A lot of resumes get crazy or formal, but Emily Bain takes hers in a more cute direction. Doinated by a large cartoon image of herself, it goes with a more whimsical look – but also does that hard trick of deviating from standard resume style while keeping all the vital elements in place. It’s a real combo of cuteness, different styles, and rethinking resumes.
Here’s what we can learn from this interesting and charming take:
- The cartoon picture at the top sets a whimsical stage for the resume. That’s a nice bit of mood setting.
- The introduction’s “hello” and the prologue make it personal. That further fits the spirit of the resume – and keeps the use of graphs below from being dehumanized.
- She goes for a two-column resume, which we’ve seen before. In this case it’s an effective division – the left side shows her background, the right what she can do. That’s a good division for keeping the standard elements in a new – and functional – arrangement.
- The use of different text colors, thicknesses, and designs is well done, each color or size having a purpose.
- The little icons next to each title keep the whimsical feel.
- The Skills and Expertese sections are highly effective. It shows her levels of skill with a five-point scale, and how her expertise is divided up in a nice, color-coded method.
- I also like how she uses the hexagons multiple time, maintaining a theme.
- She includes her hobbies at the bottom of the skills section – always good, but it also putting it in the area she shows her abilities emphasizes how they tie into her skills.
- The ending with “let me tell you my story” is a great closer, and fits the personal sense.
- The resume really speaks of a desire to communicate. The careful layout, the use of clever graphs, all show a desire to say something.
I have few criticisms of this resume, but a few things:
- I’d have liked a little more detail in the work section to know a bit more. But it might not be needed.
- The expertise section, though clever, isn’t quite clear.
Overall, a very solid, charming resume that does things differently – but it’s friendliness keeps those changes from seeming aggressive.
Steve’s Summary: I’d love to see a resume like this coming across my desk. Clear, cute, communicates well, and takes a different tact while making it work.
[“50 Shades of Resume” is an analysis of various interesting resumes to celebrate the launch of the second edition of my book “Fan To Pro” and to give our readers inspiration for their own unique creations.]
– Steven Savage