LOOKING GOOD ON PAPER.(LIFE & LEISURE)

Byline: ANNE CHEN San Jose Mercury News -

A good resume helps applicants get their foot in the door

Resumes are like suits. They need to be tailored to fit you and to appeal to someone you want to impress.

Preparing your resume is like primping for a blind date. First impressions are everything, and there's no way to know for sure what the person who will be evaluating you likes best.

Your resume may be the most important presentation you'll ever make. If the idea of boiling your life down to one or two pages seems overwhelming, consider this: Like a suit, a resume only has to be perfected once, then slightly altered as you go along.

``Too much value is placed on a resume,'' said Dan Staringer, a technical recruiter for Upward Mobility Career Placement Services. ``Unfortunately, it's the only thing we have to paint a picture of a potential employee.''

Picking a format How you tailor your resume depends on your work history and career objectives. Generally, resumes fall into two categories: chronological or functional.

When choosing a resume format, don't get hung up on form.

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