He went into hyper-mode and got his updated resume out to everyone he knew. He sent it for any position that remotely resembled something he could do. With a feeling of desperation looming, he heard about an opportunity running the marketing department of a DM company just 30 miles from his home. “This is the change I've been waiting for,” he thought. So he faxed his resume and continued to wait.

When two weeks went by and he had no word from the hiring organization, he followed up and was surprised to find out why he hadn't been called. He was told his resume went to the bottom of the pile because it lacked power and focus.

Charlie, like many who are shocked to be unemployed because of downsizing, cutbacks, poor sales or belt-tightening, felt he needed to take immediate action to find another job. While this sounds right, it's exactly the opposite of what a job hunter needs to do.

There is much pre-resume work that needs to be done to create a strategy for your job hunt. Building a resume is like designing a winning direct mail piece. It has to make the sale. It has to be targeted to the audience receiving it.

Trying to describe your work history in two pages or less is daunting. And it can be emotionally challenging: Precisely at a time when you're not feeling very good about yourself, you need to put your best foot forward.

Some people want to shortchange this process and go to a resume mill to get the job done. This is a big mistake. It's important to get yourself away to a quiet place and reflect on your career. What are the things you're most proud of? What challenges or problems did you solve that won your boss's or clients' attention? What were your best moments outside of work?

Self-assessment can be frightening to face, but once you start, it's the best support you can give yourself in getting the resume-writing ball rolling. Look at all you've done in your life. You've overcome obstacles before — and you can do it now.

Now you're ready to write your resume.

• Chronological vs. functional

  In our experience, recruiters prefer chronological resumes over functional ones. Whether it's true or not, an applicant with a functional resume appears to be hiding something. Furthermore, in a functional resume, you can't tell the context or time frame of the applicant's achievements.

• Other technical recommendations

  Type format is left-justified and block style. Professional fonts like Courier or Times Roman are recommended. Boldface the company name and dates and italicize the job title. Use two pages for your resume whether you have 10 years' experience or 30. When you're listing jobs from more than 10 to 15 years ago, give them just one line with company name, title and dates.

  Begin with a profile or work summary statement. This is the part of the document that will be read. It's as important as a 30-second sound bite on a television news story. All the details about who you are and what you've done gets put into this summary. The profile or career history is not an “objective” statement. If you place your career objectives at the top, you may eliminate yourself before you begin if your objective differs from the company's job description.

  Under the company name you should have two to three lines describing what the company does. This gives the hiring manager a framework for understanding your achievements.

• Accomplishments vs. responsibilities

  During the 30 to 45 seconds that recruiters look at a resume, they are looking for results. And that means numbers. Quantify every accomplishment you can (e.g., if you were responsible for a 20% increase in sales or a 15% decrease in expenses). Use bullet points. Narratives are difficult to read and too wordy.

• Use descriptive “action” words

  Go with directed, managed, launched, developed, — not coordinated, supervised, liaison. These are passive words. Tailor your resume to each specific opportunity if you have the experience the hiring company is looking for. You can't be everything to everyone, so you must highlight different aspects of your talents.

Why do people play coy and leave the date of their college graduation off the resume? Do they really think they're hiding their age by doing that? Personal information is extraneous and inappropriate, as is listing your references or saying they are available on request. Well, of course they are!

Mistakes on a resume are like going to an interview with stains on your jacket. They stand out. Unfortunately, typos run rampant on resumes. Whether you've misspelled something that could have been caught using spell-check, or the error distorts the information — like saying you were at a company until November 2004 — the responsibility for getting it right is up to you. Never proofread on screen. Print it out and have someone proofread for typos and grammar.

And now it's ready to send. E-mail or snail mail? Three-quarters of all resumes today are received by e-mail. It's best that you use a Microsoft Word version of your resume so that it can be housed in a company or recruiter database.

When you take a hard look at your work history, it may have the same sting as seeing yourself in a mirror and realizing you have to lose weight. Without that honest assessment, you are in denial and hiding.

Take a good look at yourself. There's a lot to be proud of. Now let's tell the world about you.

CONNIE LaMOTTA is president of LaMotta Strategic Communications Inc., Upper Nyack, NY.

VICTORIA JAMES is president of Victoria James Executive Search Inc., Stamford, CT.