Book Review: Unbeatable Resumes by Tony Beshara

Tony Beshara, owner and president of Babich & Associates, the oldest recruitment and job placement firm in Texas, has authored a book that will help you excel in this tough job market. Unbeatable Résumés will help you draft your first resume, dust off an older resume, and provide tips on how to perform your job search in today's competitive environment. Job hunting isn't easy. This book can help by showing you how to identify networking contacts, complement your resume with a compelling cover letter, leverage social media and other online resources, and make yourself stand out above the rest.

Written in a conversational tone with authority, but not talking down to the reader, Beshara shares his decades' worth of experience. The book opens with a Foreword from Dr. Phil McGraw. The Preface sets the tone for the book, running through The Top Ten (BIG) Mistakes of Résumé Writing. Beshara dedicates Chapters 2 - 7 to step by step instructions, which include multiple résumé samples for a variety of industries and levels of employment. The final three chapters coach you on how to use your résumé to get results. The Epilogue features The Top Ten Rules (You Now Know) of Résumé Writing.

This is a fabulous book. If you are looking for a job in this crowded market, this is one resource to have by your side. I was impressed by the content, the tone, the numerous examples, and how realistic, but positive, Beshara is about searching for employment.

One thing that surprised me, and I think would surprise others, is the results of a survey Besahra's company performed about the effectiveness of social media in securing a job offer. Though not scientific by any means, the over 1,600 respondents did not find social media effective in securing job offers. That said, LinkedIn was more effective than others.

When I was a hiring manager, the format of a résumé was just as crucial as the content. You're forced to make decisions on who to call in for an interview based upon one sheet of paper that is supposed to highlight a person's entire work history. Sometimes there's a well-written cover letter to go with it. Sometimes you're judging by the résumé alone. The tips in Unbeatable Résumés would have made a difference to me.. They are the simple little things that make you stand out in a sea of applicants. Following that up with Beshara's tips on how to get results, could make a difference for you and your job search.

Highly recommended!

Paperback: 336 pages

Publisher: AMACOM; 1 edition (June 16, 2011)

ISBN-10: 0814417620

ISBN-13: 978-0814417621

SRP: $16.95

Also available in Kindle format

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinions. I was not compensated in any way for this review.

This is the twenty-ninth book I've read for the following challenge: