As the Cincinnati area’s premier resume writing service, our clients come first, by offering an end-to-end experience that other resume writers can’t touch.
We continue with our year-long series on documenting your successes.
“Past performance is the best predictor of future success.”
Recruiters and hiring managers assessing candidates are looking for proof that you can do the job. One of the best ways to assess that is by reviewing your accomplishments from similar roles. However, it can be difficult to remember what you’ve done!
That’s where keeping a journal comes in. Each month for the next year, I will post a summary of daily prompts to help you identify and track your accomplishments throughout the year. You can either write down a specific accomplishment from that day or use the prompt to help you think of a recent accomplishment. You don’t have to use the specific prompt for that day — but they are there to help give you some inspiration.
Keep the journal somewhere you’ll refer to it each day. Taking a few minutes to complete the prompts will make it easier for you to update your résumé and LinkedIn profile.
October 1 – What big goal or project do you want to tackle this month?
October 2 – Have you mediated any arguments in your workplace?
October 3 – What is the most significant thing you have mastered in your current job?
October 4 – Give an example of a project you managed.
October 5 – What have you done to motivate your co-workers to achieve more out of their current roles?
October 6 – How did you add value to your job or company today?
October 7 – Give an example of a time when you navigated a sticky situation at work. What was the situation, and how did you address it?
October 8 – Do you use negotiating skills in your current position? How?
October 9 – Have you obtained any specialized knowledge or expertise in your current role?
October 10 – What have you done to overhaul something that needed changing?
October 11 – Did you oversee a specific task or project? What was it?
October 12 – What project have you accomplished recently that helped attract new clients to the company?
October 13 – Describe a time when you participated in a decision that needed to be made in your current role.
October 14 – Have you pioneered any programs within the organization?
October 15 – Describe a situation in which you perfected a process or issue.
October 16 – Have you increased communication — either internally or externally? How so?
October 17 – Describe an event or activity that you have successfully planned.
October 18 – Have you partnered with individuals outside of your company on any projects or programs?
October 19 – What did you do to boost your company’s revenue or profits?
October 20 – Describe something you organized something in the company.
October 21 – Give an example of how you decreased expenses within your department.
October 22 – Have you completed any courses recently?
October 23 – Describe a crisis that was averted because you checked on something.
October 24 – Have you installed any new methods or procedures in your current role?
October 25 – Did you recruit new customers for the company? How did you do this?
October 26 – Have you procured any resources or information that has been instrumental in the success of your department or company?
October 27 – What have you been instrumental in handling within your department?
October 28 – Have you developed a proposal that was accepted? What was it?
October 29 – Describe something you are proficient at doing.
October 30 – Have you been involved in any reorganization or realignment projects within your division or your company?
October 31 – What is your biggest professional achievement in the past month?
When possible, quantify your accomplishments: specify numbers, percentages, and dollar amounts. Be as detailed as possible with your responses
When turning your prompts into actual accomplishment statements, create a structure to tell a story. The most common format is the CAR statement:
C = What was the challenge?
A = What action did you take?
R = What was the result?
An example of a CAR statement is:
Recruited to tackle an underperforming sales territory characterized by significant account attrition (challenge). Developed contact list for lapsed accounts and initiated contact with decision-makers at each company (action). Reacquired 22% of former customers, resulting in $872,000 in revenue (result).
For a downloadable copy of this month’s accomplishment journal October Accomplishment Tracker
If you missed the prior month’s accomplishment journals you can find them here:
September August July June May April March February January December
