Get Your Resume in Action!

Your resume is your first opportunity to market your skills and highlight your achievements to potential employers. It is the means by which you convey yourself as an active member of your team. An important part of a strong resume is active language, which makes your resume more interesting to read. Your experience should be organized in action statements and should include the outcome of your effort. Remember: Action & Result. 
 

For example:  
Instead of "Responsible for hiring new employees," write "Recruited new hires for the company." 
 

Rather than, "Responsible for maintaining the client database," write A stronger way is "Maintained client database." 
 

For your convenience, we have compiled a list of action verbs for you to use on your resume. Pick and choose from the action verbs listed below by alphabetical order:

 
A-B
answered anticipated appointed appraised 
approached approved arbitrated arranged 
ascertained asked assembled assigned 
assumed assessed assisted adjusted 
administered admitted adopted advanced 
advertised advised advocated aided 
aired affected allocated altered 
amended amplified analyzed attained 
attracted audited augmented authored 
authorized automated awarded balanced 
bargained borrowed bought broadened 
budgeted built   

C 
captured centralized capitalized challenged 
cataloged calculated  carried  chaired  
changed  channeled  charted  checked  
chose  circulated clarified classified 
cleared closed co-authored called 
collaborated collected combined commissioned 
committed communicated compared compiled 
complied completed composed computed 
conceived conceptualized concluded conducted 
conferred constructed consulted contracted 
contrasted contributed contrived controlled 
converted convinced coordinated corrected 
corresponded counseled counted created 
critiqued cultivated cut  

D
debugged  decided  decentralized  decreased  
deferred  defined  delegated  delivered  
demonstrated  depreciated described designated 
designed determined developed devised 
devoted diagrammed directed discounted 
discovered dispatched displayed dissembled 
distinguished distributed diversified divested 
documented doubled drafted 

E 
earned  eased  edited  elected  
eliminated  employed  enabled  encouraged  
endorsed  enforced  engaged engineered 
enhanced enlarged enriched entered 
entertained established estimated evaluated 
examined exceeded exchanged executed 
exempted exercised expanded expedited 
explained exposed extended extracted 

F-H 
facilitated  familiarized  figured  financed  
fit  focused  forecasted  formalized  
formed formulated fortified found 
founded framed fulfilled functioned 
furnished gained gathered gave 
generated governed graded granted 
greeted grouped guided handled 
headed hired hosted 

I
identified  illustrated  illuminated  implemented  
improved  improvised  inaugurated  indoctrinated  
increased  incurred induced influenced 
informed initiated innovated inquired 
inspected inspired installed instigated 
instilled instituted instructed insured 
interfaced interpreted interviewed introduced 
invented inventoried invested investigated 
invited involved isolated issued 

J-M
joined  judged  launched  lectured  
led  lightened  liquidated  litigated 
lobbied localized located maintained 
managed mapped marketed maximized 
measured mediated merchandised merged 
met minimized modeled moderated 
modernized modified monitored motivated 
moved multiplied 

N-O
named  narrated  negotiated  noticed  
nurtured observed obtained offered 
offset opened operated orchestrated 
ordered organized oriented originated 
oversaw 

P
paid  participated  passed  patterned  
perceived  performed  persuaded  pinpointed  
pioneered placed planned polled 
prepared presented preserved prevented 
priced printed prioritized probed 
processed produced profiled projected 
promoted prompted proposed proved 
provided publicized published purchased 
programmed 

Q-R
quantified  quoted  raised  ranked  
rated  reacted  read  received  
recommended  reconciled  recorded  recovered  
recruited rectified redesigned reduced 
referred refined regained regulated 
rehabilitated reinforced reinstated rejected 
remedied remodeled renegotiated reorganized 
replaced repaired reported represented 
requested researched resolved responded 
restored restructured resulted retrieved 
revamped reviewed revised revitalized 
rewarded routed 

S
safeguarded  saved  scheduled  screened  
secured  segmented  selected  sent  
separated  served serviced settled 
shaped showed signed simplified 
sold solved specified speculated 
spoke spread stabilized staffed 
staged standardized stimulated streamlined 
strengthened structured studied submitted 
suggested summarized supervised supplied 
supported surveyed 

T-W
tabulated  tailored  targeted  taught  
terminated  tested  tightened  took  
traced  traded trained transferred 
transformed translated transported traveled 
treated tripled undertook unified 
united updated upgraded used 
utilized validated valued verified 
viewed visited welcomed widened 
witnessed won worked wrote