI tools go even further. The AI Resume Builder pulls from the job description and your experience to generate tailored summaries and achievements. For a broader look, check out Teal’s guide on 3 ways to use ChatGPT for your job search—it’s packed with actionable ideas to level up your application process.

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Improve your resume with Teal

Improving your resume isn't just about making surface-level changes—it's about strategically presenting your skills and qualifications in a way that resonates with potential employers and opens doors to new opportunities. If you’ve been wondering how to get your resume noticed, it starts with crafting a document that’s both tailored and optimized to make a strong first impression.

Your resume is a living document that should evolve with your career journey. Each application presents a new opportunity to refine, optimize, and tailor your resume, ensuring it emphasizes your strengths and qualifications.

Save time and create a strong resume from the start, with Teal.

Teal's Resume Builder streamlines the entire resume creation process, helping you craft a professional, polished resume that stands out to hiring managers and beats applicant tracking systems.

With features like AI-powered bullet point generation, real-time formatting guidance, Job Description Match Scoring, and the Resume Checker, you can transform your resume from good to exceptional in minutes.

Ready to take your resume—and your job search—to the next level? Sign up for Teal today and access Teal's complete suite of career tools designed to help you land your next dream job faster.

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