Key words for resumes

How you present yourself on paper can really alter the perception of the reader and one vital way to present yourself as a strong candidate is to use action verbs, or power words within your resume.

To assist you in this task, we have provided you with a list of action words, which you can utilise in your application and resume.

Warning:  Strategic power words will always ensure that the overall thrust of what you are saying is maximised, but it is important to remain truthful at all times, as you will need to substantiate these claims at interview, and have referees that can back you up. So if you did not dramatically increase profit, replace this with a power phrase that more accurately reflects the truth, such as improved profitability. 

 A
ACCELERATED ACCOMPANIED ACCOMPLISHED ACHIEVED ACQUIRED ACTIVATED ADAPTED ADMINISTERED, ADVISED ANALYSED APPROVED ARRANGED, ASPIRED ASSEMBLED ASSISTED

B
BALANCED BRAINSTORMED BUDGETED BUILT

C
CHECKED CLARIFIED CLASSIFIED COMMANDED COMPLETED COMPOSED CONCEIVED, CONDUCTED CONSTRUCTED CONTROLLED CONVERTED COOPERATED COORDINATED CORRELATED CREATED

D
DECIDED DEFINED DELEGATED DELIVERED DEMONSTRATED DESIGNED DETAILED DETECTED DETERMINED DIAGNOSED DISPENSED DEVISED DISCOVERED DISPLAYED DIRECTED DIVERSIFIED DOUBLED

E
EARNED EDITED EDUCATED EFFECTED ELIMINATED ENACTED ENCOURAGED ENGINEERED ENHANCED ESTABLISHED ENSURED EVALUATED EXAMINED EXCEEDED EXECUTED EXIBITED EXPANDED EXPEDITED

F
FACILITATED FILED FINALISED FINANCED FORMED FORMALISED FORMULATED FOUNDED

G
GENERATED GOVERNED GRADUATED GUIDED

H
HANDLED HEADED HELPED HIRED

I
IDENTIFIED ILLUSTRATED IMPLEMENTED IMPROVED IMPROVISED INCREASED INDUCED INFLUENCED INFORMED INITIATED INNOVATED INSPECTED INSPIRED INSTITUTED INSTRUCTED INTEGRATED INTERPRETED INVENTED INVESTIGATED

J
JUDGED JUSTIFIED

L
LAUNCHED LEAD LEARNED LECTURED LICENCED LOCATED

M
MAINTAINED MANAGED MANUFACTURED MARKETED MASTERED MEDIATED MEMORIZED MONITORED MOTIVATED

N
NAVIGATED NEGOTIATED NOMINATED NORMALISED

O
OBSERVED OBTAINED OFFERED OFFICIATED OPERATED ORDERED ORGANISED ORIGINATED OVERCAME

P
PAINTED PARTICIPATED PERCEIVED PERFECTED PERFORMED PERSUADED PILOTED PINPOINTED PIONEERED PHOTOGRAPHED PLACED PLANNED PRAISED PREDICTED PRESCRIBED PREPARED PRESIDED PRESENTED PROCURED PRODUCED PROGRAMMED PROGRESSED PROJECTED PROMPTED PROMOTED PROPOSED PROVED PROVIDED

R
REASONED RECEIVED RECOGNISED RECOMMENDED RECONCILED RECORDED RECRUITED REDUCED REFERED REGULATED REINFORCED RELATED REORGANISED REPOTED RESEARCHED RESOLVED REVAMPED REVIEWED REVISED

S
SATISFIED SCHEDULED SECURED SELECTED SERVED SIMPLIFIED SHAPED SPEARHEADED SOLVED SORTED STABILISED STUDIED STIMULATED STREAMLINED STRUCTURED SUBSTANTIATED SUCCEEDED SUMMERISED SUPERVISED SUPPLIED SUPPLIMENTED SUPPORTED

T
TAUGHT TESTED TRAINED TREATED TRANSCRIBED TRANSFERRED TRANSFORMED TRANSLATED TUTORED TYPED

U
UNIFIED UNITED UPGRADED USED UTILISED

V
VERIFIED VERBALISED

W
WORKED WROTE

Relevant Articles and Resources

• The Great Australian Resume (E-Book by the author of the article - Carolyn Smith)
• How to write a keyword rich resume for online job boards
• Top resume myths
• Preparing for a graduate resume
• Resume formats
• Sample resume objectives
• Should you include hobbies and interests in your resume?
• How to use action words to enhance your resume
• Quick lesson in writing a resume - lesson #1 Power words and achievements
• Resumes for Australia
• Resume versus Curriculum Vitae
• The Top 10 Resume mistakes to avoid
• Free Resume examples for Australia
• Should you use a professional resume writer?
• Why you should blow up your current resume and start from scratch